The Key Is in the Counting Are you a person who can delay your musical gratification until after you establish the beat?
Or do you have to listen to yourself play the melody right away?
If you’re like most students, you find that keeping the beat is challenging.
Remember hearing one of your favorite songs sung by Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett or Barbra Streisand?
What makes their renditions so special is that they (and other great artists) know how to interpret the melody in their own unique vocal styles. Do you know how they do this?
Frank, Tony, Barbra and others sing so freely because their background ensembles provide them with a great foundation: a GOOD BEAT.
Your Left Hand Is Your “Count Basie Band”
Once you begin seeing your left hand as a solid accompanying ensemble like the Count Basie Band that so often accompanied Sinatra, your piano playing will quickly improve!
You’re probably wondering how you can expect 5 fingers of one hand to do the work of 17 professional performing musicians.
But when you look at what having a solid accompaniment does for the great song stylists, you can see how training your left hand to be the “band” can give your right hand the freedom to “sing”.
The Secret to Getting Unstuck
If you’re like most students, you find that keeping the beat is challenging. You may often feel like counting restricts rather than frees you as you play a song.
The reason for this is that you are trying to accompany the right-hand melody. You probably often find it hard to fit a left hand umpah or 10th with the right hand melody, and so you get frustrated. If you want to get unstuck, you will need to turn your thinking around.
Here’s the secret to getting unstuck: Start by giving your attention to learning the left-hand accompaniment in strict tempo. Once you can do this, everything else will fall into place.
7 Ways to Transform Your 5 Fingers into the “Band”
1. Learn the notes to be played by the left hand. 2. Start counting slowly without playing anything 3. Practice the left hand part alone slowly and in strict rhythm (use a metronome if you feel ready)
4. Start playing the song with hands together at a slow tempo several times: focus mainly on one short (2 to 4 measures) section at a time. 5. Use your metronome to gradually increase the tempo 6. Get a sense of being the “band” by using a rhythm unit (drum machine: many of the inexpensive keyboards have wonderful drum sounds) 7. Listen for the right-hand melody and make sure that you can always hear it when playing hands together
Something to Remember
The next time you listen to one of your favorite artists singing a good song, pay attention to the background. Notice how the solid accompaniment keeps the beat steady, the music flowing and the performer free to express herself.
From now on, give your left hand the long overdue attention that it deserves. Recognize how valuable its role is in creating great music.
Finally, remember that the key to success is in the counting. By starting with the left-hand accompaniment and then developing a solid rhythm, you will be well on your way to playing many good songs. It’s exciting, motivating, and satisfying.
Here's Diana Mascari playing an excerpt from Charlie Parker's Yardbird Suite
Notice how she keeps the beat.
About Diana Mascari
Diana Mascari-Piano Teacher for Adults
Diana Mascari has taught piano to hundreds of students for more than 46 years. She is dedicated to enriching her students’ lives by supporting their individual musicality.
She has developed a teaching system called the Transformational Approach to Piano (TAP System). It offers her students colorful musical insights that broaden their experience beyond traditional methods.
Diana holds two Masters of Music degrees from New England Conservatory, taught keyboard harmony to music majors at Boston University, and was the music director of a multicultural Presbyterian Church for four decades.
Diana has performed as a solo jazz pianist as well as with her ensembles at many colleges and jazz clubs throughout New England. Many of these performances featured Diana's jazz compositions.
As a composer, she has explored the intersection of jazz and classical music. Her compositions reflect her deep appreciation for musical structure, enhanced by the spontaneity and emotion of jazz. Each piece has a timeless sense and is designed to move and inspire. Her works have been performed in Europe, Japan and the Eastern United States.
Diana’s vibrant personality infuses her teaching, performing and composing as she inspires piano students to achieve their musical goals.
To Get Her FREE Course: Accompaniment Styles to Energize Your Piano Playing, click here
To get Her FREE Course: Song Playing Starter Kit for Pianists, click here
To schedule your FREE 30 Minute Piano Lesson Consultation on Zoom, click here.
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