"This book is for pianists who wish to improvise. Many will be experienced performers - perhaps even veteran concert artists - who are nevertheless beginners at improvisation. This contradiction is a reflection of our educational system. Those who attend collegiate music schools spend nearly all time and effort on learning, perfecting, and reciting masterpieces from the standard repertoire. As far as I can remember, no one ever taught or advocated for improvisation during my decade as a student in music schools. Certainly no one ever improvised anything substantial in a concert (except for the jazz musicians, who were, I regret to say, a separate division and generally viewed with complete indifference by the classical community). Nor did any history professor mention that, long ago, improvisation was commonplace and indeed an indispensable skill for much of the daily activity of a working musician. I continue to dedicate a portion of my career to "perfecting and reciting" masterpieces of the repertoire, and teaching my students to do the same. That tradition is dear to me. Still, if I have one regret about my traditional education, it's that it wasn't traditional enough. We have forgotten that in the eighteenth century - those hundred years that form the bedrock of classical music - improvisation was a foundation of music training. Oddly, our discipline has discarded a practice that helped bring it into being. Perhaps it is time to retrieve it from the junk heap of history and give it a good dusting off. I love the legends of the improvisational powers of the masters: Bach creating elaborate fugues on the spot, or Beethoven humiliating Daniel Steibelt by riffing upon and thereby exposing the weakness of the latter's inferior tunes. The stories implied that these abilities were instances of inexplicable genius which we could admire in slack-jawed wonder but never emulate. But that isn't right. Bach could improvise fugues not because he was unique but because almost any properly-trained keyboard player in his day could. Even mediocre talents could improvise mediocre fugues. Bach was exceptionally good at something which pretty much everyone could do at a passable level. They could all do it because it was built into their musical thinking from the very beginning of their training"--

Keyboard artists in the time of J.S. Bach were simultaneously performers, composers, and improvisers. By the twentieth century, however, the art of improvisation was all but lost. Today, vanishingly few classically-trained musicians can improvise with fluent, stylistic integrity. Many now question the system of training that leaves players dependent upon the printed page, and would welcome a new approach to musicianship that would enable modern performers to recapture the remarkable creative freedom of a bygone era. The Pianist's Guide to Historic Improvisation opens a pathway of musical discovery as the reader learns to improvise with confidence and joy. Useful as either a college-level textbook or a guide for independent study, the book is eminently practical. Author John Mortensen explains even the most complex ideas in a lucid, conversational tone, accompanied by hundreds of musical examples. Mortensen pairs every concept with hands-on exercises for step-by-step practice of each skill. Professional-level virtuosity is not required; players of moderate skill can manage the material. Suitable for professionals, conservatory students, and avid amateurs, The Pianist's Guide leads to mastery of improvisational techniques at the Baroque keyboard.

This unique text uses a step-by-step approach to guide the reader from fundamental concepts to advanced topics in improvisation. Each subject is broken into easy to understand segments, gradually becoming more complex as improvisational tools are acquired. Designed for the classically trained pianist with little or no experience in improvisation, it uses the reader’s previous knowledge of basic theory and technique to help accelerate the learning process. Included are more than 450 music examples and illustrations to reinforce the concepts discussed. These concepts are useful in all improvisational settings and can be applied to any musical style. For pianists interested in jazz, there are three chapters dedicated to introducing jazz improvisation, which can be used as the basis for further study in this idiom. Teachers using this text can go online to www.improvisationatthepiano.com to download lesson plans, ask specific questions about improvisation, and view answers to the most frequently asked questions about this book.

A renowned concert pianist traces the instrument's design, manufacture, and music in a delightful "piano's eye-view" of the social history of Western Europe and the United States from the 16th to the 20th centuries.

The Performing Pianist's Guide to Fingering, the much-anticipated companion to Joseph Banowetz's The Pianist's Guide to Pedaling, provides practical fingering solutions for technical musical passages. Banowetz contends that fingering choices require much thought and consideration and that too often these choices are influenced by historical traditions and ideas rather than by actual performance conditions. By returning to the unedited original compositions, he strives to help the advanced pianist think through the composer's musical intent and the actual performance tempo and dynamics when selecting the fingering. Banowetz also includes valuable contributions by Philip Fowke, who examines redistributions by Benno Moiseiwitsch in Rachmaninoff's compositions, and Nancy Lee Harper, who explores the often very different approaches to fingering found in keyboard music of the Baroque era. The Performing Pianist's Guide to Fingering will be useful to the advanced pianist and to instructors looking to guide students in improving this important art.

National Keyboard Workshop book, approved curriculum.

The Complete Book of Modulations for the Pianist is a valuable aid for those wishing to create continuity between pieces in different keys. Its one-measure progressions lead smoothly from one key to another. A brief introductory section presents modulations to and from the key of C major. the four main sections that follow cover: Every Major Key to Each Major Key, Every Key to Each Minor Key, Every Minor Key to Each Minor Key, and Every Minor Key to Each Major Key. Each section is arranged in accordance with the circle of fifths. the modulations presented in this book vary in style and may be adapted for use in many situations. This is a unique book which is a must for any keyboard accompanist's library.