Bringing out the melody in a chord

Josephine · 2025-01-06T10:36:36+00:00

Hi all, I need some help. I'm learning a Chopin prelude, Op 28 no 17. So far it went well with bringing the melody out, but now there's a chord where I'm hav...

Josephine

Sam

Thanks Sam, good idea! I will do that with the left hand too, and then two hands together, because maybe it's mostly the left hand. Sometimes piano playing is like drawing a circle with the left hand and a square with the right hand at the same time. My brain doesn't get it. 😅 When I'm trying to play softer with the right hand my left hand starts to play softer as well. Ohhhh piano playing is so difficult. Difficult but fun.

Animisha

A technique for playing a certain note softer that I was taught, is to ghost-play it. That is, play it so softly it doesn't sound at all. Take all the time you need for doing that! Then carefully, give it some sound.

ShiroKuro

Animisha ghost-play

Ooh, that's interesting!

Josephine

Animisha

Great idea! I will try this as well!

Stub

Ghost playing is an exercise my teacher has suggested for learning to voice down a note (or notes). The ghost played notes are then gradually brought in.

pianoloverus

Stub I think this could be helpful If one uses the correct technique I. E. playing with firm fingers to the bottom of the key and concentrating on depressing the key slowly as discussed in the Denis Zhdanov video. If one tries to create a ghost note by playing lightly just on the surface of the key one will be practicing what I would consider the wrong technique for playing very softly. I think a better method related to the one you mentioned would be to use the correct technique and start with a forte dynamic and then gradually reduce the dynamic pound to PP.

JB_PT

Another technique I've heard (and tried): just focus on the one hand and play the note you want to bring out first, followed by the other notes played very softly. Gradually decrease the time delay and then try them all together. That might help get the voice you want to hear locked into your focus.

ShiroKuro

JB_PT I like this idea as well, focusing first on the note you want to bring out seems like it would be easier to be successful at than focusing on the note you want to quiet.

Josephine

JB_PT

I will try that as well, thanks! I'm glad I asked this question. Such good ideas! And this helps for motivation as well.

I just tried the idea of @Animisha for a while and it already improved!

sweelinck

Josephine
The upper C# dotted half note is the melody note. The lower voices you want to bring out are appropriate to voice so that they also are heard.

Josephine

sweelinck

Thanks, it's a different voice indeed, not the main melody. I didn't decribe it correctly.

pianoloverus

Playing very softly while avoiding ghost notes is a fairly difficult and common technical issue that requires practice. It can be exacerbated if the piano's regulation is in bad shape but I will only discuss the technical approach to solving this problem. Just like any technical issue, just practicing it over and over with a hope that the problem will eventually be solved is not nearly as good as having a clear idea about how to solve the problem. I think by far the best explanation of how to play softly while avoiding ghost notes is the one in the following video by Denis Zhdanov:

Although I recommend watching the whole video here is a short summary. Play with firm fingers to the bottom of the key and achieve pp sound by depressing the key slowly. Don't think of playing lightly on the keys or with less than firm fingers or just pushing the keys partially down. He explains everything much better than I can.

Josephine

pianoloverus Just like any technical issue, just practicing it over and over with a hope that the problem will eventually be solved is not nearly as good as having a clear idea about how to solve the problem.

That's exactly why I'm so happy I posted the question here. I'm really glad with all the replies, very helpful!

Thank you for posting the video, I will watch it.

Stub

Also remember that the voiced down note(s) are not the only notes being played, i.e., don't forget the dynamic of the 'voiced up' notes. Dynamic levels are absolute--we can measure decibel levels--but mostly what we are dealing with are relative dynamic levels. So perhaps more focus on the dynamic of the melody note (the C# dotted half note in the score) would be a place to start. Note also that the C# dotted half note is the second note of a two note slur, and thus the first note of the slur (G# dotted quarter note) will be important, too. A lot going on!

Josephine

Stub

It sounds like a conversation to me, the melody in pink, and the reply in blue. Or a thought in pink, and another thought in blue. You know, like a conversation with yourself in your mind.

sweelinck

Your conception is good. I think it is unnecessary to bring out both notes of the octaves in the LH-- either just the top note of the LH material there or all three LH notes also works.

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