Dynamic Control - Piano Technique Tutorial #01

A video reply to a viewer's question regarding playing pianissimo in relation to fortissimo on a piano.
(And to the skeptics, it really was a cement building block - bough from the builder's yard near the temple.

[@Ciaran55]

I karate chopped my piano in half, what do I do now?

[@MrFredd38]

Try to play on the brick?

[@jguo]

flex tape. or you will only be able to play half tones

[@Jarnagua]

I love how Paul gives multi-disciplined piano lessons. Photography, martial arts, painting, - these are the best piano lessons I've ever seen. And his teaching style is esoteric. These lessons stay in the mind for days - even months - sometimes like riddles, challenging you to solve them. They tickle curiosity during times when the routine of practice can be monotonous. I really love this guy.

[@thebachproject6530]

Me too

[@omnigon4]

that guy is very talented..

[@irvineworld]

i don't think many people can look at themselves in the mirror and say with a straight face "i've played all chopin etudes" the skills you possess right now definitely belong on the big stage

[@williamsmarek]

A man of hidden talents! that analogy was great!

[@Bonecrusher27WTF]

I would love to have piano lessons with THIS guy!

[@alexpolonsky3726]

Your videos are getting alot better. And your speaking has improved dramatically!! Thank you for all the extra effort you put in.

[@Cardstacker]

Excellent! Your tutorials are getting better and better. They are the best I have seen on You Tube. Thanks so much for doing them.

[@zenchopin]

Paul, you're the best piano teacher! Simple, real. thank's

[@MyPreciousVideos1]

Thank You Paul!!!! It's great to see new videos from you.

[@mudkip_btw]

Lol he actually did the brick breaking thing

[@labellepianiste]

Thank you so much for this video tutorial ,you are the greatest professor ! this tutorial is helping a lot ,I am sure my piano pedaling is going to improve by tomorrow,thank you . I wish I was in Thailand your piano lessons are amazing! you are gifted!!

[@yangmesun5559]

thank you Mr Barton. you really does help me in a lot of ways!

[@JawwadHafeez]

Hi Paul, Really apprecite all your video lessons. I started with pieces too and didn't do much of those scale practices, etudes, hanons. But soon afterwards hit a brick wall in ability. So started exercises for Advanced Paino playing. My problem was finger dexterity and specific exercises helped me a lot. Now I create my own exercise when ever I face difficult movements. But still there are so many passages that I can't do and thus have to revisit repetetive exercises again & again.

[@darkrenewed3363]

I have broken 8 boards now, when will I be able to play the third movement?

[@SharmaYelverton]

Awesome! More piano lesson videos again! Can't wait for more.

[@negociosyventasrl2133]

Thanks Paul.

[@OldRabit]

This is a very interesting and very educational! I simply enjoy it.

[@triplea657aaa]

Paul Barton is the best of piano channels on KZbin, possibly the best music channel.

[@iTomAnks]

#01? Woo can't wait for more!

[@l33tr3t]

Note "keybed" means the flat wooden platform the keyframe rests on (the keyframe is a wooden frame holding the keys), great video.

[@pianogirl98]

Wonderful Tutorial video! Thanks for posting!

[@Earlofmar1]

what a brilliant tutorial

[@cantonsandra2840]

You are a beautiful human being! thanks

[@hastheride]

Amazing!!!!! Thanks paul !!!

[@johncao2]

wow, your videos are entertaining, AND educational! :D

[@Eleutherarch]

@PaulBartonPiano You are a fantastic teacher and I'm very glad you have returned to making videos. But please heed the calls of so many on hear and do a tutorial for Chopin's Etude Op 25 no.12 if you have any time. Especially your Version 1 (that blew my mind).

[@JianoJoel]

wait .. what did i just watch lol .. did he really break a brick in half lol !!

[@JOZZYmusic]

YES. More technique, please! :]

[@XPKpianist]

wow, I didn't know you are also a martial arts practitioner!! You really should make commercial recordings since you have your studio!

[@MultipleVirtualPiano]

Oh, now I get it! Indeed, very genius :)

[@JEspin2024]

Nice video sir!

[@marianablue]

Excellent! I wish I could play the piano so I could use your tutorial. Nice to see you after so many years. Last time I saw you, you were playing Beethoven (??) in a town called São João Del Rey. Hope you're well.

[@niruvashishtha6393]

Amazing

[@pablo_brianese]

Thank you for answering! I think I'm going to start looking for the sheet of every piece I like from now on! Is it okay to take a piece you yet can't play and reduce the tempo to make it easier? Love your channel.

[@donisaac3305]

Hi Paul ,it's so interesting for me to follow your tutorials , I have two questions: 1) Can we develop the technique through pieces or we should make it is necessary to play Czerny, Heller,Hannon..etc.. 2) How to practice sight reading?, do you have a tutorial for developing sight reading?.

[@pablo_brianese]

Please, please, could you tell me what are the pieces thar helped you the most while learning? Thank you very much for your playing anyway :).

[@Liduniya]

I will go to Thailand to take your lessons!

[@shahardagan1584]

Hi thanks for all your tutorials they helps me a lot!! Is there any chance you will make some videos about tensions in arms while playing?(specially hands,arms,wrist movement,how to play Hanon's exercises with the correct wrist movement without causing tension, how to resolve tension while playing in the piano...) I am playing piano for long time and always faced this problem and I still not able to solve her or find some resource for a solution so I will really appreciate your help!Thanks in advance

[@Thomas11611]

Hi Paul, I do have a question I would like to ask you. Do you by any chance have a video on how to do wise fingerings for a piece of music? That is one thing I have trouble with is figuring out a smart fingering with all of my pieces, and with that it causes me to hit wrong notes all the time lol.

[@rachmanny]

Hello Paul, I recently visited a very experienced pianist to try and recieve some classes from her. I have been self taught for years, and when I tried to play winter etude for her she told me I am too tense and I need to start with bach, hayden and mozart. While playing easier music is a great point, do I really need to go back from rachmaninoff and chopin? I can play the notes easy, but fixing my tension is another and i think i can achieve that playing these pieces slowly, what do you think?

[@rachmanny]

A couple of factors i want to add. I havent played piano for years and i bought a yamaha clp 340 a month ago :). Maybe starting to practice again with difficult pieces created such tension? My new teacher claims its the clavinova and wants me to get an upright, but this thing cost me so much money, and its made 3 years ago so it cant be too far off an upright piano.

[@lordauriel8724]

you gotta have a well-regulated piano for this though

[@oysteinsoreide4323]

Lord Auriel Have your piano tuned and regulated once or twice a year and it should be fine for most people. If you are picky and the money for it you can get it checked more often.

[@rm9308]

Okay-dokay, SENSEI!

[@robertrussell3935]

So less arm weight when soft? But are the fingers discconnected from the weight of the arm when playing very softly? And more connected when playing loudly?

[@donisaac3305]

Sorry Paul for my confusion in question no.1 ,I mean" Is it necessary to play Czerny,Heller,Hannon...etc... or we can develop the technique through pieces?

[@bri4926]

Could you please tell me what piece you were playing in this video Paul.

[@abrilbhp]

Thanks :)

[@jmedrano141]

Still waiting for tutorial on Op. 10, No. 8! Your input would on this difficult Etude would be profoundly appreciated!

[@superjam18]

Hey Mr. Barton do you think you can run through some Stephen Heller Studies and post them on youtube?

[@MultipleVirtualPiano]

Piano practising is less painful for sure! P.S.: "Grasshopper?"

[@Youtube_deleted_my_favourites]

love PB

[@MultipleVirtualPiano]

A friend of mine told me that being able to brake a block requires that the part of the hand which hits the block doesn't feel the pain (nerveless part). Is that true?

[@elpelu123]

hm... That prelude sounds kinda cool... Somehow I am like just getting into pieces with tons of chords...

[@nightmilk3384]

ye, I've been getting the wrong vibe of the music when I play fortissimos. I wont smash the keyboard from 5 cm above anymore.

[@gladysdatita2736]

he sounds like less whispery version of brian cox

[@moisesespejo5383]

but if u need to play pp but the tempo is relativity fast how i can do?! for example in the first part of liebestraum no 3 when the right hand need to play poco allegro con affetto its super pianisimo but fast.... :S

[@apianoadventure]

Well yeah I mean, that's quite the idea. I also overuse the una corda pedal to play pianissimo and I want to stop that bad habit. I just wonder how much the piano matters, because you have the luck to have a grand piano. I have a schimmel k122 konzert model, high quality upright piano (check it out on my channel) but harsh keyboard. I would say it is "quite difficult to tame" Well playing fortissimo (without sounding percussive) is easy but it's very hard to do a nice quiet pianissimo cuz when I go too slow, no sound comes out :/

[@dantcacenco1]

hmm.. slow = pp, fast = ff? But what about playing a lot of notes fast, but they're all pianissimo? How do I control that?

[@CRb677]

I have a very big problem to play notes to sound rich and my current teacher who holds FTCL told me that my thumbs and fifth fingers are too weak. I know and I understand I have above problems but I don't know how to strengthen them in order to have a correct hand shape to play under many problems although he has showed me and I am very sure that he can play the sound that pianists play like and so his other students can. Please help me please please please. I have no any improvement for almost 5 years. I am too frustrated and I don't know what i can do. I have been learning for 14 years and now I am 27. I thought to concentrate on learning piano for so many years and I forced myself to study BBA but I couldn't make it and I gave up years ago. I really enjoy playing the piano. Sometimes, I practice piano 10 hours a day or at least 3 or 4 hours average a day. I feel like I chose a wrong path to live on. I don't dare to teach piano for living cos I don't want to teach something wrong to anyone. There are too many amateur teachers in Hong Kong. There are only one college to study music performance in HK and It is or it was impossible for me to enroll it, especially they only accept less them 20 students a year on the piano performance subject. I don't want to be one of them. (I am from HK). Nobody understand how stressful i am. My family give me last support this year to show them something and I totally stop my work this year to concentrate so I have to take ATCL trinity or dipabrsm. I failed dipabrsm last year. I was 2 points to pass. Its really diffiult to find a real good teacher in HK. I feel so lost for what I am doing. Please help me please please please.

[@AZmom60]

I'm sorry for your struggles. Perhaps a few lessons with a different teacher would let you hear it in a different way. Also, watching professionals (especially men) on KZbin may be helpful.

[@bigthonks6589]

Hanon the virtuoso pianist in 60 exercises

[@TheWezegan]

What I just watched??? BBC or PaulBarton channel?? nice

[@venesia-3899]

Wait he also knows how to do karate🤣?! There’s nothing he can’t do i guess

[@Putz4Ever]

Whats the intro song?

[@lilCrunkG]

Putz4Ever chopin - waltz in g-flat major, op. 70 no.1

[@abrilbhp]

what about mp?? is it harder than p??

[@RoFinity]

Tutorial étude nº 12 op.25, please???

[@RobinPratt]

And don't forget the PLACEMENT of the piano! Pianos placed in "beautiful" settings often are against full glass walls, hardwood or stone/tile/marble floors. Not one soft surface to be found. A tuner's aural nightmare! Trying to tune a piano in a two story foyer with white marble floors, pillars, iron and wood stairs and glass walls will have your head and ears zinging for days!

[@julygeo3776]

😘

[@raineaye]

1:58 😊

[@FRODOPIANO]

what do you think of my "largo"?

[@SenanSerat]

What about fast pianissimo?

[@redboombuzz]

I use una corda pedals with that. But I can manage to do it without the una corda, yeah it is hard.

[@mudkip_btw]

I've heard some practice tips for doing that, but I can't quite recall. It was something with tapping the keys without producing sound, then very slowing increasing the strength of your touch until you no longer have 'ghost notes' that are not played, and you're satisfied with the lightness of the sound produced. Seemed very useful judging from the video

[@SenanSerat]

Certainly worth a try.

[@thegreenpianist7683]

Rockstar Pirate yeah that's great check out Josh wright's lesson on the moonlight sonata he goes over that

[@jesuspiapri]

A sorrow that there is no translation to the Spanish :(

[@gaara125able]

Básicamente dijo que para tocar fortissimo, o fuerte, debes tocar con mayor rapidez las teclas, y más fuerza, quizá incluso levantar tus manos a una distancia más alta de la normal, para que la velocidad te dé mayor impulso; dijo que imagines como si fueras a presionar las teclas hasta el fondo, incluso más allá del fondo, y para tocar piano o suave... que hagas lo contrario, presionar con menor rapidez, y menor fuerza las teclas del piano, espero que te sea útil :).

[@jaysonpearce-hall7715]

4 Peddles What ?

[@TheRailDoc]

Some grand pianos has 4 pedals, Paul Barton made video about 4th pedal

[@mudkip_btw]

His model grand has a fourth pedal, the harmonic pedal. You should check his channel for what it's about

[@RobinPratt]

All true, but a couple things that also have an direct impact on being able to play softly are: 1.extremely hard hammers as usually found in new lower end Asian pianos or pianos that have been played for years/decades with no voicing nor hammer replacement and, 2.piano actions that are so out of regulation that slop in the geometry of the action will not allow the player to play softly. e.g. excessive left-off, compressed felts etc. Pianos, like any machine, require maintenance & regulating.

[@soulvibe2007]

Grasshopper HAHAHA!

[@Pianoguy32]

i soo wouldnt do that with my hand !

[@anushkar4738]

This man talks in steccato

[@CharbelChopin]

hey paul, do u have a twitter or facebook account?

[@holypeachy]

I play on an old upright at home, it is really hard to play the full range from ppp to fff. I use the “una corda” (which doesnt do what it’s supposed to do). At uni I play on grands that are a joy to play because you can play how he mentions in this video. If you have an upright use the una corda pedal, but keep in mind its because it gives you more range and not because the piece requires it.

[@townnet]

Karate is not Chinese martial art.