Lips - The Art of Bayan Playing

Friedrich Lips Ee Pee Heyy aye ee | Hey sa ero rte Interpretation, and Performance of | 4 a Playing the Accordion Artistically ENcMnPEL AWS eo Ne wnetatittys: = eae. = agFriedrich Lips The Art of Bayan Playing Technique, Interpretation, and Performance of Playing the Accordion Artistically Edited by Ulrich Schmiilling Karthause-Schmiilling Verlagsgesellschaft Kamen 2000Original title: Friedrich Lips Die Kunst des Bajanspiels 1. Auflage, 1991 Die Deutsche Bibliothek - Cataloguing in Publication Data Lips, Friedrich The Art of Bayan Playing. Technique, Interpretation, and Perform- ance of Playing the Accordion Artistically (translated from German by Walshe, Willoughby Ann / edited by Schmilling, Ulrich). Kamen : Karthause-Schmiilling Musikverlag, 2000. ISBN 3-925572-04-X Translation: Willoughby Ann Walshe Proofreading: Peter Gondolf Original editior © 1991 Musikverlag Ulrich Schmiilling, Deutschland English edition: © 2000 by Karthause-Schmiilling Internationale Musikverlage Kamen - Deutschland Printed on high-quality acid-free Italian bond paper, which has an especially aging-resistant structure and matt surface. This book was produced using word processing and music notation software (MS Word and Score) on a personal computer equipped with Windows 98. While working on corrections, we found the software used contains grave technical defects. Therefore, it was impossible for us to achieve a typographically error-free publication. We ask for your understanding. All rights reserved. All parts of this publication are protected by copyright. Any utilization outside the strict limits of the copyright law, without the permission of the publisher, is forbidden and liable to prosecution. This applies in particular to reproductions, translations, microfilm- ing, and storage and processing in electronic retrieval systems. Karthause-Schmiilling - Internationale Musikverlage GmbH Kamen - Vilnius - St. Petersburg - Thessaloniki Postfach 1609 - 59159 Kamen - Deutschland ISBN 3-925572-04-XDear Friends, Now that the 20th century has come to an end, we find ourselves on the threshold to a new millennium. For musicians studying other subjects and instruments that have ex- isted for a long time, this may not be a special event. However, for bayanists and accordionists, it is a much different situation. For the first time in the history of our instrument, we can reflect on the music theory and playing methods of a past century and we are able to perform original music composed for our instruments in a former century. In the long run, time serves as the final judge of music. It always sifts out the best music that composers have created. It always retains the most important music theory and interpretation that leading musicians have initiated. I hope this book will make a modest contribution to influencing and developing bayanistic positively in the 21st century and that it will be useful to all those who want to deepen their studies in the art of playing the bayan-accordion. Moscow, December 1999Dear Friends, Now that the 20th century has come to an end, we find ourselves on the threshold to a new millennium. For musicians studying other subjects and instruments that have ex- isted for a long time, this may not be a special event. However, for bayanists and accordionists, it is a much different situation. For the first time in the history of our instrument, we can reflect on the music theory and playing methods of a past century and we are able to perform original music composed for our instruments in a former century. In the long run, time serves as the final judge of music. It always sifts out the best music that composers have created. It always retains the most important music theory and interpretation that leading musicians have initiated. I hope this book will make a modest contribution to influencing and developing bayanistic positively in the 21st century and that it will be useful to all those who want to deepen their studies in the art of playing the bayan-accordion. Moscow, December 1999Friedrich Lips Friedrich Lips (born November 18, 1948, in the city of Yemanzhelinsk near Chelyabinsk in eastern Ural) was the son of Russian parents of German de- scent. After completing his education at the Glinka Music School in Magni- togorsk in 1967, he moved to Moscow, where he studied at the Gnesin In- stitute for Music Education as master student under Sergey Kolobkov. Even before taking his exams in 1972, he started teaching there in 1971 and became assistant in 1974. He was named assistant professor in 1982 and full professor in 1989. Lips received world recognition in 1969 when he won first prize for brilliant performances at the Internationale Musiktage in Klingenthal (GDR). In 1970, the state concert agent Moskontsert started him on his highly successful career as concert musician. Engagements took him to dozens of countries on all continents and, continuing to the present time, have made him the most famous bayanist in the world. Performing with the world’s leading concert halls (including Concertgebouw in Amsterdam; Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.; and Santori Hall in Tokyo), at the most important music festivals (such as Boston, Huddersfield, Schleswig- Holstein, and Turin), and working with thé most outstanding soloists (among others Gidon Kremer, Yo-Yo Ma, Mark Pekarsky, and Vladimir Tonkha) and chamber musicians as well as prominent orchestras, he has exerted considerable influence on the music scene extending well beyond the bayan-accordion. As professor at the Gnesin Institute in Moscow, Lips has for decades had impressive success as an educator, where his instrumental classes enjoy highest recognition. As guest professor, he teaches at countless music institutions and academies at home and abroad. Among his students are dozens of first-prize winners in all age groupings at the most important international competitions. Lips has also made a name for himself as arranger and editor of numerous classical compositions for bayan-accordion as well as expert author of articles and publications on music theory and history. While the Soviet Union was still extant, many recordings made for radio and records reflect Lips’exceptional creativity; since the political turn of events, he has in the meantime produced over two dozen CDs. Today, these performances are regarded as exemplary for bayan-accordion students. Engaged in propagating artistic, demanding bayanistic, he has been active as international speaker at seminars, workshops, and master courses as well as juror at competitions. He is furthermore founder and artistic director of the annual Moscow Bayan Festival, initiator of international symposia, and either mentor or advisor to international associations. In his continual efforts to foster new literature for the bayan-accordion, Lips is constantly in contact with outstanding composers (Sergey Berinsky, Alek- sandr Kholminov, Yevgeny Derbenko, Edison Denisov, Sofiya Gubaydulina, Vladimir Podgorny, Alfred Schnittke, Vladislav Zolotaryov, and Kirill Vol- kov) and has inspired them to create new pieces, thus paving the way for numerous compositions, many of which in the meantime have already achieved historical value.Willoughby Ann Walshe, born 1937 in San Jose, California, was raised by cross-cultural parents: father (born in Lebanon) a dentist and mother (with German, English, and Irish background) a psychologist. Exhibiting a love for music at the age of four, she began playing the keyboard instruments (accordion, piano, and organ) that her parents had at home. Her mother was an amateur violinist; her grandfather a successful musician in vaudeville times. Willoughby Ann received qualified music instruction and achieved considerable skill. While accordion was principally considered an instrument for performing folk music at that time, she devoted ever more time to the piano and organ to realize her interest in classical music. After graduating from high school, she studied psychology and philosophy at institutions in California and New York. During her studies, she worked at different com- panies, finally starting on a career path in journalism, which led to the position of editor in chief of a computer-business oriented magazine. Nevertheless, she remained passionately connected with her music hobby. In 1957, Willoughby Ann traveled for the first time to Germany, where she became fascinated with the country and its culture. At every opportunity, she returned, ex- periencing the Bayreuth Wagner Festival seven times, attending hundreds of operas and concert halls, and visiting art museums and architectural attractions. She learned German in order to read German philosophy in the original language. Since 1984, when she became editor of the business magazine Made in Germany, published in English and distributed throughout the world from Dreieich near Frankfurt, she has lived and worked in Germany. Attending various music festivals and accordion competitions, she learned the accordion had in the meantime developed to an outstanding instrument for classical music. The instrument once again gained importance to her when she acquired a bayan instrument and continued her music studies as student of German-Russian concert bayan-accordionist Waldemar Heldt. Willoughby Ann has devoted a great deal of time and effort to realizing this English edition of Friedrich Lips’ book, because she is convinced it will further the development of the bayan as classical music instrument. In reflecting on this work, she comments, “In compiling the text, I often felt like I was working on a four-movement composition where Lips is the composer and I am the interpreter.” Frankfurt, May 2000Willoughby Ann Walshe, born 1937 in San Jose, California, was raised by cross-cultural parents: father (born in Lebanon) a dentist and mother (with German, English, and Irish background) a psychologist. Exhibiting a love for musie at the age of four, she began playing the keyboard instruments (accordion, piano, and organ) that her parents had at home. Her mother was an amateur violinist; her grandfather a successful musician in vaudeville times. Willoughby Ann received qualified music instruction and achieved considerable skill While accordion was principally considered an instrument for performing folk music at that time, she devoted ever more time to the piano and organ to realize her interest in classical music. After graduating from high school, she studied psychology and philosophy at institutions in California and New York. During her studies, she worked at different com- panies, finally starting on a career path in journalism, which led to the position of editor in chief of a computer-business oriented magazine. Nevertheless, she remained passionately connected with her music hobby. In 1957, Willoughby Ann traveled for the first time to Germany, where she became fascinated with the country and its culture. At every opportunity, she returned, ex- periencing the Bayreuth Wagner Festival seven times, attending hundreds of operas and concert halls, and visiting art museums and architectural attractions. She learned German in order to read German philosophy in the original language. Since 1984, when she became editor of the business magazine Made in Germany, published in English and distributed throughout the world from Dreieich near Frankfurt, she has lived and worked in Germany. Attending various music festivals and accordion competitions, she learned the accordion had in the meantime developed to an outstanding instrument for classical music, The instrument once again gained importance to her when she acquired a bayan instrument and continued her music studies as student of German-Russian concert bayan-accordionist Waldemar Heldt Willoughby Ann has devoted a great deal of time and effort to realizing this English edition of Friedrich Lips’ book, because she is convinced it will further the development of the bayan as classical music instrument. In reflecting on this work, she comments, “In compiling the text, I often felt like I was working on a four-movement composition where Lips is the composer and I am the interpreter.” Frankfurt, May 2000Content Editor's Introduction to the German Edition Music and Bayan-Accordion in Russia Introduction to the Russian Edition About the Author and His Book. I. Creating Tone.. 1. Forms of Articulation. Bellows-Fingers Coordination . Keystrokes 1. Pressing 2. Tapping. 3. Striking. 4. Glissando. Bellows Techniques. 1. Bellows Shake, Tremolando 2. Bellows Triplets, Triple Bellows Shake ... 3. Bellows Ricochet ... 4, Combined Bellows Techniques. Vibrato 1. Vibrato in the Treble. 2. Vibrato in the Bass 3. Simultaneous Vibrato in Treble and Bass... Performing Various Types of Articulation 1. Legatissimo 2. Legato 3. Portato.. 4. Tenuto. 5. Détaché. 6. Mareato. 7. Non legato 8. Staccato 9. Martellato 10. Staccatissimo. 2. Registers and Their Combinations . Dynamic Tonal Perspectives . PhrasingII. Il. Epilogue . Biographical Register. List of Musical Examples. List of Names References. Playing Technique. 1. Playing Comportment. 2. Elements of Bayan Technique 1. Creating Tone . 2. Ornamentation 3. Scales and Scale-Like Passages 4, Arpeggios in All Form: 5. Two-Tone Combinations. 6. Chords 7. Jumps 8, Polyphony. 3. Fingering... 4. Work on Technique .. Interpreting a Musical Composition The Artistic Picture... 1. Content .. 2. Tempo.. 3. Rhythm .. 4. Interpretation . 154 162 oe ATA 176 Particulars of Concert Activity... 1. Selecting the Repertoire. 2. Before the Concert. 3. Concert Day 4. The Concert. 5. After the Concert 19111 Editor’s Introduction to the German Edition Music and Bayan-Accordion in Russia ‘Twenty-five years have passed since Russian bayanists began their extraor- dinary and incomparable triumphal march through the international music landscape, especially in the western hemisphere. In the 1960s, Russian interpreters set out to redefine musical professionalism and artistic perfection on the bayan-accordion, an instrument previously used primarily for folk music. In the ensuing years, it has become apparent these Russian interpreters have set the world standard for the most outstanding artistic performances on a bayan. Russian bayan musicians, composers, and interpreters have earned tremendous respect and recognition throughout the world for their exceptional artistic performances. Continued success of Soviet-Russian candidates at international music competitions over the years indicates the USSR increasingly determines the level of achievement, which reflects well on the proficiency of its music educators. Therefore, it is interesting and highly enriching to understand the contents and methods of training on this instrument in the Soviet-Russian educational system. This book by FRIEDRICH Lips, a Russian born to German parents and one of the most important and popular representatives of bayan artistry internationally, can justifiably be designated the key to this understanding. Even though the author's observations are based on the Russian bayan instrument (a B-system chromatic button accordion), his fundamental knowledge and experience can be applied equally well to all models and types of accordions—button as well as keyboard instruments—found throughout the world. Therefore, every accordionist can benefit from the knowledge, ability, and experiences of the author. The word bayan, which originates in the Russian language, can be used as a synonym for the word accordion. This applies not only to the word itself, but also to word combinations and extensions, such as playing the bayan, bayan artistry, and bayanist.12 Bayanists were not the first instrumentalists from Russia to demonstrate an almost fiendish and inconceivable greatness. Piano virtuosos in particular have continually been the center of discussion since the end of the 18th century. EMI GILELS, VLADIMIR Horowitz, SERGEY RAKHMANINOV, SVYATOSLAV RICHTER, NIKOLAY RIMSKY-KORSAKOV, ALEKSANDR SKRYABIN, and PYOTR TCHAIKOVSKY were just a few of the nearly endless number of artists from the Soviet Union, respectively Russia, who have become famous beyond the borders of their country, attained historical world renown, and served as a legend of their genre. Of course, such outstanding results are based on an excellent music education system. Naturally, the author, who grew up in the traditions of Rus- sian art and music schools, understands this well. Therefore, bayanist FRIEDRICH Lips follows the educational traditions of Russian piano playing and transfers them as far as possible to the bayan—and of course the accordion, His method proves to be exceptionally useful. FRIEDRICH LIPS modeled his book on the literary work The Art of Piano Playing written by Soviet genius and piano educator HEINRICH NEUHAUS (GENRIKH NEYGAUZ). This explains why Lips never tired of citing NEUHAUS and referring to his wealth of knowledge. Instrumental Development In 1907 in St. Petersburg, as the instrument master builder PYOTR STERLI- GOV presented to the musician and educator YAKOV F. ORLANSKY-TITAREN- KO a four-row, button harmonica especially constructed for him, STERLIGOV could not anticipate this instrument, which he named bayan (the Russian term for minstrel, rhapsodist) would continue to exist under this name and find extensive distribution not only in Russia, but also in many other countries. Since that time, the harmonica and later the accordion have undergone tremendous technical and musical development. The best known accordion manufacturers designate their top-quality, concert accordions—regardless whether they are equipped with piano or button keyboards—as bayans. We will leave it up to music history to judge whether this practice is justified.13 When Viennese ZYRILL DEMIAN registered in 1829 a patent for an accordion, it not only laid the groundwork for future development, but also specified a name— accordion. FRIEDRICH Lips, one of the world’s leading representatives of bayanistic, attempts in this book to present his artistic beliefs as well as build a bridge between the art of playing a bayan and music art in general. He draws upon the vast knowledge and rich experiences of important music authorities as well as educators, artists, and philosophers with artistic and scientific achievements in the past, who have greatly influenced the genre of playing the bayan and accordion. Even though many of the facts described, recommendations made, and problems presented and solved in this book may already be second nature for many trained artists, it is of exceeding importance that just such an authority as FRIEDRICH LIPS has devoted himself to the task of organizing, clarifying, and compiling the material. In this way, it can be made available to amateur and professional musicians: folk artists, concert musicians, students, and educators. The Art of Bayan Playing That is the elevated school of playing the bayan as it is practiced in Russia in children’s music schools, lower grade secondary music schools, and music colleges. These learning institutions place great emphasis on playing both folk and concert music artistically and with a high level of virtuosity. Even though this book appears at first glance to be a translation of the original book (published in Moscow, Russia, 1985), in reality, it goes far beyond the original. «Based on social-political changes occurring recently in the Soviet Union, the publisher has found it appropriate to eliminate or revise in the translation obligatory stylistic phrases and manifestations as well as to remove or reword typical social-political phrases contained in the original. Pro-Russian remarks were mandatory for books written and published before the time of MIKHAIL GORBACHOV.14 * New playing techniques and educational methods implemented since the completion of the Russian manuscript have been taken into consideration. One example is the very recently discovered ricochet quintolet bellows technique. * Numerous technical terms, concepts, and explanations—written for the Soviet-Russian reader with his particular general knowledge, spiritual horizon, and semantic fields of knowledge—were adapted to the western reader’s sphere of knowledge. * Professional explanations and comments regarding various musical- technical terms have been represented in a more extensive and detailed manner than in the fairly spartan Russian original. ‘The author's individual manner of speaking, which the publisher of this book deems worth retaining due to its descriptiveness and open unaffected- ness, has essentially remained intact. It is possible that modern-day, western crities will object to some outmoded expressions and/or to the unusual verbal pathos and flowery language. However, this gives the reader valuable insight into the author’s mentality and character. Wording and expressions that give the original book its coloration, but may be somewhat unusual for the English language, have also been retained. These reveal the author’s ability to present open, flexible, creative, and original thoughts both in words and music. In this way, he enriches the writing style and provides guidance to the amateur. His superior competence gives him the right to make authoritarian directives. Naturally, this book does not need to be read and studied successively from beginning to end. All sections in the four chapters have been conceived of as individual units and can be studied singly according to need and interest. Nevertheless, the book as a whole represents a complete perspective. The concepts here are complex and insightful and are presented logically and knowledgeably.15 History of the Russian School In speaking about the music culture in Russia around the middle of the 19" century, ANTON RUBINSTEIN wrote, “One cannot speak of a blooming music life.” (Karl Laux, “Russia—The 19» Century,” in: Friedrich Blume, pub., Music in History and the Present, vol. 11 (Kassel, 1963], p. 1164). In order to remedy this situation, he founded (in collaboration with others) the first music conservatory in St. Petersburg in 1862. His brother, NIKO- LAY RUBINSTEIN, followed this example in 1866, when he founded the Mos- cow Conservatory. In 1895, the foundation stone for today’s National Gne- sin Institute for Music Education was laid by YELENA GNESINA when she started the Gnesin Music School in Moscow. At that time, Russian music culture was determined to catch up as quickly as possible with the level already achieved by western countries. In this regard, KARL LAUX wrote, “Compared with the 18 century, Russian musicians are now concerned with assimilating impulses from the West and transforming them into their own idiom. The receptibility (“ability to acquire, assimilate, and absorb knowledge until it becomes an innate characteristic”) ascribed to German musicians during the baroque period by F. BLUME was a goal of Russian musicians in the 19% century. With this future development in mind, the father of Russian national music, MIKHAIL GLINKA, attended a German school under the tutelage of SIEGFRIED DEHN and attempted to achieve a legitimate connection between the Western European fugue and the Russian folk song. Coincidentally, there was a desire to continue the tradition of Russian music with its closeness to life and connection with the folk on an artistically ex- acting level. Efforts were made to ensure this high quality of music would be appreciated by the public. Of NIKOLAY RUBINSTEIN, who worked in this direction, it is said, “He carefully educated his students to become real artists, unrelentingly opposed all signs of dilettantism, severely reprimanded young pianists for interpreting popular-modish literature in a superficial- sentimental manner, and definitely would not allow them to play such pieces.” (Herbert Sahling, Notations About Playing the Piano, (Leipzig, 1976], p. 12.) In discussing the stylistics of composition, GLINKA said, “It seems to me that artistic requirements must correspond to the needs of the century and music16 pieces should be written so they can be understood by the connoisseur as well as the general public” (Laux, p. 1163). He further stated, “The folk creates the music; we artists only arrange it” (Sahling, p. 11). In writing about the art of his time, the revolutionary-democratic publicist ALEKSANDR GERTSEN said, “The poet and the artist remain national in their works. Whatever goals they have, whatever ideas they conceive, they always create an image of their folk” (Sahling). “Advanced principles having a decisive influence on the entire artistic development of that time can be characterized as: striving for folk unity, realizing the immediacy of artistic statement, searching for conformity with social development, and denying external effects” (Sahling, p. 12). Several generalities describe the most representative style of teaching music in the Russian schools during that period. “To produce the best possible performance, it was essential to understand the content of the composition, use the artistic statement to produce immediacy and reality, pay uncondi- tional attention to performing the notation precisely, consider tonal formation, ensure smooth and plastic playing movements, and develop the individuality and personality of the student” (Sahling, p. 14). “The October Revolution of 1917 imparted a new importance to art. Official publications stressed the duty to carefully preserve all artistic achievements accomplished in the past and to energetically support all artists. This was a time when amateur music had a great revival and many thousands of work- ers were caught up in the movement.” (Yury Keldysh, “Russia—Russian Music After 1914,” in: Friedrich Blume, pub., Music in History and the Present, vol. 11, [Kassel, 1963], p. 1168.) In a way, a motto served as both a requirement and a duty: Keep an eye on the folk as you educate it— imperceptibly. During the first years after the October Revolution, the structure of conservatories was changed. Departments of composition, music science, interpretation, and education (also educating music teachers for public schools) were added. New study plans and teaching programs were developed. As in all Russian institutions and schools, there were no charges for studying at the conservatories._ As early as 1918, the first folk schools for musical education were founded. In 1922, children’s music schools were established. They had and still have the task of exposing as many children as possible to music education in addition to their general schooling in lower grade secondary schools. The most talented children are prepared for study at advanced music schools. Spe- cialty schools for music at the intermediate educational level have their origin in the time before the revolution. Study at these schools allows students to become engaged in educational activity at children’s music schools. Qualified graduates can be admitted or delegated to advanced studies at a conservatory. As an alternative to this educational path, special secondary music schools were established beginning in 1935 through the efforts of ALEXANDER GOLDENWEISER from the Moscow Conservatory. The intention was to accept exceptionally talented music students and educate them further. These secondary music schools combine general lower grade secondary school and music school. Their activity encompasses imparting general knowledge as well as broad musical education, so that students can be prepared for study at a music college or conservatory. Music conservatories in Russia represent the highest music education level and prepare students primarily for careers as soloists. Successful completion enables graduates to teach at specialty music schools. The Gnesin In- stitute for Music Education in Moscow can be cited as an example. Having conservatory status, it prepares students especially for instrumental and educational careers. This basic form of national music educational system was introduced in the 1920s and 1930s. The following sketch should help clarify the present music education system in Russia:18 Branches of General School Education and Path of Music Education Age General Separate Integrated (years) School Education Music Education Music Education 3 Preschool Preschool 4 (Kindergarten) (Kindergarten) 5 : a 7 : : 7 Secondary School Children’s/Youth Secondary School for Music 8 : Secondary School 9 “ (Instrument courses and (Special secondary schools 10 . ‘accompanying theoretical with emphasis on music/art) rt : and practical music . 12 7 development courses) : 13 : . : a qi : : i « : a . . « 1" « . “ 18 General Conservatory Conservatory High School 19 (or university or : (in exceptional cases, other special . also study at other 20 colleges) “ music schools) a f : = : q : In April 1932, the Russian Composers’ Association was founded. This con- tributed to developing professional mastery, enabled continued advance- ment in students’ artistic performances, and incorporated music into the great tradition of Russian art. In the following 40 years, the number of music education institutes increased considerably. In 1970 alone, there were in Russia 3,649 children’smusic schools, 1,210 music schools for adult education, 206 specialty music schools, 35 secondary music schools, and 24 music colleges (conservatories). Surely, this comprehensive system of musical education is one reason for the outstanding results of Soviet interpreters. However, it would be a fatal error to ascribe success to the educational system alone. One must also credit the Soviet-Russian society for heartily encouraging and supporting individuals in developing their skills and talents to the maximum degree possible. A further important impetus is the emphasis placed on continuing the great Russian tradition of piano playing. Exceptional artistic performances in this area result from the ever-growing interest of Russian people in all cultural and musical activities, especially in developing piano culture. Contributing to these successes is the intensive, artistic, educational, and scientific work of professors, who use their considerable skills wisely. The starting point for Russian educators’ work is connecting the education system with the reality of life. Russian educators are conscious their responsibility lies not only in training outstanding musicians, but also in fashioning knowledgeable and active compatriots who will become instrumental in developing Russian culture. “One of the basic tasks of music education is to develop artists,” wrote GINZBURG in a publication. “The true interpreter is a harbinger of music development and regards it his primary responsibility to present the best compositions of classical and modern music to listeners.” GOLDENWEISER, FEYNBERG, and other educators especially underscore this aspect of artistic education. FEYNBERG observed, “The interpreter can feel he is justified in practicing his high profession only when he presents his art to the broadest audience possible.” He further urges, “The interpreter must have an advanced world outlook as well as a varied esthetic and musical development.” Furthermore, Soviet-Russian colleagues believe that art and especially music are able to reproduce human attitudes and emotions. Music represents an essential factor in developing personality. It is irreplaceable for affecting everyone's inner world; creating emotional images that decisively influence the listener in his own feeling world; and developing taste, world knowledge, and behavior. In contrast to every other branch of art, music is able to influence personality development. Thus, Russian teachers place special em-20 phasis on engaging students in music education. Artistic-esthetic education is brought about primarily through work on musical art. For this reason, the artistic picture, musical language, and musical content of a composition are considered the starting point for all educational discussions. The emotionally convincing and stirring form of the composition and the development of the interpreter’s personality form the core of all educational considerations. EMIL GILELS declared, “Training a musician to achieve a deep personal relationship to a composition is the central educational task.” At the same time, Soviet-Russian educators—in contrast to those in the western world who think technique is acquired by untiring study of basic technical playing forms and exercises—are of the opinion that real technical mastery can only occur by coming to grips with artistic literature (Sahling, p. 20). “I continually remind my students,” NEUHAUS said, “that the word ‘technique’ comes from the Greek ‘téchni,’ which means ‘art’ Even very talented musicians find it difficult to draw a line precisely between work on technique and work on music.” (Heinrich Neuhaus, The Art of Piano Playing (Leipzig, 1969], p. 15.) Reminiscing on his early studies, ALFRED REISENAUER wrote, “Before I learned anything about the keyboard or how to read a music score, my mother took me aside one day and explained to me in very simple words the wonderful, natural interrelations in music. I don’t know if she did that in- tuitively, but she practiced something I think is the most important, but also the most neglected area in a child’s education. The biggest mistake music educators make is they don’t teach music, but they start out explain- ing details about the instrument and how to read music notation. Nothing can dull the musical intellect of a child more than precisely this kind of instruction.” ARTUR SCHNABEL carried this train of thought further: “I would completely eliminate the word ‘practice’ from the vocabulary, because it becomes a nightmare for children. I would ask: Did you play music today? If not, then go home and play music” (Sahling, p. 21). In concluding this discussion, the most important characteristic of the Rus- sian piano-playing school should be emphasized again. That is its deep tra-21 ditional connection to the best performances of Russian piano playing in the 19% century. It is not only out of reverence for the past, but also knowledge about the Russian piano-playing school, when SAK writes in the preliminary remarks in his article, “We should always remember the foundation for the success of pianists from the Russian music education system is based on requiring mature emotions and clarity of thinking corresponding to life’s situations” (Sahling, p. 10). The art of bayan playing originates from this tradition of continually veri- fied successful teaching knowledge, which has been described here in detail quite consciously. Thanks to this fertile soil, playing the bayan-accordion artistically has developed numerous adherents all over the world. Leaning heavily on the history and development of pianistic, bayanistic— guided by the same basic fundamentals—originated in a completely parallel manner transplanted in time. Corresponding to GLINKa’s postulates, which were simultaneously perceived as axioms, bayanists attempted to connect the tradition of their instrument and gradually, slowly, and continually developed playing on the instrument into an art—without ever forgetting they are playing on a folk instrument. Contrarily, accordionistic in the western world developed in a quite different manner. At a certain point in time, there occurred a premeditated and conscious break with traditional folk music. Since then, a distinction has been made between less artistically valuable folk music and artistically discern- ing concert music, a so-called new music. Based on this, groups of accordionists diametrically opposed in their thinking and behavior have been organized and exist to this day. This has caused a great deal of dissention to occur in the ranks. While interpreters, artists, educators, and students in the West waste not only their own energy but also that of the public in exhausting arguments to maintain the artificial distance between folk and artistic music, bayanists in Russia have managed to steer their united plu- ral energy, thanks to their unity, in one direction.22 Opening to the West Until 1966, Russian bayan artistry went through an inner development. It was expected that a high artistic level could be attained based on the folk music typically played on the instrument. Bayanists frequently traveled to competitions in countries controlled by the socialistic government. In 1966, Soviet bayanists penetrated into the western world for the first time by participating in the Internationale Vogtlndische Musiktage (Inter- national Vogtland Music Days for Accordionists) in Klingenthal (at that time still GDR) where they presented themselves to a small audience at this focal point between West and East. Every year thereafter until 1990, when the Iron Curtain was dismantled, a gradual, but continual, opening to the West could be observed. Irregularly, but with increasing frequency, Russian bayanists participated in purely western competitions. In 1990, at the International Accordion Competition in Kansas City, Mis- souri (USA), for the first time more than two or three Soviet-Russian bayanists appeared. On that occasion, around two dozen participated! The same thing happened later at other international competitions and music events taking place in Castelfidardo (Italy), Klingenthal (Germany), Grand Prix de ’Accordéon (France), and Trophée Mondial (Spain). In this manner, Soviet-Russian bayanists presented their art to the West. Gradually, the path that led in the Soviet Union to well-known successes and phenomenal performances became better known. Outside observers on this side of the Iron Curtain learned the Soviet-Russian success recipe is not based on continuous, almost inhuman, mechanical drill in some kind of musical military training, as was previously assumed. Objectively considered, this is even more a German attitude that hardly corresponds to the Russian mentality. Rather, people found out that Soviet-Russian education in music is based on continual, goal-oriented education that includes the knowledge of old masters. In other parts of the world, for example Germany, where conservatories concentrate on isolated instrumentalistic rather than a wide variety of music and often neglect universal artistic training, students suffer from a regrettable artistic monotony. In the West, development based on traditions is generally considered an unmodern, antiquated process or even nationalistic; in Soviet-Russia, it is the rule. Here, discussion is continually sought and provoked with every-23 body, whether a person has sufficient background and knowledge or not. ‘There, generally, activity is based on things proven successful in the past. Based on the rapidly increasing influence of the West on the East (especially on Soviet-Russian culture) in all material and immaterial areas, the publisher wonders how long Russian high culture will be able to resist the superficial music commerce of the West. Translating Names In working on translating a Russian text into a foreign language that is not based on the Cyrillic alphabet underlying the Russian language, the lexicog- rapher or publisher of texts finds himself confronted with the problem of correctly translating names, titles, and special characters into the targeted language. Philology prescribes generally applicable rules for transcribing names and titles from the Russian Cyrillic-based alphabet to the English Latin-based alphabet. In this book, transcription of Russian names generally occurs according to rules for transcription presented by the Library of Congress (Washington D.C., USA). In the footnotes and bibliography, names are additionally included in their internationally valid ISO transliteration. Titles of literary sources (books, newspapers, and articles) have not been transcribed, but only transliterated according to ISO rules. The same is true for song texts and titles. As assistance to the reader, titles are also supplied in an English translation. In the case of book and article titles, the reader should not assume that just because a Russian source title has been translated into Eng- lish here that it also exists partially or completely in English. This is the case in only a few isolated cases. It is recommended that readers use the transcriptions of Russian bayanists’, composers’, educators’, and artists’ names provided in this book when publishing books, articles, programs, posters, and other materials for music events and purposes in order to avoid spelling errors. The foreign nature of the Cyrillic alphabet as well as the political, ethnic, and social isolation of24 the Soviet Union in the past have led to indistinct and confusing transcriptions of Russian names. Thus, we find in use, for example, Solotarev, Solo- tariev, Solotarjev, Solotarjow, Solotarijew, Zolotarev, Zolotariov, ete. or Prokofieff, Prokoffjew, Prokofjev, Prokofiew, Prokofjew, Prokofiev, ete. Basically, there is only one correct transcription for any language. Tran- scription is oriented to the phonetic pronunciation modalities of the targeted language. It attempts, using available alphabetic-phonetic means and spelling material, to achieve a transcription that is as near as possible to the phonetics of the original language and represent a manageable, identifiable word picture for common linguistic use. By contrast, transliteration uses diacritical signs to achieve a spelling to retain the original spelling of a name. In contrast to transcription, a transliterated word can be precisely reconstructed into its original alphabet. Therefore, transliteration is precise, objective, and absolutely necessary for researching sources in a library. For example, one can compare V. Zolotarév, S. Prokof’ev (ISO transliteration); W. Solotarjow, S. Prokofjew (German transcription); V. Zolotaryov, V. Zolotarév, S. Prokofiev and S. Prokofyev (English transcriptions); V. Zolota- riov, S. Prokofiev (French transcription). The word bayan is the English transliteration of the word from Cyrillic. This word has been retained in this book for the purpose of expanding the concept accordion. The reader should remember the expression bayan is connected with a more highly developed instrument than the accordion. Therefore a more comprehensive music culture is encompassed under the concept bayanistic. Ulrich T. Schmiilling Kamen, June 199125 Introduction to the Russian Edition About the Author and His Book Playing an accordion artistically, to which FRIEDRICH Lips has dedicated this book, is still a relatively young genre, which initially experienced widespread acceptance and considerable development in Soviet Russia. A musical education system for artists playing on folk instruments, to which the bayan belongs, was established in the Soviet Union at the end of the 1920s and beginning of the 1930s. This important beginning was considerably supported by such great person- alities of education, art, and culture as ALEKSANDR GLAZUNOV, MIKHAIL IPPOLITOV-IVANOV, NADEZHDA KRUPSKAYA, ANATOLY LUNACHARSKY, and VSEVOLOD MEYERGOLD (among many others). Talented musicians in various branches shared their professional experience with folk instrument artists unselfishly and helped them find access to the world of great music quickly. Today, thousands of folk instrument musicians, including interpreters, conductors, educators, ensemble and orchestra musicians, and concert masters, work successfully in the Soviet Union at the highest artistic level. The best among them have been awarded with exemplary national honorary titles and have achieved high academic level. Practical successes and advances in the areas of interpretation and education gradually created the basis for publishing collected experiences in the form of study books and other educational training materials. Significantly, the most important works and publications covering various subjects appeared at the beginning of the 1960s. By this time, musical education was so well established that systematic instruction involving general technical problems and their solutions could be introduced.26 At the same time, mass production of a new musically and technically advanced bayan! instrument began. This quickly became popular first in music colleges and music secondary schools and later also in childrens’ music schools. This process had a significant influence on expanding and intensifying the education of future bayan artists. Within a short time, bayanists’ repertoire changed considerably to accommodate the concert instruments’ capability for increasingly varied musical expression and ever more difficult playing technique. This enriched the general level of interpretation culture considerably. Substantial changes also took place in educating the new generation of bayanists. New criteria and standards were developed and presented in literature for bayanists. New theoretical knowledge was extracted and examined using scientific (precise) and empirical (objective) procedures and then combined with practice. In the meantime, numerous dissertations, essays, and other documents about various problems of music education, psychology, history, and interpretation theory regarding folk instrument art have been published in Russia. From this, we can see the important accomplishments of music practice and education received a solid scientific foundation, which brought about further positive development. Nowadays, a bayanist is a well-educated musician, who has been raised in the best traditions of regional, national, and foreign music culture. This is especially true for the author of this book, FRIEDRICH Lis, who has been named Honored Artist of the Russian Socialistic Federal Soviet Republic and since appointed professor at the national Gnesin Insti- tute for Music Education in Moscow, where he is currently active. FRIEDRICH Lips’ creative activity began in the 1970s, as the Russian bayan school started achieving its leading position in international comparison. With the brilliant successes of the new, young generation of bayanists, espe- * This involved the Russian bayan, called golovo-vyborny, featuring a bass manual equipped with @ converter mechanism, which uncouples the chord structure of the (coupled) standard bass and switches (converts) it to a manual consisting of melody (uncoupled) bass tones. ® More detailed information about FRIEDRICH LIPS’ activities can be found in the article “Bayan Artist” by POLINA VAYDMAN and MIKHAIL IMKHANITSKY (P, Vajdman / M. Imhanickij, “Ba- Janist hudodnik” (Polina Vaydman / Mikhail Imkhanitsky, “Bayan Artist”), Sovetskaja muzyka, No. 3, 1979).27 cially at the music competitions Coupe Mondiale and International Vogtland Music Days Klingental (GDR), the worldwide triumphal march of Russian bayanistic began: VYACHESLAV GALKIN (1966, Klingenthal), VIKTOR GOLUB- NICHI (1968, Klingenthal), YURI VOSTRELOV (1968, Leicester, England), FRIEDRICH Lips (1969, Klingenthal), VALERY PETROV (1969, New York, USA), ALEKSANDR SKLYAROV (1971, Bruges, Belgium), YAROSLAV KOVAL- CHUK (1971, Klingenthal), ALEKSANDR DMITRIYEV (1972, Klingenthal), SER- GEY SLEPOKUROV (1973, Vichy, France), ALEKSANDR KUZNETSOV (1974, Stockholm, Sweden), ALEKSANDR KRUPIN (1974, Klingenthal), VLADIMIR ZU- BITSKY (1975, Helsinki, Finland), VLADIMIR BULAVKO (1975, Klingenthal), VIKTOR FILCHOV (1976, Washington D.C., USA), VLADIMIR AVRALYOV (1976, Klingenthal, GDR), VLADIMIR SHISHIN (1977, Klingenthal, GDR), VIKTOR Karpy (1978, Lédz, Poland), VLADIMIR DOLGOPOLOV (1978, Klingenthal), VLADIMIR STETSUN (1979, Klingenthal), ANATOLY ZAYKIN (1980, Klingen- thal), GENNADY GALITSKY (1981, Klingenthal), MIKHAIL ZATSEPIN (1982, Hamburg, Germany), ENVER SEYT-ABDULOV (1982, Klingenthal), VIKTOR ROMANKO (1983, Klingenthal), VLADIMIR CHUGUNOV (1984, Klingenthal), Yuri Fyoporov (1986, Bialystok, Poland), PAVEL FENYUK (1987, Klingen- thal), YURI SHISHKIN (1988, Klingenthal), YURI PROKHOROV (1989, Klingen- thal), and many more. Today, FRIEDRICH LIPs is one of the most important and famous bayanists of our time. His artistic and social activity, including concert tours, seminars, and guest lectures, has extended outside the Soviet Union for a long time. As a pioneer having unusual influence and international importance, he extensively promotes and disseminates the most important knowledge of the Russian bayan school and interprets artistic compositions creatively. Through contacts with contemporary composers he has instigated the creation of numerous interesting works for bayan. This substantially enriches the concert repertoire for this instrument. In cooperating with such composers as SOFIYA GUBAYDULINA, KIRILL VOLKOV, ALEKSANDR ZHURBIN, and VLADISLAV ZOLOTARYOY, he has pioneered music leading to the development and prestige of the instrument.28 One can realistically contend that FRIEDRICH Lips embodies the characteris- ties of an outstanding music interpreter, profound educator, and active pro- moter of Russian music culture.3 The Art of Bayan Playing is the result of Lips devoting many years of intensive work in coming to grips with the complexity of the bayan instrument, developing into an active interpreter, and sharing his knowledge and experience with students as educator. In the book, he treats the central problems of bayanistic, such as tone formation, playing technique, interpretation of musical compositions, and specifics of concert performances extensively. Compared with previously published and well known Russian literature about music education and educational themes, FRIEDRICH Lips’ present work proves to be especially interesting and refreshingly new. Even more to the point, through numerous examples from music notations, his statements can be put into immediate practice. He conveys to educators, students, and admirers of the bayan instrument practical suggestions for handling the basic questions of interpretation art. In a remarkable way, he has succeeded in presenting and clarifying the problems presented in this book and professional areas argumentatively and interestingly. Over and over again, LIPS uses numerous examples from music and artistic literature, poetry, painting, and theatrical art. He creates candidly from his profound treasury of experiences, which allows a reader to discover his universal engagement on the artistic-educational level as well as his wide- reaching spectrum of knowledge. He reveals his enthusiasm for the aesthetic thoughts of great artists past and present by clearly and originally describing many detailed aspects of their artistic and educational activities. In his presentations of progressive ® See also: 1) Fridrich Lips, “O perelozenijah i transkripeijab,” in: Bajan i bajanisty, tom 3 (Friedrich Lips, “Regarding Arrangements and Transcriptions,” in: Bayan and Bayanists], vol. 3 (Moscow, 1977). - 2) Fridrich Lips, “Ob ispolnenii sovremennoj muzyki na bajane,” in: Voprosy professional’nogo vospitanija bajanista [Friedrich Lips, “Interpreting Modern Music on a Bayan,” in: Questions Regarding Bayanists’ Professional Training] (Moscow, 1980). - 3) Fridrich Lips, “Tvoréestvo Vladislava Zolotaréva,” in: Bajan i bajanisty, tom 6 (Friedrich Lips, “The Creative Activity of Vladislav Zolotarév,” in: Bayan and Bayanists], vol. 6 (Moscow, 1984),29 tendencies, points of view, and directions, we find continuity and development closely connected to artistic and educational practice. In his most extensive chapter, Chapter I, “Creating Tone,” Lips describes his conceptions and artistic ideas by building upon actual research results on the one hand and citing and clarifying the most important thoughts of professional colleagues at home and abroad on the other hand. Experiences of musicians in other professional areas are projected to the specifics of the bayan, yet given due consideration. This is especially true of his statements about interpreting arrangements, where he specifically warns against blind- ly imitating another instrument’s sound, which is created in a quite different manner from the bayan. Furthermore, in this chapter all important aspects of tone creation—starting with the influence of the bayanist on his instrument —are treated extensively, consequently, and precisely. ‘The reader should turn particular attention to a new variation of tone creation, which the author has discovered: the non-tempered glissando—an acoustical distortion. Created by consciously manipulating the pitch pa- rameter on a tempered instrument, it can be justified theoretically and artistically. Without exaggerating, it can be observed that with this new technical tone invention the range of tone formation possibilities is enriched substantially. Of particular importance in Chapter I, the section “Bellows Control” describes several possibilities of using bellows triplets as well as tremolo-, vibrato-, and ricochet techniques to create colorful means of expression. Al- though these appear ever more frequently in modern bayan-accordion music literature, it is unfortunate they are rarely given consideration or explanation in professional literature. In the area of bellows technique, the reader will come across a new playing variation implemented by Lips: the ricochet quintolet, which also deserves special attention. Inasmuch as the author unveils numerous secrets of the Russian bayan school, particularly ways of executing technical playing methods and exercises, which are illustrated with many examples from music literature, he helps bayanists all over the world obtain a better, practical understanding of tone formation.30 Of special interest is the consideration given to principles of artistic registration, dynamics, articulation, and phrasing. Presenting broad perspectives in a discriminating and detailed manner, Lips sketches a well-integrated and comprehensive picture of how bayanists can achieve artistry. Chapter II, “Playing Technique,” takes up logically from where the previous chapter on tone formation leaves off and forms with it an organic unit; both activities are necessary for the artist to present the most complete musical picture‘ possible. The author subsumes under the concept playing technique the entire complex of artistic means of expression, with which every bayanist must be completely well versed, and describes it pragmatically as “spiritualized craft.” “Real mastery,” L1Ps points out, “is the highest expression of technical perfection in the art of musical interpretation. In order to achieve this elevated level, the interpreter must be completely familiar with all forms of playing technique, be able to render them subtly in practice, and elaborate individual artistic techniques.” Belonging to the complex of components inherent in a musical performance, such points as physical comportment, manner of holding the instrument, hand positions, eight “Elements of Bayan Tech- nique,” and fingering need to be considered among the important principles of playing methods. Lis handles a further interesting aspect, which I believe belongs to the fundamental considerations in performing: the principle of distributing the bayanist’s body mass and weight during a concert. When we consider the author's thought processes through his relevant rep- resentations as a whole and formulate an image of the comprehensive bayan specifics illustrated by him, we will discover the far-reaching importance connected with the present problem and how necessary further studies of this sort are. Special attention should be paid to the section “Work on Technique.” For the reader, it should be interesting what methods Lips as an educator uses in training his students, who for years have been able to exhibit noteworthy successes at international music competitions as well as concert events. Here the author openly gives tactical advice, explains his recommendations * ‘The Russian word “obraz” used in the original text has been translated as picture (meaning artistic picture). This means the musical reflection of a composition’s contents.31 based on practical examples, and finally leaves it to the reader to judge and evaluate what he has read in order to draw the right conclusions for himself. In the last two chapters of the book, Chapter III “Interpreting a Musical Composition” and Chapter IV “Concert Activity,” Lips as active interpreter and musician presents a comprehensive picture of the artistic creation and its specific aspects. This helps fill the gap in another area inadequately treated by bayan-accordion literature. In elucidating and emphasizing his statements, Lips draws heavily on using examples and references to precedents and authorities. Such a pluralistic framework presents many different opinions and beliefs for analysis and confrontation so that one can search through and find adequate musical presentation methods. Realizing the composition’s idea on the instrument represents the most important, responsible, and difficult task to the musician. A person must keep in mind the totality of interpretation art and the breadth of its polymorphic spectrum. This includes intensive study of the text, content, form, and style of the work; precise choice of tone and technique; daily work on the interpretation conceived; and concert presentation in front of an audience. As the author correctly observes, work on a composition continues long after the public presentation. This is the experience of all concert musicians, who realize striving for perfection is an unending process that has no limitations. Lis thoroughly analyzes the most important means of musical expression and the interrelation between composition and interpretation. In a readable manner, he sets forth the relationship between content, form, style, tempo, rhythm, and agogie; between objective and subjective; between creative ap- proach and true artistic performance. In these sections, the reader finds from the experiential treasury of well-known past and present musicians numerous informative examples that help him attain specific knowledge for his own practice. When music is played freely and improvised, it creates an atmosphere of the melody emerging spontaneously, which allows an already well-known composition to be enlivened anew. The author places great value on this for performing art. It leads to the wonderful result described ingeniously by the German philosopher HEGEL: “Then we have before us not only a work of art, but also the realization of the underlying creative idea itself.” This real32 artistic creation must be the attraction for young and old musicians alike when playing the instrument at home and performing musical compositions on the stage. In summary, I believe FRIEDRICH LIPS has succeeded —on the basis of his extensive personal experience as music interpreter and educator—to combine interesting and comprehensive material that can help bayan-accordionists master their skills and develop their artistic taste. This information is useful to interested people as well as those who are actively engaged in music. Comprehensive knowledge of concert repertoire and educational literature enables the author to treat each problem considered extensively. His continual drawing on the highest principles of Russian art, purposeful searching for artistic expression, and careful alluding to subtleties of style, content, and form accompany this work positively. The free mastery of artistic material allows Lips to formulate text interestingly and convincingly. Tactically developing useful axioms of modern bayan art, interpretation theory, suggesting easy and unconstrained applica- tions, and expressing principles and opinions without pressure have a convincing effect and inspire the reader to a path of personal search to achieve individual creation. Iam sure this book will have a profitable influence on the spirit and heart of the searching musician and will give him the impetus for further advance- ment in the art of playing bayan. Prof. Boris M. Yegorov Gnesin Institute for Music Education Moscow, 198433 I. Creating Tone A tone must be engulfed in silence; It must rest in silence Like a priceless jewel on a bed of velvet. HEINRICH NEUHAUS Everything must proceed, arise from silence. Listen, listen, and listen again; Tones extend through hearing from depths of silence. NIKOLAY METNER, Art attempts to represent the reality of life through artistic means in artistic forms. Every art form is served by its own specific means of expression. In painting, for example, it is color. In music, it is the tone that, along with other means of expression, is the most fundamental and important. Ar- rangement of tones distinguishes one musical composition from another. Tone is the essence of music (NEUHAUS). Because music cannot exist without tone, the music interpreter should direct his entire attention to expressing tonality. All great musicians, pay continual homage to this thesis. Along with general laws in music for creating tone, there are specific laws characteristic for each instrument. These are closely connected with other interpretation problems relating to technique and art form. The theory and practice of playing the bayan-accordion artistically draws from a rich source of culture, which includes the knowledge of leading music educators active in other areas of music. Naturally, the specifics of tone formation on the piano, organ, or violin are different from those on the ba-34 yan, Nevertheless, publications by such famous musicians as LEOPOLD AUER, YEVGENY BRAUDO, SAMUIL FEYNBERG, GRIGORY KoGAN, and HEIN- RICH NEUHAUS are of inestimable value to bayanists. In recent years, literature dealing with problems of creating tones on a bayan has been expanded in publications by distinguished bayan educators.! In these works, authors report on achievements in interpretation and education. Such works are extremely important for educators and students. Further development of bayan artistry cannot be realized without this solid scientific-theoretical foundation. In order to achieve successful artistic standing, every musician should learn the specific features of his instrument. The modern bayan possesses many natural virtues characterizing its artistic dimensions. When we talk about the bayan’s positive characteristics, we are referring to its harmonic assets—the aesthetically beautiful singing tone, which allows the bayanist to produce extremely varied nuances. Bayan tones range (up to five octaves in the treble) from the deepest bass to sublime heights in the upper tone sphere. Tones express emotions: sorrow and grief, happiness and joy, enchantment and mischief. A tender, lyrical melody sounds just as convincing as a perky folk dance. The dynamic gradation of bayan tones ranges from the softest pianissimo to the loudest forte, because the bayanist can control the dynamics depending on how much force is exerted with the bellows. It should be pointed out that interpreters playing on many other music instruments have no influence after the tone has sounded. At the same time, the bayan has a sufficiently broad tonal dimension within the bellows movement, while the tone is sounding. Tones ranging over five octaves-from deep bass to high treble notes-is also an advantage of the instrument. The bayan is particularly suited for interpreting polyphonic? compositions. Since the free bass (uncoupled bass, also referred to as M III or baritone 1 See: 1) P.A. Gvozdev, et al. “Principy obrazovanija zvuka na bajane i ego izvleéenija,” in: Bajan i bajanisty (Pavel A. Gvozdev, et al. “Principles of Creating and Forming a Tone on the Bayan,” in: Bayan and Bayanists], (Moscow, 1970); - 2) Boris M. Egorov, et al. “Sredstva ar- tikuljacii i strihi na bajane,” in: Voprosy professional’nogo vospitanija bajanista, tom 48 [Bo- ris M. Yegorov, et al. “Methods and Forms of Articulation on the Bayan,” in: Questions About Bayanists' Vocational Education|, vol. 48 (Moscow, 1980); - 3) Vladimir N. Motov, et al. “O nekotoryh priemah zvukoizvleéenija na bajane,” in: Voprosy professional’nogo vospitanija bajanista, tom 48 [Vladimir N. Motov, et al. “Several Theories About Creating Tone on the Bayan,” in: Questions About Bayanists’ Vocational Education}, vol. 48 (Moscow, 1980). 2 Polyphony—music that combines several voice parts, in contrast to monophonic music (consisting of a single melody) or homophonie music (combining several voice parts of similar,35 bass) was introduced, composers have been attracted to the possibility of representing multi-voice structures on the instrument. This has been taken into account in writing modern original compositions for the bayan. There- fore, the bayan student can perfect his polyphonic thought processes through fugues by BACH and SHOSTAKOVICH, for example, which is not possible for most other instrumentalists. Due to its comparatively light weight, which makes it easily transportable, the bayan-accordion has been one of the most popular musical instruments for over a century. Formerly, bayanists played primarily on instruments with stradella bass, where the melody was generally played in the treble as the bass provided accompaniment. Today, professional interpreters pre- dominantly use multiple reed bayans combining stradella and free bass systems. On some instruments, a converter mechanism makes it possible to switch between the two systems. Well-made, top-quality bayan instruments with this converter switch are serially produced under the name “Jupiter” in the Soviet Union. Development of the modern bayan as a multi-voice instrument with bass converter is essentially complete today. In the future, instrument manufacturers need to work on extending the number of reeds to five on the treble manual and adding registers on the bass. It is also necessary to improve the instrument's acoustic characteristics and reduce its weight. As in other areas of music, electronic bayans are in use today. Although this type of instrument with its variety of tone qualities has a right to exist, it probably will not find widespread prevalence in the future, because the natural bayan tone cannot be replaced by electronics. When we refer to the instrument's specific features, we must also be conscious of its deficiencies. For example, multiple voices cannot be differentiated dynamically. Also, the amount of physical energy required to manipulate the bellows can negatively affect playing freedom. Then, too, because the instrument has an absolute (tempered) pitch, it is unable to make micro- chromatic slides or slurs from one half tone to the next as on a violin or with rhythmically identical design. Polyphony can have as few as two parts. It is practically syn- onymous with counterpoint. However, the former is used for early music and the latter for later periods (16% to 18 centuries). Furthermore, counterpoint has the connotation of systematic study for instructional purposes. Individual melodies in a polyphonic composition constitute the horizontal element, while intervals occurring between them represent the vertical element. Willi Apel, Harvard Dictionary of Music, (Cambridge, 1972), pp. 208, 687.36 the voice. Some bayanists complain further that a pedal, as on a piano, is missing. However, one cannot expect the bayan to unite in itself features of all instruments. Only the symphonic orchestra can meet every musician’s requirements. In bayan artistry, there are adequate means for expression—one just has to use them skillfully. Each bayanist should consciously use the positive characteristics of his instrument to the fullest extent possible and should not demand things that contradict its nature. Some bayanists, for instance, exert tremendous energy trying to achieve the resonance of an organ. This unreasonable demand should be categorically rejected, because the desired effect cannot be achieved. Moreover, it may cause the reeds to warp. 1. Forms of Articulation Each tone created can be divided into three major phases: Beginning, duration,? and end. In order to create a tone, finger keystrokes and bellows control must be co- ordinated so that right and left hands complement each other. Yet, both are dependent on the music interpreted. The interpreter should always be conscious of this. Bellows-Fingers Coordination Before creating a tone, our consciousness produces signals that trigger targeted movements of the body. The interplay between fingers and bellows to create a specific tone beginning, duration, and end has been extensively analyzed by Polish accordionist, educator, and methodologist WLODZIMIERZ LECH PUCHNOWSKI. * 5 Tone duration is often referred to as the stationary part. 4 See: 1) Lech Puchnowski, “Tongestaltung und Balgfuhrung auf dem Akkordeon,” Kleine Fachbiicherei des Harmonikalehrers (“Tone Formation and Bellows Control on the Accor- dion,” Small Professional Library of Accordion Instruction], booklet 3, (Trossingen, 1966); - 2) Lech Puchnowski, Balgfithrung und Tongestaltung—Der neue Weg zum Akkordeonspiel (German translation by Armin Fett) [Bellows Control and Tone Formation—The New Way to Play the Accordion] (Vienna, 1968).37 This section sets forth three basic types of finger/bellows interplay that apply to beginning and ending of tones. 1. Bellows Produce the Tone {A finger depresses a given key with the required intensity before the bellows are moved. The end of the tone is achieved by stopping the bellows movement before the finger releases the key. This method generates a tone where the beginning and end have a light, soft character. Duration can be modified according to intensity and manner of controlling the bellows. 2, Fingers Produce the Tone The bellows are pushed or pulled with the necessary pressure before depressing the desired key. The tone ends as the finger is released before the bellows are brought to a halt. This method creates a tone with a sharp beginning and end. The amount of punctuation at the beginning or end of the tone depends on bellows control and speed of activating the keys. 3. Bellows-Fingers Work Together This is a combination of the first two methods, where tone beginning and end are the result of bellows and fingers working together. The way keys are struck and the intensity of bellows control directly influence the beginning and end of a tone. Artistic handling of a composition enables all three forms of bellows-fingers interplay to be varied at the beginning and end of a tone. As an example, the tone’s beginning can be produced with the bellows, its conclusion by the fingers (without arresting the bellows); the following tone can begin with bellows-fingers playing together and end with the fingers method. Of these three ways to create a tone, the fingers method is used most frequently, because the bellows are usually open most of the time a piece is being performed. The next most frequent, bellows-fingers working together, requires the most attention, because it supports artistic expression. Many bayanists, especially students, concentrate so much on technique (mechanical work of fingers and bellows) they forget to change the dynamics to provide tonal expression. This is like a violinist who simply plays with the bow from tip to shaft and back again during a concert. How boring it would be to38 hear this player compared with an artist who uses varied bow motions. The bellows method is used comparatively seldom, because it requires depressing the keys before moving the bellows. This method of playing is often reserved for the beginning or end of musical pieces, phrases, or motifs. Later on, I will discuss tone duration. However, let's first take a look at the different keystrokes. 5 Keystrokes Keystrokes can be classified into four basic types: pressing, tapping, striking, and glissando.® It should be noted, the various keystrokes depend on the interpreter's skill and the artistic requirements of the composition. 1. Pressing Keystrokes made by pressing on the keys are generally used during slow portions of a composition, especially when a connected sound should be achieved. For technical execution, place the fingers on or over the keys without exert- ing pressure. Make sure the hand is controlled, yet relaxed and composed. The hand should have the impression of objective freedom. Then, without gathering momentum, let the fingers depress the keys lightly and evenly. Each key is pressed as far as it can go.7 Play every following key just as lightly. Allow keys that have been depressed to return to their starting positions effortlessly. While playing, make it a point to let the fingers caress the keys. By concentrating on listening to the result, a good legato will be achieved. 5 When performing modern literature, clusters of keys are struck not only with individual fingers, but also with the palm, fist, and back side of the hand. Due to its character, such contact with the keyboard is considered a keystroke. ® Basic methods of executing keystrokes on an bayan were first analyzed extensively by PAVEL A. GvozpEV. P.A. Gvozdev, op. cit. 7 A formality that should be heeded by all players is to play on a clean keyboard. Wipe the keyboard from time to time with a velvet cloth to remove finger sweat. This is especially important during a performance. While practicing, lay the cloth on the left knee; during the performance in another suitable place. Other instrumentalists also set great store by this little detail of playing on a clean instrument. For instance, Polish pianist and composer JOSEPH C, HOFMANN always reminded pianists to wipe the keyboard often.39 When pressing keystrokes at faster tempos, make sure a swinging finger movement does not impede the effortlessness with which the keys are depressed and released. During connected play, the fingers should use only as much strength as is necessary to depress a key and set it. After reaching material resistance, the key should not be “pressed in” any further. This just strains the hand unnecessarily. ® Moderato NOTATION 1: Georgy Shenderyov, Russian Suite, “Dumka” Press keys with minimum effort in legato It is especially important that educators demonstrate this effortless method of playing to their students early on and make sure it is strictly followed. Otherwise, the basic problem of making proper keystrokes has to be learned in institutes of higher learning and conservatories. When this happens, we know teachers failed to control how students handle connected play during the child’s musical education. I think educators deserve praise when they select elementary pieces in non-legato, because these prevent students from developing the bad habit of pressing keys with unnecessary intensity. This rule should not be applied to a cantilena®, however. Then each key should be depressed so firmly that resistance is felt. At the same time, the player should only partially depress the bass and chord keys in order to prevent the background bass from overpowering the treble melody. Take into consideration that when keys are not depressed fully, one loses the security provided by the pressure, which is reflected in tone quality. In Notation 2, it is desirable to touch the bass key only with the finger tip so the tone is faint. The hand is set by its position. 5 Sometimes, in technically artistic performances, we find the keys are pressed down with more energy than necessary during short portions of a composition as the result of the player's increased emotional excitement. 8 A melody having a lyrical rather than a dramatic or virtuoso nature. The term “eantilena style” has been widely adopted in place of “ballade style.” W. Apel, op. cit., p. 180.40 NOTATION 2: Johann Sebastian Bach, Prelude in A-minor, BWV 543 Press bass note lightly so the cantilena melody can be heard Often, pressing keys only partially is recommended for small-finger technique (where the fingers do most of the work, as in scales and arpeggios) in the right hand. However, this is very difficult, because it requires great artistic exertion (especially in multi-voice passages) and it is almost imperceptible to the ear. 2. Tapping Keystrokes made by tapping also require no lifting of the fingers. Instead, let the fingers depress the keys to the point of resistance and then bounce back with a quick movement of the hand. Support this process by briefly tugging or pushing on the bellows, ! which creates a staccato tone. NOTATION 3: Domenico Scarlatti, Sonata in C-minor, K 11 L 352 Tap on keys and tug push the bellows to create staccato Tapping keystrokes are relatively seldom used by bayanists in practice; pressing and striking keystrokes are more prevalent. 10 P.A. Gvozdev, op. cit., p. 16.41 3. Striking Keystrokes made by striking are executed by lifting the fingers or the hand. This is used where tones are separated from one another, thus spanning the entire range of possibilities from non-legato to staccatissimo. After creating a tone, the hand returns to its starting position on the keyboard. This lifting motion is the preparation for the next keystroke. Different types of striking methods are: 3.1 Striking With the Fingers Depending on the artistic requirements of each composition, striking with the fingers can be executed lightly or energetically. Leading interpreters of virtuoso compositions place great value on achieving the same light finger staccato for which former talented bayanists have been respected. In the Soviet Union, we are reminded of performances by such artists as SERGEY KoLopKov, ANATOLY SHALAYEV, ALEKSANDR SKLYAROV, and YURI VOSTRE- Lov. Allegro Ee NoTATion 4: Heitor Villa-Lobos, Dance of the White Indian (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Strike lightly rather than energetically for staccato 3.2 Striking With the Hand This is used primarily for ostinato" figures. Fingers serve as extensions of the hand, without performing independent movements. This is often referred to as large-finger technique. 11 Ostinato (Ital. = obstinate)—phrase that is repeated persistently, usually in immediate succession. It differs from other types of repetition (imitation and sequence) in that it is re- iterated in the same voice and usually at the same pitch. Its persistent repetition accounts for the name, W. Apel, op. cit., p. 634.42 Presto agitato 3 : 1 2 Sf drenmatco NotaTion 5: Franz Schubert, Franz Liszt, The Erlking (Der Erlkénig] (arranged by Pavel Gvozdev) Strike ostinato figures with fingers as extensions of the hand 3.3 Striking With Fingers and Hand ‘There are two different methods of playing when combining the striking methods above: a) Striking fingers carry the hand along, which is a small-finger technique used for single-note passages. Allegretto vivo, sempre scherzando NOTATION 6: Modest Musorgsky, Pictures at an Exhibition, “The Market Place in Limoges” Use small-finger technique, where the fingers carry the hand along b) Striking fingers are controlled by movements of the wrist and hand, found primarily in large-finger technique used for chords and octaves. [Allegro scherzoso] 3 leggiero NOTATION 7; ‘Max Vogrich, Caprice-Staccato (arranged by Sergey Kolobkov) Use large-finger technique, where hand and wrist control the striking fingers43, 4. Glissando™ Glissando has undergone important development in recent bayan literature. While bayanists formerly performed glissando on only one row of keys, today tempered and non-tempered glissandi are produced on three rows, across the keyboard, and in clusters. 4.1 Ascending Glissando In order to slide from the lowest to the highest tone positions, execute an ascending glissando with the nail of the index or middle finger. To provide support, place the tip of the finger firmly on the tip of the thumb. tres a slissando acceler. NOTATION 8: Nikolay Chaykin, Sonata No. 1, “Finale” Play ascending glissando on one row of keys with the nail of the index or middle finger Sometimes ascending glissandi are played with the thumb nail. Lento : aT” : Le g NOTATION 9: Georgy Shenderyov, Russian Suite, “Chastushka” Play ascending glissando on one row of keys with the thumb nail In this case, the hand is turned with the fingers pointing up (towards the low notes in the treble). The thumb, which is virtually parallel to the verti- 12 Glissando (Ital., Fr.)—execution of rapid scales by sliding on the keys.44 cal row of keys, slides with the nail directly into the chord, which can be grasped easily and comfortably with the four free fingers. 4.2 Descending Glissando A glissando gliding from high to low tone positions, is generally performed with the thumb nail. Because the tones in the long rows on a bayan are arranged in minor thirds, a one-row glissando has the sound of a diminished seventh chord. 4.3 Ascending Chromatic Glissando The ascending chromatic glissando sounds fascinating. It is performed by sliding on three rows of keys simultaneously with the second, third, and fourth fingers. The tip of the thumb, which connects firmly to the tip of the index finger, forms a comfortable support so that all fingers slide simultaneously. Gliding becomes chromatic rather than chance when the fingers are held at an angle to the leading index finger and not parallel to the diagonal rows of the keyboard. DRAWING 1A: Fingers parallel to diagonal rows —less desirable45 DRAWING 1B: Fingers at an angle to leading index finger —desirable When executing a chromatic glissando in higher tone positions with the fingers held as shown in Drawing 1b, the buttons are gradually pressed down chromatically in succession, that is, C—C#—D, and so forth. In this way, the effect of a chromatic glissando is achieved. [Allegro moderato] NoPation 10: Konstantin Myaskov, Concert No. 1, 3° movement Use three middle fingers for chromatic glissando on three rows 4.4 Descending Chromatic Glissando The descending chromatic glissando is played on three rows of keys with the thumb angled across the keyboard. The effect is best when the first joint of the thumb leads. When playing the descending glissando, turn the hand slightly so the sliding area of the thumbnail is as large as possible. Hold the rest of the fingers close together with their tips touching the tip of the thumb, which provides support.DRAWING 2: Support fingers with the thumb in descending chromatic glissando In Notation 11, hold the chord from which the glissando starts with the second, third, and fourth fingers. This leaves the thumb free to produce the glissando over three rows. Grasp the minor chord in which the glissando ends with the original fingering. (Tranquillo} +a! Shiss, Fee eee NOTATION Vladislav Zolotaryov, Partita, 3! movement Use the thumb to perform a descending glissando on three rows A glissando is sometimes performed with one finger sliding over several notes in succession (such as in a run) in order to achieve comfortable fingering. An interesting variation of the glissando is sliding across rows, as demon- strated by the composition “Osornye naigrysi” (“The Boistrous Game”) by VIKTOR GRIDIN.47 4.5 Glissando Over Fixed Intervals In this variation, use two fingers to slide over two-tone chords having the same interval. [Allegro con anima} NOTATION 12: Albin Repnikov, Capriccio Starting and ending sounds of the glissandi have the same interval Notation 13, a section from a contemporary composition, shows a cluster of notes over the spread of a certain interval (here an octave) as the starting point for a glissando. Due to the necessity to fill out the interval with minor seconds, which fabricates a cluster, execute the glissando with the knuckles of the closed fist or with the back edge of the hand turned to the keyboard. tf —— poco a poco perdendosi — p= __—_————_ SS = NOTATION 13: Viadislay Zolotaryov, Partita, 1 movement Execute cluster glissando with fist or back edge of the hand 4.6 Glissando on the Bass With free- as well as stradella-bass bayans, glissando is performed very rarely on the bass, because the keyboard is unsuitable. Every bayanist should keep in mind a glissando does not always accomplish a satisfactory effect. The composer uses a glissando to pursue a definite in-48 tention. However, some bayanists tend to use this technique profusely or perform it hastily. Discriminating listeners do not enjoy either form of execution. Every playing technique must be integrated into the musical content of a composition and may not be the goal in itself. 4.7 Non-tempered glissando or portamento! For some modern composers there is a growing trend to break away from the tempered structure of the tone. In vocal literature or compositions for string instruments, a micro-chromatic technique is used to slide continu- ously from note to note. Even though the bayan does not have free intonation, it is possible to perform a non-tempered glissando. This is simply a distortion or a warping of the tone. A number of composers have become enamored by this playing method and are using it in their compositions. The distortion—sound warp—is preferably executed in low tone positions in a one-reed register, where the best result is achieved. To perform this technique, depress a key; while applying tension on the bellows, release the key ever so slightly. This means, let the key rise without quite returning to its starting position. Shortly before it is fully released, gradually depress the key once again until it can’t be pressed any further. Acoustically, the tone vibrates between a slightly lower and slightly higher pitch, depending on the intensity of bellows tension and speed with which the key is raised and lowered. Tonal pitch is modified, because strong bellows tension forces air to flow through a slightly opened valve, causing the reed to play out of tune. Executing a non-tempered glissando in the bayan’s classic tremolo register results in the original effect of splitting a tone. One of the two voices of the two-reed tone is stronger than the other and remains in the original pitch, while the other, somewhat weaker, tone becomes lower and disintegrates. 13 Portamento (Ital.)—a special manner of singing where the voice glides gradually from one tone to the next through all the intermediate pitches. A similar effect can be obtained on the violin. W. Apel., op. cit., p. 689,49 == NOTATION 14: Sofiya Gubaydulina, De Profundis Play a non-tempered glissando with the key valve slightly open The fluctuating sound of a tone vibrating in a non-tempered glissando can be influenced in three ways: a) Bellows effect: keeping the half-opened valve constant, change the tension on the bellows from stronger to weaker. b) Valve-key effect: keeping the tension on the bellows constant, move the key up or down slightly to change the valve from almost open to almost closed. c) Combined effect of bellows and valve-key. In reading this section on keystrokes, one should be impressed with the fact that a bayan’s full resonance is revealed only after keystrokes and other means of articulation are used expertly and controlled faultlessly. Only then is it possible to bring the composer's complete vision to light. Bellows Techniques There are just two basic movements in manipulating the bellows: pull (open) and push (close). All further techniques build upon these movements and only represent different combinations of pulling and pushing. In bayan literature, a number of graphic symbols are used to indicate where bellows movements should occur: a) Start opening the bellows: V el J | I b) Startclosing the bellows: Vc V Ll > => In the Soviet Union, music publishers use various symbols to indicate places for shifting the bellows.50 For opening/closing the bellows, some are VF PIV JL One of the most essential techniques for playing the bayan well is to shift the bellows precisely. The first rule is, a bellows shift must not interrupt the musical thought. Ideally, you should shift the bellows during a syntactic break. However, this docs not always work in practice. In polyphonic pieces, it is often necessary to shift the bellows on a note being held. In such cases, you should: a) Bring the tone to an end before shifting the bellows. b) Shift the bellows quickly and start playing the note again so that a break is practically imperceptible. ©) Make sure the dynamics after the bellows shift are neither softer nor, as is more frequently the case, louder than is called for by the music’s logical development. Making slight body movements—to the left (while pulling) or to the right (while pushing)—also contributes to more precise bellows shifts and can support the left arm and hand. Bellows control should be precise. When opening, pull the bellows to the left and somewhat down, Some bayanists pull to the left and up as they open the bellows. This gives the body’s left side an awkward appearance, which is not only unattractive when considered from an aesthetic point of view, but it also makes no sense to strain the arm repeatedly by raising the heavy bass manual. In shifting the bellows, change direction before an accented or emphasized part of a measure where it is not noticeable. In arrangements of folk tunes, where variations often have sixteenth notes, some players shift the bellows after the beat of the measure. Perhaps they think it is necessary to play the passage to its logical culmination. However, they forget the emphasis is enhanced when the bellows are jerked to the opposite side. In order to avoid an unnatural break between sixteenth notes, which is contrary to the instrument’s nature, it is more logical to shift the bellows before a downbeat or accent and let the bayan help punctuate the music.51 NoTarion 15: Georgy Shenderyov, Russian Dance Shift bellows before downbeat of measure, not afterwards The interpreter should not become a slave to the bellows. Many times, a student doesn’t consider how much bellows air reserve remains. If he tries to play the rest of the section by continuing to push or pull the bellows until they run out of air, he can cause the audience to become short of breath. Dynamics fall to pieces, playing becomes hurried, and the performance loses quality. Such situations should be prevented at all costs. However, if you should fail to estimate the bellows air reserve correctly, shift the bellows imperceptibly on a sounding tone at the next opportunity in order to complete the musical thought. A fair amount of physical energy is required to play the bayan. When HEINRICH NEUHAUS reminded his students, “One must play lightly on the piano,” we know this challenge is difficult to accomplish on the bayan. Be- cause energy is dissipated in controlling the bellows, it is difficult for a bayanist to play music over a long period of time, especially when the volume is loud. One can heed NEUHAUS’ aphorism by thinking of the physical aspect (playing lightly—with little effort) as well as artistic aspect (playing lightly —inwardly relaxed), which is even more to the point. When an unaffected inner freedom is achieved, then it is a pleasure to play music. Both interpreter and audience should perceive the freedom continually. It helps solve many concrete artistic problems at hand. Physical exertion necessary for manipulating the bellows can lead to cramping in the hand, neck muscles, or even whole body. Therefore, the bayanist should learn to recuperate while playing. When a group of muscles, such as those used for pulling the bellows open, are at work, those occupied while pushing the bellows closed should relax—and vice versa. At the same time, one should strive to eliminate any tension felt in the body.52 Over the years, bayan players have become famous for their skillful method of controlling the bellows. Some instruments they play produce different tones upon pulling and pushing when only one key is depressed. These are the so-called changing-tone or diatonic bayans. Naturally, playing on such instruments requires expert technical bellows control. A special method of playing practiced on those instruments is the bellows shake, which achieves an original sound effect that can be used equally well on other types of bayans. It is astonishing that composers of original bayan literature neglect the various techniques for manipulating bellows. Compositions rarely display this highly expressive embellishment available to bayan players. To draw a parallel, the bellows of the bayan have the same function for a bayanist as a violin bow for the violinist. Violinists can execute numerous playing methods characteristic to the violin with the bow. Until recently, most bayanists limited bellows movements to simply pulling and pushing. The bellows were pulled out to the fullest and completely pushed together again. First attempts to use the bellows shake in music literature are found in Concerto No. 2 by FEDosy RuBTsov, Concert Piece by SERGEY KONYAYEV, and Saratov Perebory by VLADIMIR KUZNETSOV. Some pieces imitated a harmonica effect. Others used the bellows shake to accompany the melody as original, harmonic background (as in the piece by KONYAYEV). A totally new perspective for playing bellows shake appeared in a composition by VLADISLAV ZOLOTARYOV. In the second movement of Sonata No. 3, the technique is used to conjure up a pregnant picture of evil, dark forces in the theme “Mental Stress.” Modern composers are now introducing varied methods of playing the bellows into their scores. Even though composers have recently started including bellows shake techniques in their compositions, there are countless interpreters who cannot master even an elementary bellows shake when it must be played for an extended time over many measures or staff lines—let alone more complicated techniques. When I look for the cause, I find children never learned to play bellows shake, because it is simply never required in the literature. Surely, bellows control technique requires unrestricted attention from the very start. Bayanists must also do everything in their power to convince53 composers to write educational literature through which students can gradually acquire the required dexterity. Of course, it is impossible to separate finger articulation and bellows control. They should be viewed as closely connected in order to achieve the best possible harmonic results. This knowledge should be regarded as an axiom by bayanists, especially by students and teachers. In describing individual methods for manipulating the bellows in the following section, however, it is necessary to limit my comments to work with the bellows and leave details about finger articulation for later. 1. Bellows Shake, Tremolando 4 This method of manipulating the bellows is the most widely circulated. It is executed by fast, even shifts between bellows pull/push movements. When working on bellows shake, continually check the amount of freedom in the left hand and try to confront and release any tension that builds up due to physical strain. Only then is it possible to play bellows shake for an extended period of time. [Allegro ben ritmico} NOTATION 16: Ole Schmidt, Toccata No. 1 Perform bellows shake without strain Naturally, holding the instrument correctly is the first requirement. The instrument's bellows must stand firmly on the left thigh, while the treble manual is simultaneously fixed against the inside of the right thigh. Corre- spondingly, the shoulder straps should be adjusted to the right lengths, which depends on the player’s body size. The same applies to the bass 18 Tremolando (Ital.)—tremulously, quaverlingly; with a tremolo.54 strap. While performing bellows shake, some interpreters try to further fix the instrument by additionally holding the treble side with the chin from above, even though it is already supported from below. In any case, the bellows shake can be executed best when the bellows are only open a crack so they have the least possible air reserve. The farther open the bellows are, the more difficult it is to render this technique. Although a bellows shake appears at first glance to be achieved with fast horizontal movements (left—pull, right—push), it is actually accomplished by bellows moving in a somewhat diagonally (left, down—pull, right, up— push). Many bayanists master this technique effortlessly and quickly. For people who have difficulties at the beginning, several exercises can be practiced slowly at first and gradually picking up speed. a) Strike a chord, open the bellows: \/ When starting to pull, exert only the minimal amount of energy necessary to produce the given dynamics. Release any static tension in the left arm and/or hand as soon as it is detected. Once the direction of the bellows has been established, dissipate all energy so that you feel totally relaxed. b) Close the bellows: [ Before moving the bellows in the opposite direction, from pull to push, check the amount of strength that needs to be expended and the degree of relaxation in the hand—just as for pulling. After repeating these exercises a few times, proceed to the next one. ©) Play the basic unit of the bellows shake: pull/push(V [ ) At the same time, concentrate on how the various muscle groups work in the two movement directions. Repeat this exercise a few times, take a quick break for two to three seconds (but no more) to recuperate between the exercise units, then resume the task. Try to achieve total relaxation while executing a slow bellows shake. Although relaxed, the body and mind are still actively prepared to concentrate on the next exercise unit to follow: V [55 d) Play groups of exercise units: V [ V [ When playing two exercise units, lightly accent the first part (pull) of each. Repeat this several times. Every time you complete the fourth part, take a short break. Then start executing the movement faster, for example in the form of eight sixteenth notes per exercise unit: VIVE VIVE e) Play the bellows shake at a medium tempo and emphasize the first note lightly (the second, third, and fourth notes follow in a uniform, mechanical movement). At the same time, exert only as much strength as is actually necessary and strive for as much relaxation as possible. If static tension or tiredness sets in, terminate the bellows shake exercise momentarily and continue it after a short pause. At a slow tempo, the bellows shake playing technique corresponds to detaché articulation (see page 69). Another interesting variation of this playing method is double detaché: Vr@rvdvedervct) [Allegro molto] v grttcicicicicih ee a SS NOTATION 17: Aleksandr Zhurbin, Sonata No, 2 Remove the fingers from the keys between groups of bellows shake to perform double détaché The movements in double detaché are half as fast as the standard bellows shake. Furthermore, fingers are removed from the keys after pulls and pushes, according to the phrasing in the music. 2. Bellows Triplets or Triple Bellows Shake In this rhythmic variation of bellows shake, the triplet form results from dividing the pull into two parts by removing the fingers from the keys.56 NOTATION 18: Aleksey Onegin, Variations on a Russian Folk Song “To ne veter vetku klonit” [“It's not the Wind That Bends the Twig”) Remove the fingers from the keys to perform bellows triplets When bellows triplets must be played over an extended period of time, the bellows gradually start to open, because two parts of the figure are executed in the pull direction and only one part with a push movement. In order to keep the bellows nearly closed as long as possible, all three parts of the passage should not be played with the same strength. The first part—pull— should sound the most forceful. The second part—push—is also played with the same intensity and nearly equals the air consumption of the previous movement; the bellows are returned almost to the starting position. The third part of the figure (pull) is finally carried out with the least amount of strength and air expenditure. In order to perfect this figure, you should also be able to play bellows triplets in the reverse order: push—pull—push (1) CUT Meth erect ‘The reverse order can be used when the bellows have opened so wide during an extended passage played in direct order that precision of performance suffers. 3. Bellows Ricochet '® 3.1, Four-part bellows ricochet, quadruple bellows shake, or ricochet quar- tolet 18 Ricochet (Fr.)—rebound.57 This especially effective method of bellows technique was first used by Rus- sian composer VLADISLAV ZOLOTARYOV in the third movement of his Sonata No. 2. {Vivacissimo} P crese. poco a poco NOTATION 19: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Sonata No. 2, 3° movement “Vivacissimo con spirito” Hit bellows edges together on four-part bellows ricochet Characteristic of bellows ricochet are the uniform, alternating blows of the upper and lower bellows edges as they hit each other. You can play an exercise to learn bellows ricochet: Open the bellows slightly. Without depressing any keys, alternately close the two narrow bellows edges at the top and then at the bottom of the instrument. Phases of four-part bellows ricochet: wna Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4 DRAWING 3 Starting position: bellows are closed. Phase 1: Bellows movement—pull Upper half of the bellows opens like a fan; lower half remains closed. Phase 2: Bellows movement—push58 Upper half of the bellows closes; lower half opens simultaneously. Phase 3: Bellows movement—push Lower half of the bellows closes. Phase 4: Bellows movement—pull Upper half of the bellows opens; this movement must happen as soon as the left arm has closed and briefly fixed the bellows in Phase 3. ‘The fingers should depress some keys while performing all phases of the four-part ricochet. In playing this bellows variation several times in succession, lift the fingers from the keys briefly at the end of Phase 4 and resume the grip at the beginning of Phase 1 in the next four-part figure. Note that Phase 4 of the preceding figure and Phase 1 of the following cycle are both executed with the upper half of the bellows moving on pull. As in bellows shake, quickly repeated four-part ricochets are played with the left arm and hand moving primarily up and down rather than left to right. 3.2. Three-part bellows ricochet or ricochet triolet A further bellows ricochet technique consists of three parts. It can be executed in two ways: a) Bellows movement corresponds to Phases 2, 3, and 4 in the four-part ricochet (see Drawing 3). Briefly remove the fingers from the keys at the end of each playing figure. b) Bellows movement corresponds to Phases 1, 2, and 3 in the four-part ricochet (see Drawing 3). Continue playing and do not remove the fingers from the keys. 3.3. Five-part bellows ricochet or ricochet quintolet A recently concocted variation of bellows ricochet consists of five parts. Al- though this form of controlling the bellows is vastly unknown today—even in professional circles—it has already been used by Russian composer Sortya GUBAYDULINA in her Sonata “Et exspecto.” As in three-part ricochet, there are two playing methods (see Drawing 4): a) After Phase 5 of each playing figure, the fingers are briefly lifted from the keys.59 b) The fingers are not removed from the keys, but playing continues. ‘The result is no longer five-part, but is the same as a four-part ricochet. Phases of five-part bellows ricochet: DRAWING 4 Starting position: bellows are slightly open so there is sufficient air reserve for executing Phases 2, 8, and 4. Phase 1: Bellows movement—pull Open upper part of bellows. Phase 2: Bellows movement—push Close upper part of bellows so there is little air reserve. Phase 3: Bellows movement—push Hit the long back edges of the bellows (directly in front of you) closed, so the front part of the bellows opens like a fan.60 Phase 4: Bellows movement—push Hit the upper bellows edges closed, so the lower half of the bellows opens like a fan. Phase 5: Bellows movement—pull Hit the short lower bellows edges closed, so the upper half of the bellows starts to open like a fan. The five phases illustrated in Drawing 4—each with an arrow showing direction of bellows movement—must be strictly observed in order to play this method artistically. Phases 1 and 5 are executed with pull and Phases 2, 3, and 4 with push. In summary, bellows shake and its variations are played with the basic movements pull (down) and push (up). Ricochet and its variations adds to these basic movements hitting the bellows edges together. This involves both the short edge (at the top and bottom of the instrument) and the long edge (at the front and back of the bellows). 4, Combined Bellows Techniques In order to play artistically, one cannot think of the different bellows techniques as being isolated from one another. Depending on skill and taste of the composer as well as the interpreter, these can be combined harmonically in a composition to provide an interesting, colorful enrichment of the music. A special effect is achieved when one combines bellows techniques or lets them follow in succession. Here bellows shake and four-part ricochet are played alternately: yay [Allegro vivace] ee NOTATION 20: Aleksandr Zhurbin, Burlesque Combine techniques, such as bellows shake and four-part ricochet61 A rhythmic and especially charming structure is achieved when one combines bellows shake and bellows triplets—to produce a rumba rhythm, for example: [Allegro marcatissimo] (VOC her 1G NOTATION 21: Aram Khachaturyan, Toccata (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Try another combination for a rumba rhythm: bellows shake and bellows triplets From the preceding notations, it becomes clear that different bellows techniques can and should be used in arrangements of classical compositions for bayan. I am happy to say that various bellows techniques are gaining popularity among composers and interpreters in artistic practice. These techniques provide a particularly expressive clement for interpreting compositions. Thus, they enrich the bayan’s potential medium for artistic representation. However, these effects should never be performed simply for show. They should only be used to achieve a particular tonal effect as stipulated by the composition. Once again, the two most important conditions for controlling bellows so that playing is technically correct and tasteful are: a) Consciousness of lightness and freedom in the left arm and hand. b) Executing left-hand movements in a somewhat diagonal instead of horizontal direction: pull—left and down; push—right and up. Vibrato 16 Playing vibrato comes to us principally through its extensive cultivation by string instruments. Its unusual acoustical effect and its colorful shading 16 Vibrato (Ital.)—a tremulous effect obtained by rapidly alternating the original tone with a slightly perceptible variation in pitch, as by the rapid pulsation of piteh on the string of a violin.62 increase expression on string instruments tremendously. Recently, vibrato has been introduced into bayan literature. Comparing how vibrato is executed on string versus bayan instruments, we find a characteristic difference in playing technique. On the violin, which is representative of all string instruments, vibrato is produced by a finger making little pulsating movements on or along the strings, which are stretched and released. This causes the tone pitch to oscillate. By contrast, on bayan instruments the tone becomes louder and softer. Vibrato is produced when the hand or leg periodically bumps the bellows or another part of the instrument. Each time the instrument is jarred, the amount of air conducted into the tone chambers is changed slightly so that fluctuations occur in the dynamics. When the bellows movement is uninterrupted, you hear regularly pulsating accents. Pulsation frequency depends on the artistic intentions of the interpreter, who decides if he wants to cause a strong or weak vibrato. Vibrato can be produced on the bayan just as well with the left hand, right hand, both hands simultaneously, or leg—depending on the interpretation concept, interpreter’s technical competency, or technical circumstances posed by the composition or instrument. 1. Vibrato in the Treble In Notation 22, the composer prescribes a vibrato in the treble. It can be executed in various ways: Andante 8 8 vibrato (PP sempre dolcissimo NOTATION 22: Anatoly Kusyakov, Winter Pictures, “Ice Flowers on the Window Pane” Vibrato in the treble can be executed in various ways 1.1. Vibrato With the Right Hand Using four fingers to play the given melody, position the inside of the thumb’s first joint on the outer edge of the treble keyboard. At the same63 time, tighten the muscles on the underside of the right forearm so that pressure is transferred to the thumb, which pushes hard against the keyboard housing, When the bellows are active, this causes a pulsation. The player's entire human performing mechanism—fingers, hand, and arm—must be completely free so the intensity of the vibrato can be varied as necessary. 1.2. Flat Vibrato With the Right Hand Position the arm as described above, because the thumb also transmits vibrations here. Tense the muscles in the elbow rather than forearm to produce the pulsation. This vibrato has a higher frequency and lower amplitude. Therefore, it is called a flat vibrato. Because the player’s arm becomes tired and cramped quickly, flat vibrato should not be used over long passages. 1.3. Vibrato With the Left hand While the right hand plays a melody in the treble, the prescribed vibrato is performed by the open left hand with its heel resting on the leading edge of the bass manual. The bass strap is tensioned tautly. The arm is relaxed; the hand remains flexible. As the left hand makes fluttering movements emanating from the wrist, a vibrato is produced. When pushing the bellows closed, the heel of the hand presses against the bass; when pulling the bellows open, the back of the hand presses against the bellows strap. Frequen- cy as well as amplitude of the vibrato, thus speed and volume, can be varied especially well by this method. DRAWING 564 2. Vibrato in the Bass If a melody should be played in the bass, the right hand can produce the vibrato. In Notation 23, the right hand is free and therefore completely available to execute the vibrato effect. ‘Ad libitum A vibrato (legatss.) perdendosi NOTATION 23: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Chamber Suite, “Old Fairy Tale” Play bass with the left hand and produce vibrato with the right hand ‘The thumb of the right hand is supported on the edge of the treble keyboard. Further execution corresponds to the methods detailed under paragraphs 1.1and 1.2, above. In Notation 23, vibrato in the low register resembles a cello. When a person produces a uniform and fast vibrato, the tone fades away. The interpreter should play this passage rubato and use the oscillating graphic lines drawn in the score under the notes as a guide. The best results are achieved when the vibrato is played with the right hand open (as in Section 1.3 above). 3. Simultaneous Vibrato in Treble and Bass When a vibrato is prescribed for both hands simultaneously, it proves most advantageous to produce a light, relaxed, vibrating movement with the right arm. Here the thumb is placed against the edge of the treble keyboard to support your hand and transmit the vibrations.65 Sostenuto mesto > 10of | = ‘Norarion 24: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Children’s Suite No. 1, “Mashenka's Sighs” Produce vibrato in treble and bass by tightening the right forearm Alternatively, it is possible to execute a flat vibrato by tensing the right elbow. {Tempo sostenuto] a (™P) (stace.) NOTATION 25: Kirill Volkov, Sonata No. 2, 1 movement. Produce flat vibrato in treble and bass by tightening the right elbow Vibrato, which is characteristic for the bayan, enriches the various possibilities for interpreting music. As for all prominent playing methods, vibrato should not be used too frequently, otherwise the music coloration loses charm. To conclude, a vibrato on the bayan is influenced by the air stream flowing over the reeds. It can be executed steadily or unevenly with the finest nuances. When the vibrating frequency is modified, the tone vibrates faster or slower. In addition to the methods for producing a vibrato mentioned here, you can experiment with other means, such as jarring the instrument with the right or left leg, the feet, or a combination of both. In the final analysis, it is up to each bayanist to select the most appropriate method for the particular case at hand, which also depends on his inner emotions, temperament, aesthetic66 inclinations, and/or psychological vantage point. It is hoped he will discover and apply vibrato in ways suitable to him. Performing Various Types of Articulation Musical interpretation requires that performers command the entire range of articulation types and tone creation methods. However, bayanists have not yet developed precise definitions for types of articulation. Even in professional circles, there is no clarity about whether there is a difference between method of playing and playing style and between playing style and type of articulation. Often, these concepts are simply used interchangeably. From my point of view, type or style of articulation refers to creating a tone so that it contains some imaginative quality. There are a vast number of articulation methods, which range from connected to disconnected playing and have as their outer limits legato and legatissimo at one end of the scale and staccato and staccatissimo on the other end. In this regard, BORIS YEGOROV points out: “Different articulation types form tones having characteristics corresponding to the musical composition’s conceptual idea.” !7 Under the concept playing style, we have different bellows playing methods (tremolo, ricochet, and vibrato) as well as various keystroke methods (which affect sound and tone formation). This includes all kinds of tonal effects. These are gaining in importance as they become more prevalent in modern music compositions. Tonal effects include, for example, hitting the keyboard, knocking on the bellows, making switching sounds with registers, and depressing the air button to make breathing noises. These may either follow a prescribed rhythm or be improvised freely. The concept playing method comprises the variety of objective techniques used to execute the different types of articulation. Let us consider characteristic features of the primary articulation types and their playing methods. 1. Legatissimo'8 (extremely connected) J J The highest degree of connected playing. Depress the buttons or keys and then release them as carefully as possible. 17 B.M. Egoroy, op. cit., p. 102. 18 Legatissimo (Lat.-Ital.)—extremely connected.67 Andante ¢ =60 P legatiss. NOTATION 26: Gennady Banshchikov, Sonata No. 1, 2-4 movement Legatissimo— connect tones, but don’t let them overlap Avoid joining or melting together successive tones, which is characteristic of undiscerning taste. Because the tone on an bayan doesn’t fade away after it is struck as it does on a piano, the beginning of the following tone in legatissimo sounds like it is on the same dynamic level (that is, overlapping). Lis- tening to overlapping tones would be a painful experience. Some bayanists consciously use this so-called melting of successive tones when interpreting works of JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, because they are attempting to imitate the acoustic effect of an organ echoing from a cathedral. Iam convinced this is the wrong path to take. 2. Legato'® (connected, continuous) . J In connected playing, place the fingers on the keyboard or hold them above the keys slightly. Do not depress the keys with more strength than absolutely necessary. The bayanist should realize that volume of tone on his instrument does not depend on the amount of pressure placed on the keys. Therefore, he should use only as much force as is needed to overcome the key’s physical-mechanical resistance and hold the key in its struck position. Especially in a cantilena, it is important to caress the surface of the keys with the tips of the fingers. “The keys must be caressed! The keys like caressing! And they only respond with the beauty of their resonance when they are caressed!,” says NIKOLAY METNER.”° 19 Legato (Lat-Ital.)—a close, smooth, gliding manner; opposed to staccato.68 “The finger tips must virtually grow together with the keys, for only then does one have the impression the keys are an extension of the hand,” writes Jo2sEF GAT. Avoid hard thumping of the fingers. Make sure your hand is free and breathes together with the forearm, moving plastically to play melody refinements and supporting the finger work. Distribute finger energy evenly throughout a movement, especially when beginning and ending a tone. At the same time, pay careful attention to the bellows work. Moderato PP a NOTATION 27: Aleksey Onegin, Variations on a Russian Folk Song “To ne veter vetku klonit” (“It’s not the Wind That Bends the Twig") Legato—connect keys caressingly Andante ee >_—_—_—_ Norarion 28: Yuri Shishakov, Sonata No. 1, 24 movement Legato—distribute strength in fingers evenly 3. Portato®® (continuous, expressive) | J Portato is also connected playing, but the sound of individual notes is more active than in strict legato. Use this method of playing in melodies with recitative character and execute it with a light finger stroke.23 N.K. Metner, Povsednevnaja rabota pianista i kompozitora [Nikolay Metner, Daily Work of Pianists and Composers] (Moscow, 1963), p. 10. 21 J. Gat, Tehnika fortepiannoj igry (Jozsef Gat, Technique of Playing the Piano] (Moscow! Budapest, 1967), p. 103. 22 Portato (Lat.-Ital,)— ponderous, expressive, strong. % Portato is not the same as portamento, which is used incorrectly by bayanists. It does not belong to the repertoire of articulation methods for the bayan. In musical terminology, portamento signifies a gliding, glissando-like transition from tone to tone, which is used in vocal practice or by string instruments.69 NOTATION 29: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Spanish Rhapsody “Ispaniada” Use portato in melodies with recitative character 4, Tenuto?4 (separated, enunciated) | . This method of articulation belongs to the separated playing methods. Hold the tone and play the dynamics exactly as shown in the music. The note’s beginning and end have the same form. Tenuto is executed by the fingers hitting or punching the keys while maintaining constant bellows movement. a ‘Tempo sostenuto | Pid desler i ale: a cot = Notation 30: Kirill Volkov, Sonata No. 2, 1* movement Play notes to their full value in tenuto 5. Détaché?5 (detached) Each note or tone is formed with its own bellows movement, first pull (V ) and then push ([") repeated successively, which corresponds in principle to the bellows shake (see page 53). There are two ways to perform détaché articulation: a) Connected détaché—fingers remain on the keys 24 Tenuto (Lat.-Ital.)—held for its full value. 28 Détaché (Fr.)—detached, released, unconnected.70 Allegretto scherzoso con amore rover vor vor vor vor vor ¥ NOTATION 31; Vladislav Zolotaryov, Children's Suite No. 1, “Jester Playing on a Squeeze-Box” Keep fingers on the keys for connected détaché b) Disconnected détaché—fingers are lifted from the keys after each note or chord. {Moderato} NOTATION 32: Albin Repnikov, Concerto No. 3, 1“ movement Lift fingers from keys after each disconnected détaché In implementing détaché, be sure the left hand is free. The bass strap should be cinched tighter than normal. In a fast tempo, détaché modulates into a bellows shake. 6. Marcato* (separated, marked) , ¢ This type of articulation requires that interpreters create the tone energetically. It is executed by an active hammering of the fingers accompanied with accentuation produced by the bellows. 28 Marcato (Ital.)—marked, emphasized emphatically.71 NOTATION 33: Aram Khachaturyan, Toccata (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Marcato— hammering fingers punctuated by bellows accents 7. Non-legato”” (unconnected, accentuated) J Non-legato requires a uniform, unchanging direction of the bellows. The sounding part of each note can vary according to the duration of its prescribed value. However, it should not be less than half as long as its value shown in the music. Strive to achieve an intrinsic rhythmical quality with this type of articulation. This happens when the sounding time is at least as long as the non-sounding time, so an artistic pause is created between each of the notes in the melody line. Moderato Bd edsempe , , ig == VeVe ee oD ee eee ee = Sa pa SSS Norarion 34: Kirill Volkov, Sonata No. 1, 1% movement Sound notes at least half as long as their given value in non-legato 8. Staccato (separated, repelled) J 4 The tone created in this type of articulation is perceived as sharp and repelled. It is generally executed by lifting the fingers or hand before the fingers descend on the keys while the bellows movement remains constant. Depending on the musical content and phrasing of the composition, this type of articulation can be executed more or less brilliantly. By no means 27 Non-legato (Ital.) —not connected; musical articulation between portato and staccato. 28 Staccato (Ital.)—abrupt, detached.72 may the actual length of the tone exceed half the value of the prescribed note. Play lightly with the fingers in an upright position. Allegretto & S 222s 4342 nf NOTATION 35: Jean Philippe Rameau, La poule (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Staccato—sharp execution calls forth the image of a pecking chicken gro molto € seco NOTATION 36: ‘Yuri Shishakov, Toccata Staceato—chords are played more subdued 9. Martellato® (separated, hammered, vigorously executed staccato) de Execution is similar to marcato, however, the character of the note is more brilliant. Produce accents with the bellows by making quick, energetic movements with the left arm and hand. ‘Tempo moderato assai con buffo e elegante NOTATION 37: Rodion Shchedrin, Humoresque (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Martellato—very brilliant, punctuated tones 2° Martellato (Ital.) hammered; especially energetically executed staccato.73 The interpreter should direct special attention to marcato and martellato types of articulation, because they represent very important means of expression for bayanists. Take care to play marcato and martellato with the necessary amount of variety to present an expressive interpretation. Think through the accompanying dynamics so they support the concept. Make sure the interpretation contains mobility, which is necessary when applying various bellows techniques or types of articulation. 10. Staccatissimo® (separated, sharply repelled) J ¢ The greatest amount of tone brilliance is achieved with staccatissimo. Al- though it corresponds in execution principally to staccato, the sounding time of the note is considerably shorter. You can achieve this by lightly tapping your fingers (generally with a movement of the whole hand swinging from the wrist) on the keyboard. When playing staccatissimo, pay strict attention to the freedom and control of your arm. Allegro NOTATION 38: Johann StrauB, Pizzicato-Polka (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Staccatissimo—involve the entire arm The prerequisite for working on a musical composition is a general understanding of the entire spectrum of various articulation types and a clear conception of their effects on the melody. Of course, you must consider the diverse ways each type of articulation can be performed for the specific ap- plication. I cannot imagine musical work can bear fruit unless the interpreter has a clear concept about the goal and how it can be achieved. The interpreter’s metric-rhythmic discipline also has great importance. In using different types of articulation, be careful not to let these become confused. Many times, a staccato sounds something like a non-legato. Then too, some bayanists use the range of possibilities with only one hand. This disadvan- ~ tage is especially conspicuous in performing polyphonic pieces, such as 3 Staccatissimo (Ital.)—sharply repelled.74 fugue themes, where the quality of articulation in the left hand does not correspond to that in the right hand. The list of articulation types presented in this section is certainly not complete. However, within the framework of this book, these articulation types represent the fundamental variations from the complex repertoire available.5! Apart from that, for every type of articulation described, there are a number of variations, which the bayanist should use according to the connotation of the musical composition. 2. Registers and Their Combinations In speaking about creating tone, it is necessary to discuss the use of registers, which naturally have a strong influence on the sound of the music. Because a detailed physical-acoustic discussion of registers goes beyond the scope of this book, I recommend to interested readers the elementary and trail-blazing expositions published by GOTTHARD RICHTER. In this section, I cover registers from the artistic point of view. While there are many instruments on which the timbre cannot be changed, the bayan boasts a broad palette of harmonics that produce different tonal qualities. A well-founded knowledge of their characteristics is a prerequisite for playing artistically. Every type of bayan has its own timbre. For example, instruments from the company Melodiya in Tula have a deep, expressive tone. This is no wonder, because instrument manufacturers from Tula are famous for their exceptional reeds. By comparison, bayans from the company “Jupiter” in Moscow excel in their abundance of timbres, which are possible due to the number of reeds as well as the various register combinations available. For this reason, I have chosen the “Jupiter” instrument to use as an illustration for my observations. On the treble side, the “Jupiter” bayan has four fundamental registers: * Bassoon (16’ or 16-foot, 2 sounding one octave lower than the note written) Q 51 A fairly complete and logically founded explanation of articulation classifications is presented by BORIS YEGOROV. B. Egorov, op. cit., 1980.15 © Clarinet (8’, normally pitched) © * Concertina (8) * Piccolo (4’), sounding one octave higher than the note written) ©.8? By mechanically combining these four fundamental registers (albeit with construction limitations on which the interpreter can have little influence), a further 11 registers, differing from each other in tone pitch and sound, become available. Of the total 15 registers, some are transposing and others are non-transposing registers. Transposing registers * Piccolo © transposes the tone one octave higher than in the notation. * All registers with bassoon transpose the tones one octave lower than in the notation: Bassoon ©) , Bassoon with Clarinet €) , Bassoon with Concertina G), Bayan with Bassoon 9, Tutti 3 , Organ ©), Organ with Clarinet 3, and Organ with Concertina Non-transposing registers ‘The remaining registers or register-combinations do not change the tone pitch notated: Clarinet ©, Concertina 3, Bayan ©, Celeste , Oboe G} , and Bayan with Piccolo €3. The instrument’s reeds have different resonance. Open and closed reeds, separated from one another, are located in the treble part. Those located outside the tone chamber are open reeds. Those inside the tone chamber are the closed reeds.*3 82 At the current time, the bayan is a four-reed instrument. Leading instrument manufacturers in our country are attempting to manufacture a five-reed instrument, which in addition to the present four voices will have a fifth reed lying one-fifth higher than Piccolo. This is called fifth-mixture. Unfortunately, this necessitates a larger housing for the instrument, which is definitely not desirable. There are other ideas for producing a five-reed bayan with double Concertina. In some countries, manufacturers are already constructing a bayan with double Bassoon. To all appearances, these variations of coupling the timbres are less appropriate for the future than those with the additional fifth reed. 33 A detailed description of the tone chamber and how it functions is found in the book: Gott- hard Richter: Akustische Probleme bei Akkordeons und Mundharmonikas. Handbuch der76 Piccolo and Concertina are open reeds. Their timbres are light and clear. Bassoon and Clarinet are closed reeds. They are characterized by a dull, muffled sound. One can hear the difference between resonance inside and outside the tone chamber quite markedly by playing a note with Clarinet and immediately thereafter the same note an octave higher with Bassoon. Even though the note and pitch are the same, the choice of register makes a great deal of difference. The same is true when one plays a note in the normal octave with Concertina and then one octave lower with Piccolo. This characteristic must be considered and applied in selecting registers for a piece of music. When the interpreter is fortunate enough to have an influence on the construction of his instrument, I suggest repeating the registers used most as chin registers. When the chin is used to switch between registers, a tone can be held a lot longer than when the fingers have to leave the keyboard to spring to the register board and back. In my opinion, “Jupiter” bayans have the most important chin registers: Bassoon), Organ@3 , Bayan with Pic- colo €3, Tutti €9, and Bayan The modern bayan instrument has registers not only in the treble, but also in the bass. Unfortunately, register combinations have not yet been stan- dardized in this area. Therefore, I will limit my statements to what is most important. Usually, serially produced instruments are equipped with four reeds in the bass. These are organized over four octaves, represented graphically as: When bayans have four registers, additional timbres are available. On many instruments, for example, the two higher rows of reeds can be closed: Another colorful sound combination is achieved when the two middle reeds are closed and only the two outer ones can be heard: New “Jupiter” series concert instruments have a six-reed bass, where—in addition to the four reeds in the conventional stradella bass —two additional reeds are added in the free bass: Harmonika-Instrumente Band I (Acoustical Problems of Accordions and Concertinas. Handbook of Accordion Instruments, vol. I (two parts)] (Kamen, 1985).7 In free bass instruments, three sets of reeds are present. All reeds are located outside the tone chamber. In my opinion, the | most successful register combination is unison (single-reed) with Piccolo two octaves higher. Sometimes there is no Piccolo. Then unison exists alone. I find the Unison with Octave combination less successful. ‘The timbre of this variation, where one tone chamber is missing, is exceed- ingly nasal. When Unison is missing, the three-reed tone row with the [E] combinations is not powerful enough. The interpreter should not use registers to overwhelm the public. Their purpose is to achieve an impressive artistic result. Some bayanists don’t use all the registers and apply them very sparingly. Others go to the other extreme and literally change registers every one or two measures. Such overuse of registration, which becomes the goal in itself, destroys the phrasing and musical thought contained in a composition. ‘A comparison illustrates the artistic quality that can be applied to registration, Japanese have mastered the art of flower arrangement, Ikebana, which has also become popular with Westerners. This skill consists of com- posing creative bouquets with a few different flowers and purposeful use of color to achieve what otherwise is only possible with a greater number of different flowers and colors. The same is true for the art of registration. It is helpful for the bayanist to listen to the playing of outstanding organists and observe how they use registers on their instrument to interpret compositions. The organ has, of course, a far greater number of registers than the bayan. Nevertheless, organists know how to apply those registers skillfully. When a person listens to professional organists, he will be amazed at the masterful use of registration. German organists excel particularly in their skill at registering compositions by BACH successfully. French interpreters achieve unusual timbre for FRANCK’s organ works. Bayanists can learn a lot about the art of registration from renowned organists. Naturally, bayanists cannot draw on the same well-founded tradition of registration as is possible for organists. Therefore, bayan interpreters often go to the extremes of either presenting great variety or using only the four or five best established registers for all the pieces in their repertoire.78 An impressively colorful polish can be given to a composition by using Bassoon ©, Clarinet © , Celeste € , Concertina @ , or Piccolo © registers. Other registers also appear fresh when the composer or interpreter carefully considers how to use them. Naturally, of the 15 registers available, one should use only those that best suit the composition. The deciding criterion for selecting the appropriate register is the style or content of the piece. When we play compositions written for harpsichord by COUPERIN, RAMEAU, or SCARLATTI, Oboe ©} , Celeste €5 , and even Organ © are appropriate. On the other hand, Le coucou (The Cuckoo) by DaQUIN sounds especially magical with Bassoon ©. In organ works, the powerful sound of Organ © is used with good effect. When especially powerful playing is required, Tutti €2 is recommended, because it is easiest to play fortissimo in the four-reed register. As I have observed, many bayanists do not recognize these circumstances. It appears logical to them, but they are not clear about it in given situations. Therefore, I would like to go into this matter in more detail. In various registers, different amounts of exertion are needed to produce fortissimo. In order to achieve a volume that can be objectively measured as fortissimo in a three-reed register, for example, a considerably greater amount of exertion is required than for a four-reed register. In a two-reed or even a one-reed register, the expenditure of energy increases exponen- tially. It is questionable whether one- and two-reed registers can produce the same volume fortissimo as is possible with a four-reed register. The reason for this is as simple as it is logical. When a stream of air flows with the same quantity and pressure through one, two, three, or four openings, there are different results. If a person wants to achieve the same effect, air pressure and quantity must be increased accordingly. In practice, this depends on the particular limitations afforded by the instrument and its construction. Therefore, one should remember that a four-reed register produces the greatest volume fortissimo. When an bayan’s reeds are treated unprofessionally and subjected to especially high demands, as when playing a loud fortissimo in one- or two-reed registers, they become damaged. This is one of the main reasons why metal tongues break. Some bayanists tend to use octave duplication, for example Bayan with Pic- colo 3, during a whole composition. However, when a pleasant-sounding79 melody or a theme with recitative character appears, it is appropriate to use one-reed registers and sometimes even the Unison Bayan © .¥4 When skillfully used, a successive addition of registers can lead to an increase in dynamics even though the movement of the bellows remains un- varying and constant. For example, play the first part of a composition with Oboe ©). In the next part, use Clarinet © . Finally, switch to Bayan with Piccolo 3. Such a registration plan causes an increase in volume in and of itself, An even clearer illustration is provided by the following experiment. Strike any note or play any chord with a one-reed register, for example Con- certina G, add a second voice such as Bayan 3 , then a third which could be Bayan with Piccolo €2) , and finally a fourth—Tutti an ever greater increase in resonance, which can be referred to as terraced (discontinuous) dynamics. The process can, of course, be played in the reverse order to cause a decrease in dynamics. You can hear In working on a demanding composition, I strongly recommend that bayanists make a general register plan, which should expressly consider the overall development of the piece. It is not possible to discuss register plans for specific pieces here, because this would go beyond the scope of this book. Instead, I will provide a few fundamental recommendations. Reserve Tutti 3 for the climax or for patriotic, heroic, and festive passages. Practice switching registers at the right moment: at a transition from one musical style to another, at an increase or decrease in dynamics, or at a transition in the score from one important element to another. In polyphony, use moderate strictness and constancy when selecting registers. As a rule, do not play a fugue with Tutti 3. Instead, you could use Bayan ©), Bayan with Piccolo (=) , or Organ €). Each time the theme is repeated, the registers can be changed. Different harmonics can be created by playing a theme written for treble instead on the free bass manual. Be- cause there is no pedal to use on the three-line organ score, it is recommended that a clear-sounding register be selected. Tutti 3 generally is used to give the effect of a pedal for the bass. 34 Bayan register refers to a flat tremolo, a “unison” register80 BB SB. NOTATION 39: Johann Sebastian Bach, Fugue in A-minor, BWV 543 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Use the Tutti (Master) register for a pedal effect in the bass It is a grave mistake to dissect the theme by switching registers so that one part of the theme is played with this register and another part with that. This mistake is often made when performing parts with rich scoring. Con- sider here the registration plan for the fugue from the well-known Toccata and Fugue in D-minor by JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH. NoTarion 40: Johann Sebastian Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D-minor, BWV 565.2 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Use the organ register for repeating the theme (first played on the free bass) on the treble manual As is suitable in such an arrangement for bayan, the fugue theme can also be played from the beginning with the right hand on the treble manual. Because this theme, however, lies in the tenor range, it is proven to be more advantageous when it is taken over by the free bass. The treble manual then remains available for the second repetition of the theme using81 Organ . This achieves a marked contrast to the preceding Unison register symbol in the free bass. I believe the following method of repeating the theme is less successful. Norarion 40a: Johann Sebastian Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D-minor, BWV 565.2 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Less successful variation Finally, I regard the next variation as unprofessional. NOTATION 40b: Johann Sebastian Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D-minor, BWV 565.2 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Unprofessional variation For the third repetition of the theme in the soprano, Tutti © is appropriate and finally, for the fourth repetition, the deep registration in the free bass. With this registration plan, one creates the necessary contrast for the exposition. Signify the beginning of a new passage by a switch in registers, for example to Organ ©. Play two similar or repeating passages in interludes with contrasting regis- trations.82 Norarion 41: Johann Sebastian Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D-minor, BWV 565.2 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Play repeating passage with different registers If the theme reappears, one can switch again to Tutti, which after Organ has been resounding, emphasizes the repeated theme. In this case, Tutti is used for timbre rather than emphasis. NOTATION 42: Johann Sebastian Bach, Toccata and Fugue in D-minor, BWV 565.2 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Tutti register is used for timbre rather than emphasis In the following interlude, I recommend the interpreter switch every two measures between the Tutti 2 and Organ ©) so that in approaching the climax and continuing to the end of the fugue the Tutti > register is acti- vated. As a further refinement, Organ ©) could be resumed in measures 76 to 78, where it should be played piano. It goes without saying that every interpreter should develop his own variation of registration for this fugue. It is of greatest importance to understand83 the inner development of the composition in its entirety and take this into consideration. When the registration plan has been finalized, the performer should pay careful attention to a few elementary rules for switching registers correctly during performance. Otherwise, despite the best aesthetic/strategic registration plan, the desired result will be considerably diminished or not come to fruition at all. a) Avoid making a show out of the process of switching registers. b) Make the switching process as noiseless as possible. Do this by depressing the register firmly without hitting it. Set the register gently instead of attacking it with the finger. ©) Incorporate register switches into the music so they are neither obvious nor distracting to the point where you are unable to play a phrase to its conclusion before switching, 4) Switch registers simultaneously rather than one after another in a passage where register switches must be made with both hands. Then only one switching noise is heard. e) Set the register switch at the same time a treble key is depressed when it is necessary to switch a register during play, for example in a figure of sixteenth notes. Take your time and do not make the switch hastily and prematurely. When the register is switched in a technically skillful manner, disturbing register noises can be muted by the sound of the instrument. It is best to switch the bass converter—from stradella bass (symbol: $.B. for standard bass) to free bass (symbol: B.B. for baritone bass) from the dominant and third bass rows adjacent to the switch. If possible, the switch should occur between passages, because the converter generally makes two noises—once when the switch is depressed and again when it is released. When there is no way to avoid switching in the middle of a passage, it should be accomplished on a downbeat, accented part of a measure, or after a natural pause so that it cannot be heard distinctly.84 [Andante maestoso ma non troppo lento} SB. oration 43: Johann Sebastian Bach, Ferruccio Busoni, Chaconne in D-minor from “Partita No, 2”, BWV 1004 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Switch the converter on a downbeat, accent, or natural pause If your instrument either has no registers or the prescribed register is not available, and the piece requires a deep, transposing register, then play one octave lower than noted. Many interpreters complain that modern concert bayans lack the expressive, lofty, and typical tone that simpler instruments have always possessed: the classic, full tremolo. I see no reason for such distress. First of all, an instrument with Unison Bayan also possesses an expressive and melodious tone, even though it has a flatter timbre that is not so brilliant. There are two reasons for this. First, the flatter Unison Bayan register has a smaller frequency variation between the two reeds and one of the two reeds is located in a tone chamber, while in the classic tremolo instrument the frequency variation is greater and both reeds are open. 5° Second, the four-reed concert instrument, possesses such exceptional and multifaceted tonal advantages that especially in the area of artistic bayan playing there is no cause to regret the missing tremolo timbre. Beyond that, the owner of a concert bayan accepts great musical responsibility: he must learn to understand how to implement his instrument's full range of tones sensibly and cultivate his artistic taste accordingly. 35 Gotthard Richter, op. cit., part I, pages 54 ff.85 Dynamics Almost every musical instrument possesses a comparatively large scope of dynamic possibilities ranging from pianopianissimo (ppp) to fortefortissimo (fff). Some instruments, however, such as organ or harpsichord, cannot produce great dynamic gradations. A number of wind instruments can only form tones in forte or piano. In this regard, the bayan has many advantages. It combines a relatively large dynamic amplitude over its entire tone range with the ability to create the finest melodious shadings. As mentioned above, the bellows play the most important role in creating a tone on an bayan. In forming an analogy between this musical instrument and a living human being, I observe the bellows play the same role as the lungs, which breathe life into a composition. Without over-exaggerating, the bellows can be regarded as the most important medium through which artistic expression can be achieved. I doubt very much whether all bayanists are aware of this elementary knowledge and comprehend the great range of possibilities of dynamic subtleties and the fine differentiation their instruments can produce. Very few, in my experience, are sufficiently adroit and resourceful in handling the bellows. The reason for this deficiency can be found in the early stages of learning. From the very beginning, students must be taught to develop a sensitive, careful relationship to tone. Every bayanist has an obligation to know all the finesses of his instrument and be able to use every dynamic intonation, from pianissimo to fortissimo. To learn the softest dynamic limitation, the bayanist can perform the following experiment: depress a treble key with one finger and move the bellows with minimal strength so that no tone is heard. This coincides with HEINRICH NEUHAUS’ fitting statement: “In this case, we produce a demon- strable nothing —still no tone.” If a little more strain is placed on the bellows, we perceive the gradual emergence of a tone on the bayan. Precisely this perception of the threshold where an actual tone emerges is an extraor- dinarily valuable experience. In performing this experiment, a great deal depends on a discriminating control of the process through hearing and on the musician’s ability to hear stillness. Just as a blank piece of paper or canvas is the background for the artist’s painting, so is stillness the background for the interpreter’s music, The musician with a superior ear can produce the finest tonal imagery out of86 stillness. Here the ability to hear pauses is important. Filling pauses with content is the highest art. “A tense stillness between two adjacent phrases turns to music and allows us to sense something greater than a precisely defined, short tone.”96 True musicians excel through their ability to hold the public in eager anticipation while playing stillness and pianissimo. The lightness of the tone must be achieved with minimal resonance so it lives and unfolds in the hall. A feeble tone in piano touches very few listeners. When constructing chords in the bass, make sure all voices can be heard at minimal resonance. This is especially true for the last chord in a passage or a work, when it should fade on a morendo. The bayanist should hear the dying away of the complete chord and not drag it out so the chord disintegrates into its individual notes or the individual notes fade away one after the other. I have often heard interpreters play a relatively long morendo (fading away) on a closing chord both in forte and in piano. To this, I can only say, final chords must be sustained with the ear and not according to the amount of bellows air remaining. By increasing tension on the bellows, one gradually intensifies the instrument’s resonance. However, the tone starts to lose its aesthetic charm when it approaches fortefortissimo. When the air stream overpowers the chamber openings, metal reed sound characteristics change to exceptionally sharp, shrill tones. Many reed tongues start to go out of tune. I would like to describe this process with HEINRICH NEUHAUS’ words as “no longer tone.” The interpreter must learn to sense the resonance limits of his instrument and strive to achieve a full, satiated, true tone —even in fortissimo. Ifa person demands more tone from his instrument than it can give, then it will seek revenge. Follow the tone carefully from the moment of its emergence through to fortissimo, As resonance increases, track the vast abundance of dynamic modulations. The usual designations ppp, pp, p, mf, f, ff, fff, cannot begin to convey a complete picture of how varied and extensive dynamic possibilities are. Furthermore, the resonance of a tone changes with a crescendo. It can be transparent, soft, and deep or compact and sharp. As an interpreter, you should be conscious of this and learn to utilize the entire dynamic range of the bayan. Unfortunately, students often play only in the range of mezzopiano to mezzoforte and therefore unnecessarily curtail their tonal palette. Characteristically, there is also wide- 8 F. Buzoni, Eskiz novoj éstetiki muzykal’nogo iskusstva (Ferruccio Busoni, Sketches of a New Aesthetic in Music Art] (St. Petersburg, 1912), pp. 35-36.87 spread inability to display a difference between piano and pianissimo on one hand and forte and fortissimo on the other.°7 For some students, forte and piano sound like they are on the same level, namely in the middle range of the dynamic scale. This produces a monotonous and undifferentiated musical performance. KONSTANTIN STANISLAVSKY pointed out, “If you want to play the devil, look for where he is good.”38 In other words, if you want to play forte, then use piano as contrast. It is also important to be able to distribute crescendo and decrescendo over respective passages in musical compositions. Some typical shortcomings I have observed are: a) Crescendo and/or diminuendo are performed so faintly and lackadaisi- cally that it is difficult to perceive them. b) Increase and/or decrease in dynamics is not played poco a poco, but erratically and alternating with flat dynamics. ©) Although crescendo is played evenly and convincingly, it fails to reach the culmination point. Instead of a lofty mountain peak only a mun- dane hill is presented for deliberation. In applying dynamics to music, it is necessary to keep the culmination point in sight. Constant striving for this goal presupposes movement and development, which are important factors in the art of interpretation. 87 On appropriate occasions, HEINRICH NEUHAUS never got tired of repeating, “One may not confuse Mariya Pavlova (mp) with Mariya Fyodorovna (mf), Petya (p) with Pyotr Petrovich (pp), and Fedya (f) with Fyodor Fyodorovich (ff).” (G.G. Nejgauz, Ob iskusstve fortepiannoj igry (Heinrich Neuhaus, The Art of Piano Playing], (Moscow 1982, p. 64). 88 STANISLAVSKY's remarks pertain to the work of the actor.88 NOTATION 44: Johann Sebastian Bach, Ferruccio Busoni, Chaconne in D-minor from “Partita No. 2", BWV 1004 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Distribute crescendo evenly to reach a climax In the passage shown here, it is absolutely necessary for the interpreter to exhibit a gradual swelling of resonance from piano to fortissimo so that it discernibly culminates unavoidably in the D-minor chord. In work on dynamics, you should be aware that a bayan always sounds louder and more brilliant in the middle register than in a high or low regis-89 ter.2° Convince yourself of this by playing a chromatic scale with the right hand while moving the bellows uniformly. When playing from the low to the high tones, a slight crescendo and decrescendo can be perceived. This is also true when playing in the reverse direction. [Vivace] NOTATION 45: Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov, Flight of the Bumblebee (arranged by V. Motov) Note how dynamics change when playing from low to high tones as bellows movement remains constant NOTATION 46: Nikolay Chaykin, Sonata No. 1, “Scherzo” Ascending tones automatically become softer at the high tone pitch range In the above notations, even though bellows movement remains constant, the necessary decrescendo in the ascending passage is guaranteed. When the left hand assists here by additionally decreasing the bellows movement 89 ALEKSANDR KHOLMINOV truly recognized this fact. In the first movement of his Suite for bayan, one hears the entire polyphonic texture in “Song” very clearly, because each execution of the theme occurs in a successively deeper voice and is therefore clearly differentiated from the other voices.90 or air pressure, it can have a negative effect not only on the uniformity of the decrescendo but also on the quality of the resonance. One more dynamic characteristic of the bayan should be mentioned. When the bellows are opening, the tone always sounds louder than when the bellows are closing. The interpreter is confronted with this phenomenon when he needs to execute an ff nuance while changing the bellows from pull to push. As the bellows begin to close, he will observe a certain collapse in the dynamics. This fault can be overcome by playing from the beginning of a composition with somewhat more strength in the push direction. Logically, then, a greater portion of the piece will be played in push than in pull. The described effect appears even more clearly in the ff and fff nuances. This occurs, because there are different amounts of compression in the instrument when the bellows are opening and closing. The bayan has greater air tightness in pulling than in pushing. In pulling, the valves have stronger and tighter suction around the reed openings and therefore have better compression than in pushing. It is therefore recommended that especially important accents or sforzando only be played while the bellows are opening. As a comparison, it is interesting to note that violinists always attempt to play accented measure beats with the bow moving down, where they can take advantage of gravity and the weight of the hand. Transferring this information to the bayan, we can see the following parallels: Bow direction down: opening of bellows Bow direction up: closing of bellows Let’s turn from dynamics of phrases to processes within tone. When a tone is created, it consists of three phases: Tone beginning, tone modulation, and tone end. Along with the enormous richness of its great tone range, the bayan has still another considerable advantage over other instruments. While the pianist loses control of the sounding tone (he can ultimately only control the end of the tone) and the organist cannot fill the tone modulation with soul, the bayanist is able to control the sounding tone according to his discretion, Thus, the bayanist’s concentration and activity should span the duration of the tone—from depressing the key to open the valve until the tone chamber is closed again.91 Devoting attention to the entire tone is especially important in a cantilena, where every tone must evolve into the next. The listener must be able to perceive and feel the tone’s depth through the bellows. Actually, this tangi- bility of the bellows gives us a considerable advantage. It helps our ears hear where to play light tones with various shadings executed by playing uniformly, with crescendo/decrescendo, or a combination of these. loco m rit, molto NOTATION 47: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Sonata No. 2, 1** movement Perceive depths of tones through the bellows In this notation, I suggest the player round off the chord in the last measure. Do this by playing it with a combination of crescendo/decrescendo. Conductors often use this artistic manipulation for a culminating chord in a slow movement of a symphony. Bayanists seldom occupy themselves with problems of forming subtle modifications of intensity, tempo, touch, and phrasing, even though this is the basis for cultivating tone development and mastering intonation. As NEUHAUS said, the distance between two tones is not simply an interval—a million quanta exist there. And the very first task confronting the musician must be to overcome the problems of intonation. *° Falsely played notes may be bad, but even worse is when the interpreter reveals no convincing intonation, logical phrasing, and genuine expression. Soviet schools for artists have long been distinguished for producing bayanists who interpret compositions realistically, truthfully, passionately, and artistically. interesting to contemplate the thinking of ALFRED SCHNITTKE, who was of the opinion that an interval “is not a distance, but a path that must be conquered each time with new tension.” S, Savenko, “Portret hudoinika v zrelosti,” in: Sovetskaja muzyka (Svet- lana Savenko, “Portrait of a Mature Artist,” in: Soviet Music], no. 9, (Moscow, 1981), p. 35.92 Moreover, our schools have continually been confirmed as the highest authority and competence, because leading instrumental musicians have always tried to emulate song—the expressive power of the human voice. We bayanists should remember this tradition. Pianists strive for song, even though it is contrary to the nature of their instrument. However the bayan is capable of producing song. Therefore, one must sing on the bayan! When players focus primarily on memorizing notes and finger movements, tone creation takes second place and slips into the background. Then the interpretation is dull, flat, and meaningless. A person hearing such playing quickly concludes the player spends a lot of time practicing technically complicated parts and memorizing, but pays little heed to cultivating tone. Another extreme can be observed: intonation, motif, and phrases are performed with refreshing clarity, expression, anticipation, and sentimentality at a place where the music requires moderate and sober discipline. HEINRICH NEUHAUS, in his exposition “Regarding Tone,” refers to underes- timation and overestimation of the tone as being two extremes in solving tonal exercises. Undoubtedly, it would be too simple to suppose the true and ideal lies midway between the extremes. Rather, interpreters should be conscious about how the style of every tonal medium affects the contents of each composition. This means recognizing stylistic characteristics and dif- ferentiating them for each situation. Style depends on dynamics and articulation methods. The general dynamic level is lower in compositions of old harpsichordists than in organ pieces by JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, CESAR FRANCK, and Max REGER. Sforzando accents are sharp and stand out in modern music; in the sonatas of HAYDN and Mozart, emphasis must be used with sensitivity. In pieces by Romantics, tone control excels through plasticity and dynamic subtleties are very lively. In organ and harpsichord music of the baroque period, the sound is more elastic; terraced dynamics dominate. In interpreting compositions by BACH, COUPERIN, or SCARLATTI, however, it would be an unpardonable mistake to dispense with the dynamic possibilities offered by the bayan. I believe that if old composers had possessed the flexible dynamics of the bayan, they would not have hesitated to use them—naturally within the framework of the musical aesthetics at their time. To the modern bayanist, knowledge of93 baroque style characteristics can help determine which of the bayan’s dynamic possibilities to apply to compositions from that time. In interpreting arrangements and transcriptions, one should think out carefully how to apply these possibilities. Instead of casually copying the sound of the original, one should strive to create a work of art with the medium of his own instrument. When a note is played on the piano, after the hammer hits the string, the tone immediately loses the essential part of its pitch. In arrangements of piano pieces, many bayanists excessively accent the beginning of each note and let the dynamics fade away hoping to imitate the sound of the piano However, such a blind copying of the specific piano sound contradicts the nature of our instrument. Nevertheless, there are occasions when this method of interpretation can be acceptable to provide unusual dynamic coloration. We often use the expressions good and bad tone. One might ask what is understood by that. Formerly, some leading educators had the opinion that a tone, considered purely abstractly, cannot be good. KONSTANTIN IGUMNOV thought, “The tone is the medium, but not the goal in itself.” NEUHAUS added to this, “The best (and therefore most beautiful) tone is the one that most appropriately expresses the composition.”4! Leading musicians of the past and present have formulated similar words and thoughts. In this respect, one should not work on the tone alone, but rather on conforming the tone to the particular contents of the composition performed. The main condition for working on tone is a well developed hearing perception—actually, a hearing in advance. This pre-hearing capability must be continually examined and corrected through listening control. A closely interrelated connection exists between the actual tone created and the perceived hearing. The hearing controls the tone that arises and then gives a signal to create the next tone. It is, therefore; very important to continually listen to oneself and not divert one’s attention even for a moment. Other- wise, one loses control over the audience. 41 Ja.I. Mil'stejn, Konstantin Nikolaevié Igumnov (Ya. Milshteyn, Konstantin Nikolayevich Igumnov] (Moscow, 1982), p. 362.94 ‘The musician’s hearing develops through work on tone. The ear becomes more demanding. But the opposite is also true: finer hearing and more demanding ear increase the musician's interpretive powers. Tonal Perspectives Every musical composition has a horizontal dimension—the melody—and a vertical dimension—the harmony. A good pianist or outstanding orchestra distinguish tone by variety and plasticity. I would like to compare this with the representation of pictures on modern three-dimension postcards or, even better, with a theater where main characters act in the foreground and ex- tras in the background. On the bayan, musical pieces sound as if they have only one tonal level. However, the richness and multiplicity of musical/artistic tasks requires an artistic differentiation corresponding to the instrument. The difficulty here is air from the bellows flows through all open tone chambers with the same force. This means that in playing a chord, we can change the general intensity of the chord, but not accentuate just one note. For the pianist, by comparison, it is possible to produce two or more dynamic levels. Nevertheless, we bayanists have available a sufficient number of ways to emphasize the essentials in a composition: expert registration, skillful articulation, dynamic flexibility, and tempos. Let's consider Notation 48. Here one must place the theme in the foreground, while all the rest is articulated on the second level. This can be achieved by means of dynamics (playing the notes of the theme somewhat louder) and tempos (notes in the theme of the lower voice and beginning of the chord figures in the upper voice are somewhat staggered). ‘2 “ My attempt to describe a specific means of expression can only be applied conditionally. ‘Talented students who possess rich fantasy and intuition should seek their own methods of representation and discover practical improvements,95 [Animato} ee vibe ee Noration 48: Johann Sebastian Bach, Ferruccio Busoni, Chaconne in D-minor from “Partita No. 2,” BWV 1004 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Place the theme in the foreground and the rest in the background In new, original music for bayan, a complicated, four-voice composition sounds oppressive when the leading voice is not accentuated. In the next notation, the main theme (in the upper voice) can be emphasized by accenting each single tone. The rest of the voices —without ac cents, in the lower voice—sound somewhat softer and therefore play a sub-96 Allegro ben ritmico con anima y BB. NOTATION 49: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Sonata No. 3, 1 movement Emphasize the main theme when the music is complex sidiary role. Placing tones into the background also reduces vertical accen- accentuation. In spite of this necessary compromise, however, we can achieve our goal of accenting within the composition. This is done by occasionally emphasizing the relevant tones with tenuto. This means, these tones are held a little longer than prescribed in the music. Organists, who have several keyboards, can play organ music with multi- voice texture, but bayanists must play both the theme and counterpoint on one keyboard. Then the theme can be accentuated through a skilled use of agogics. #3 Adagio —— —_ = NOTATION 50: César Franck, Choral Fantasy No. 3 (arranged by Friedrich Lips) Use agogics to provide emphasis In this passage, the high “A” can be sounded and the rest of the voices played with a short delay, so the beginning of the theme is emphasized even more clearly. 48 Agogics (Gr.)—accent made not by dynamic stress or higher pitch, but by longer duration of the note. Thus, the use of rallentando and accelerando, rubato, dwelling on certain notes, breathing signs, and fermatas all fall under agogics. W. Apel, op. cit., p. 24.97 Polyphonic works are especially complicated for bayanists to play well. Every musician knows the theme must be more pronounced than the other voices. Not everyone can do this well every time. Arrangements of classical pieces should be capable of being performed. Therefore, the hand playing the theme should not be overloaded. Furthermore, the articulation should be thought out very carefully so the polyphonic scoring can be clearly perceived. A skillful registration does the rest. In a polyphonic composition, an especially effective method of bringing out the essentials is to apply flexible tonal gradations: important parts (such as the theme) are played somewhat louder, less important parts as contrast are played somewhat softer. Let us consider a section from the first movement in Suite by ALEKSANDR KHOLMINOV. {Lento} BOE eee : P “Pp prec P fi =~? Ff f NOTATION 51: Aleksandr Kholminov, Suite, “Song” In polyphony, essential parts are played louder, less important parts softer In the preceding example, the symbols f and p do not mean loud and soft, but somewhat louder and somewhat softer. This makes it appear as if the theme is in the foreground and the contrasting voice in the background. Many interpreters display unprofessional shading, which results in the theme becoming distorted. [Lento] —=—T a NOTATION 51a: Aleksandr Kholminov, Suite, “Song” Theme is distorted when correct shading is not observed98 ‘The ability to reproduce tonal perspectives successfully on the bayan differentiates a good musical performance from formless and flat playing. It is absolutely necessary to instill this valuable characteristic in students during their early years of music education. Unfortunately, in our time, not all bayanists in conservatories can hear and perform different voices dynamically. Phrasing Every musical composition can be imagined as an architectural work, distinguished by the particular relationship of its components. The interpreter has the task of joining all of the parts into a unified artistic entity so the architecture is complete. As a result, representing the motif and phrasing occurs independently of the composition’s general context. Naturally, one cannot play a phrase out of context convincingly without taking into consideration what comes before and what will follow. Professional phrasing im- plies stating the components of the musical syntax expressively, proceeding from a logical development of the entire composition. After all, there exists a great similarity between a verbally spoken and a musically performed phrase. The spoken phrase contains words, syllables, and expression of intonation. In the musical phrase, analogous components are the supporting tonal motif with its patterns of phrasing. Single notes are joined together into intonations“ and motifs like letters of the alphabet are combined to form syllables and words. We can think of how a little child tries to read independently, for example the word “Mama.” First it begins to pronounce the word according to its individual letters: m-a-m-a. At this stage, no meaningful picture is created from the content, because each letter is pronounced isolated from the next and the distance between them is filled by nothing. When the child joins all letters into a word and pronounces it with intonation, we obtain the corresponding information: Mama. The number of different intonations with which the word can be spoken is considerable: assertive, complaining, imploring, enthused, inquiring, joyful. ‘The same can be said about the sounds of motifs forming a phrase in music. You may not imagine each phrase as standing alone and isolated. The representation of each conerete phrase depends on both the preceding and suc- ceeding music as well as the overall character of the entire piece. “4 Intonation: In Russian musical terminology, intonation means the smallest sensible melodie phrase, which is a tone progression.99 As an example, the interpreter of the first movement of Suite by ALEKSANDR KHOLMINOV must remember that a song is involved when he reaches the culmination point. Motif and phrase are the smallest units of a musical composition’s general development. Musicians who play with a clear sensitivity for the perspective and objective, force themselves to listen to the music. Without perceiv- ing (hearing) the perspective, the representation stands still and leads no- where. One should never forget the well-known adage: Music as art represents a melodious process that develops in time. In attempting to connect musical language, one must try to achieve natural, logical phrasing with the help of pauses. Correctly perceived breaks organize the musical thoughts. Some bayanists divide phrases and patterns by frequently changing bellows direction. This is poor form, because changing bellows must be accompanied by a quick release (breathing) of the hand where one phrase or motif leads into the next. Surely, you can move the bellows in one direction for a long time. In spite of this, a clear, logical division can be given to the music by lifting the fingers and hand. This also happens when the fingers are placed on notes at the beginning of a phrase and supported by an active bellows movement. Bellows shift is important as a phrasing technique for the bayanist, but it requires a mutual breathing of the hand. Instrumental musicians should listen to good singers often, because phrases executed with the human voice are always natural and expressive. In fact, I recommend that, bayanists sing certain themes and sections of the pieces on which they are working with their own voices. This helps to expose the logical phrasing. Bayanists who place greater emphasis on technique than on tone play passages through too quickly and without reflection. But “music is essentially the art of tone," said HEINRICH NEUHAUS. Therefore, "work on the tone is the major concern, the first and most important duty of each artist.”45 May we attentively remember these words of an outstanding authority on piano art. 45 G. Nejgauz, op. cit., Moscow 1982, p. 66.100 Il. Playing Technique The virtuoso is An artist with tremendous power, Considering the impression He makes on his immediate environment. ANATOLY LUNACHARSKY Every artistic work is the realization of a creative plan, stemming from the rich fantasy of an artist. In realizing his plan, the composer mobilizes his entire creative abilities. The greater the talent and mastery of the artist, the more impressive is the end result. The same is true for the art of musical interpretation. Compared with a painter, who fixes his thoughts on a painting and needs no intermediary between himself and the viewer as recipient, the ideas of a composer are interpreted by a musician, a second artist, before they are assimilated by the audience. Inasmuch as music is an art connected with time, the interpreter of a musical composition represents a tonal process, which is performed within a certain time frame. Therefore, how a tone is connected with time depends on the interpreter’s artistic ability and how he applies it. Artistic ability depends on the interpreter’s technical playing capability, through which he fulfills his tonal representation of the musical composition. When considering the concept of playing technique, many people think it is connected with fast octaves, intricate playing, delicacy, and sensitivity. It should be clear, however, that bravura alone cannot be used as the criterion to represent a high artistic value, To the contrary, there are numerous examples where musicians, who do not necessarily hold a record for extremely101 fast tempos, have appeared and left behind unforgettable impressions on the audience, An artisan or craftsman is a person who has acquired the entire complex of technical skills necessary for achieving his artistic, interpretative intentions. Applied to the bayan, these include tone creation, finger kinetics, hand exercises, and bellows playing methods. When we speak about playing technique, we mean a spiritualized craft, which is subordinate to and serves the music interpreter’s creative intent. It is precisely the inspiration-filled interpretation that differentiates the musician's playing from the craftsman’s work on his trade. For this reason, we speak of ill-considered and meaningless arpeggios—even though played rapidly up and down the keyboard—as merely technique. We use the term proficiency to indicate the highest form of technical perfection in musical presentation. In this chapter, I will consider the most pressing questions connected with realizing the bayanist’s artistic intentions, such as playing comportment, sitting posture, and fingering, and clarify the fundamental components of bayan playing technique. 1. Playing Comportment One can visualize how long a violinist, for example, occupies himself with how his hand is positioned in relation to his instrument or how long a singer needs to train his voice. Clearly, the bayanist expends far too little time considering the placement of his instrument, hands, and body, even though the way the instrument is held during early years of education determines a person’s future success. Correct posture enables the musician to utilize all possibilities for freely unfolding his conceptualized artistic intentions and bring them to expression. Position of body and the instrument depends primarily on the character of the music to be presented, manner in which the instrument has been constructed, and psychological and anatomical-physiological individuality of the player himself. 46 Comportment has three facets: 48 BM, Egorov, “Obstie osnovy postanovki pri obuéenii igre na bajane,” in: Bajan i bajanisty, tom 2 [Boris M. Yegorov, “General Fundamentals of Playing Comportment in Bayan Educa- tion,” in Bayan and Bayanists}, vol. 2 (Moscow, 1974).102 a) Sitting posture. b) Instrument placement. ©) Hand position. The normal sitting position—which means sitting in a natural, customary manner—results in a sensation of complete relaxation and comfort. Nei- ther the arms, legs, nor human body finds itself in a position that suggests purposeful activity. By contrast, the professional sitting posture for a bayanist, violinist, chauffeur, seamstress, or bicyclist requires a definite, objective placement of the body. This is determined by the character of the activity, because professional work requires the most rational and natural movements. For the ideal sitting position, the bayanist should sit on a hard chair. The chair is the right height, according to the musician’s size, when the thighs are parallel to the floor. In playing the bayan, there are three main supporting points to be considered: support of the body by the chair, support of the legs on the floor, and support of the spine in the back. As the legs are used for support on the floor, they should be placed slightly apart for better comfort. The body may not slump into a stodgy, lazy position on the chair, but should instead be held straight upright with the chest protruding in front. Finally, the presence of back support allows hand and hip movements to be light and free. ‘The instrument must stand securely parallel to the bayanist’s body. The bellows sit on the left thigh. Many self-instruction books unfortunately still suggest the treble part of the instrument be positioned on the right thigh. This should be absolutely rejected. In practice, nearly all bayanists support the treble side with the inside of the right thigh, which is justified because it gives the bayan the stability and resistance needed when the bellows are closing. Corresponding to the player’s body construction, the two shoulder straps should be adjusted so the hand can be inserted between the instrument and the player's body. Too narrowly adjusted straps can lead to the situation where the instrument hangs more on the player than standing on the thighs. In recent years, a strap has come into use that joins the two shoulder straps with one another at the back. This is the so-called cross strap, which I wholeheartedly recommend using. It fixes the shoulder straps so they cannot slide off the shoulders. The strap for the left hand— the bass strap—should be adjusted so the arm can move freely along the bass side, At the same time, the left wrist should be able to feel the bass strap equally well when pulling and pushing the bellows and the left palm103 should have contact with the body of the instrument. Depending on circumstances, such as when playing bellows shake, it is possible to increase the rigid positioning of the instrument by holding it additionally with the chin. Generally, this is not advisable, because it leads to a clenching of the neck muscles, which can in turn have a negative effect on general playing freedom. Of course, a rational positioning of the instrument doesn’t necessarily guarantee success. Despite good playing comportment, many bayanists fail to make organic contact with their instrument. Ideally, it is necessary to achieve a perfect unity between the player and his instrument so that a single artistic organism is created. On the subject of hand position, there are numerous publications by other authors. Nevertheless, I continually observe false playing positions of the hand, which can lead to health problems. Considering hand position, we think about the sum of its most rational movements. Although the hand serves to fix the instrument, its primary function is creating tone. The position cannot be static, as when posing for a photographer. The correct hand position is only discovered when a person works directly on the entire complex of music-interpretation skills: scales, arpeggios, etudes, and concert pieces. The hand position varies continually with the task. Every hand has its individual characteristics and abilities. Occasionally, I hear discussions regarding which hands are best suited for playing the bayan. Fundamen- tally, there is no question the overworked, rough hand of a grown person, who has been occupied only with playing music at home, is less suited for virtuoso playing, while the hands of practically every child could become talented, because they go through certain anatomical-physical changes during daily practice on an instrument which gives them a final polish.47 For adult students, one can speak of more or less suitable hands. A large, agile hand, which can grasp broad intervals with the appropriate fingers proves to be more suitable than a smaller, less flexible hand. Furthermore, experience shows that right and left hands differ from one another for all players. This should, however, not lead one to assume there are no general fundamentals and standards for hand positions. 47 T want to add to this the words of probably the most important French musician of the 18" century, JEAN PHILIPPE RAMEAU: “Naturally, not all people have the same capabilities. However, the possibility of developing the fingers so that our playing can be enjoyable, depends solely upon ourselves as long as no particular physical defect exists. I wager to say that persistent, conscious work along with the necessary effort applied over a sufficient period of time will unavoidably correct the fingers of even the most untalented” A. Alekseev, Istorija fortepiannogo iskusstva, tom 1 [Aleksandr Alekseyev, History of Piano Art], vol. 1 (Moscow, 1962), p. 44.104 If one considers the historical development of our instrument since the concertina, one must unfortunately observe that no notable development has occurred regarding hand position. Small concertinas had only one shoulder strap at best. Therefore, the thumb of the right hand was inserted into a leather loop mounted behind the treble keyboard (Drawing 6) to hold the instrument in place. Similarly, there was also a loop for holding the left hand thumb on the bass side. DRAWING 6 Qualitative modifications in instrument construction (such as extending the tone range) and the emergence of a new music repertoire made it necessary to replace the thumb loop on the bass side with a working strap, the bass strap. First one and then two shoulder straps were added so the thumb loop for the right hand could be eliminated. Although this freeing of the thumb made it possible to use it in playing, many (primarily older) bayanists have retained the habit of not involving the thumbs of both hands in playing. Instead, they hold the thumbs, as before, vertically behind the keyboards and play with amazing skill. Further bayan construction development and the extension of its concert repertoire exerted increasing influence on the hand position. The thumbs of both hands took up more and more the anatomically natural, horizontal position, which allowed both hands to move with greater freedom along the keyboards. Particularly the thumb of the right hand was included in playing, which has become necessary due to growing demands by compositionsfor the instrument. The thumb of the left hand is seldom used in practical playing, but this ultimately depends on the instrument's individual form. Even though the position of the hand changes continually during play, according to the music notes presented, there are guiding principles regarding hand position. l | I | I! DRAWING 7A: Unnatural hand position — wrist curved inwards [ | ih DRAWING 7B: Unnatural hand position—wrist curved outwards106 ' ail DRAWING 7C: Natural hand position—back of hand and forearm form one line A fundamental criterion for correct hand position is the innate naturalness and accuracy of movements. When we let the hands fall freely alongside our hips, the fingers take their natural, half-curved position. In this position, the hand is relaxed to the fullest. When we bend the arm up at the elbow, we obtain the starting point for playing the bayan. Naturally, the position of the left. arm differs from that of the right arm. However, the perception of freedom in the half-curved fingers, hand, forearm, and shoulder must be the same for both arms. The task of the shoulder and forearm is to create a good condition for finger contact with the keyboard so fingers and hand can move with minimal expenditure of energy. The bayanist should make sure the right hand does not hang down without a purpose of its own, but appears as a natural extension of the forearm. The back of the hand and the forearm form an almost straight line (Drawing 7c). I would describe the static hand position where the wrist is bent inwards or outwards (Drawings 7a and 7b) as false, unnatural, and even damaging to health. The forearm’s, active movements support the work of the hand. The bayanist’s shoulder joint is generally less active. In an extensive bellows shake, which can be strenuous, alternating between left forearm and shoulder joint proves to be helpful. By raising and lowering the elbow, we can incorporate new muscle groups in playing and give other muscles a chance to rest. The thumb of the left hand lies horizontal to the instrument and is only called into play in an emergency. The thumb of the right hand, also placed horizontally behind the treble manual or along the side of the keyboard, participates directly in playing. Regardless of the endless variety of notations in the musical score, where the hands have to assume the most107 diverse positions, we can generally speak of two basic positions for the left and right hands, which do not depend on the thumb positions. Right hand Position 1: As in playing the scales with traditional four-finger fingering. Position 2: As in playing arpeggios and scales with five-finger, position fingering. Left hand Position 1: As in playing formal bass-chord on the stradella bass or in scale-like passages on the free bass. Position 2: As in playing scales on the stradella bass or arpeggios on the free bass. The construction of the bayan’s treble manual and the arrangement of the diagonal rows at an angle to the length of the keyboard give us adequate means for utilizing the natural freedom of the hand. Naturally, you should never fix your hands in any of the positions mentioned above. It should be clear the entire diversity of hand movements is formed around these basic positions. The hand may not be immovably stiff. A flexible wrist allows the hand to breathe so that it can attend to playing all of the subtleties of the melody line. KOoNSTANTIN IGUMNOV, well-known piano educator, once said, “Almost every hand position has its justification, as long as it is sufficiently comfortable, corresponds to the hand’s structure, allows delineating the musical issues, and does not disturb freedom of movement.”4 During early education, many students have the habit of letting their fingers bend inwards at the second joint while playing. In order to counteract this, the following exercise on a button instrument with chromatic keyboard is recommended: use the second, third, fourth, and fifth fingers one after the other to play a mini-chromatic glissando sliding on a set of diagonal keys from the third to the first row—for example “C,” “C#,” and “D.”#9 48 Ja. Mil’étejn, “Ispolnitel'skie i pedagogi¢eskie principy K.I. Igumnova,” in: Mastera sovets- oj108 When the student has responded to this exercise with the fingers of the right hand, he can transfer this exercise to the left hand. Although we know the bayan’s keyboard stands vertical to the sitting plane, few people are aware of this fact and its consequences. Disadvantages and accompanying major differences to piano playing are not broadly recognized. ‘The bayanist, unlike the pianist, does not have the possibility to support the weight of his hand on the keyboard. Despite the arm’s freedom, one needs strength to hold the hand on the keys and move the bellows. We need part of the weight of the arm for contact with the keyboard, whereby the strength summoned for connecting the fingers with the keys is useful in holding the hand on the keyboard. The hand’s own weight is useful for passages run- ning down the keyboard, that is from low to high tone pitches. For playing in the opposite direction, we must overcome the hand’s weight resistance. We also cannot use the hand’s weight to influence the dynamics or timbre to the same extent that pianists do, although this is in a restricted sense easier for the right hand than the left. According to a physical law, an object’s force depends on the extent to which it is drawn to earth. However, the bayanist’s hand and the fingers “fall” sideways —at a right angle to earth's gravity. In practicing octaves or chords, hand movements consist of lifting and hitting. The force with which the hand sinks onto the keyboard after being lifted can be described as the weight of the hand. In small hand exercises, one should be conscious of the stroke’s lightness. The weight of the hand can be felt distinctly during a single stroke. Nevertheless, it is fairly difficult for bayanists to use the right hand’s weight to achieve better tone quality. Undoubtedly, the experience of freedom in the arm and the fingers is of greater importance. I think it is futile to speak about utilizing weight in the left hand. The hand is not only engaged in playing on the keyboard, but is also occupied with the most important work—moving the bellows. Therefore, it is performing at full capacity. ‘The left hand should not wobble around between the bass the first finger (in the old finger numbering system of our country, this is the index finger) on the first row, the second finger (middle finger) on the second row, and the third finger (ring finger) on the third row. Now a new finger numbering system has come into common use, counting the thumb as the first finger. Also, instruments generally have five button rows. Therefore, it is more practical to count the rows from the outer edge of the keyboard to the housing. In this case, the row with the tone “F” is designated as the first, the row with the tone “E” as the second, and the row with the tone “C” as the third, The subsequent back-up rows are designated the fourth and fifth rows. On the free bass manual, one should count the rows in the same manner, from the outer edge of the manual in the direction of the housing and/or bellows.109 strap and the instrument. As already mentioned, the hand must have a maximum experience of freedom and yet have constant contact with the bellows strap and the instrument’s housing. This makes it possible to switch the direction of the bellows noiselessly —without air interruption or break—at any given time and also work on the finest gradations of dynam- ies and articulation. As a result, the problem of the hand’s weight does not apply to the left hand for bayanists. Instead, we should perceive fine dis- tinctions in amount of tension applied for opening and closing the bellows. We should also realize it is more difficult for the left hand to move along the keyboard as the dynamics increase. We cannot contend the bayan’s keyboard manuals correspond ideally in their construction to the human body. Nor can we maintain, in transforming words from HEINRICH NEUHAUS, that it is easy to play on a bayan. While the right hand is completely free to form tones, the left hand is severely limited in its freedom of movement by the bass strap. Beyond this, bellows manipulation requires a tremendous amount of physical energy— especially for bellows shake techniques. Therefore, it is no wonder the great majority of bayanists are males. Despite the considerable physical burden and certain discomfort, it is vitally important for the musician to keep his arms free. Keep in mind the idea that a good interpreter always controls his instrument and plays comfortably and lightly on it. Many times, bayanists literally run out of breath while playing. This can be traced to an insufficient amount concentration and purposefulness. Coun- teracting breathlessness by measured breathing hardly pays off. It is more important that breathing occurs naturally and unforced, especially because the performer needs increased oxygen while playing. In interpreting works, movements of the body and instrument should depend on the character of the music and the temperament of the musician. ‘The same applies to gestures, which should be performed explicitly according to the requirements of artistic interpretation. These factors play an important role in a musical concert, because the musician usually sits with his body facing the audience. Therefore, sitting posture and gestures must be aesthetic and attractive. The famous French composer and harpsichordist FRANCOIS COUPERIN advised that “musicians play for awhile in front of a mirror. Mimicry must correspond to the content of the music” so that ideally the interpreter and his instrument form a unity. Accordingly, one can hardly imagine a musician performing Cha-110 conne by JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH with a smile on his face or “March of the Tin Soldiers” from Children’s Suite No. 1 by VLADISLAV ZOLOTARYOV with a gloomy face. Of course, one doesn’t have to adopt special mimicry. One should, however, free himself from a rigid, tight-lipped facial expression. A natural facial expression during public performance generates sublimation, inner concentration, connection with the music.5° In the discussion above, I have consciously described the sitting posture of a bayanist very sketchily, because I don’t in any way want to induce a static > pose. The bayanist’s sitting posture is a dynamic concept. Correct posture can be visualized as providing physical and psychological freedom rather than self-indulgent sluggishness of the muscles.5! “One must continually work on relaxing his muscles,” postulates the distinguished Russian pianist and educator KONSTANTIN IGUMNOv. “As long as the muscles are as tense as wire, nothing sensible can be realized.” One should prepare well for each given situation, concentrate on it for awhile, and then immediately relax again.52 There are bayanists who possess very agile finger technique, but play indis- tinetly, irregularly, and nervously. This is a sign there is not enough psychological activity. In order to play fast and precisely, one must also think quickly and clearly. The thoughts must not lag behind the fingers. The worst case scenario is that automation goes astray and fingers get lost. Freedom of the psyche and the body provide security in technically complicated places. As mentioned above, a bayan’s tone volume depends directly on the intensity of bellows movement and not how firmly a key is depressed. Even though students know this axiom, many literally glue their fingers to the keys while playing small-finger technique passages forte. We must learn to distribute our energy rationally by harnessing it in the necessary direction. Whenever playing forte and fortissimo requires additional physical effort from the left hand, this should not have an effect on the freedom of the right hand. Admittedly, it is more difficult to play fast and loud on a bayan than fast and soft. Regardless of the great physical burden fortissimo imposes, the player must learn to relax the muscles used while playing, avoid static 50 It is reported that natives on a remote island customarily sit with their backs to a performer in order not to be influenced by his mimicry and gestures. 51 Physical self-consciousness and intellectual embarrassment are definite forms of anxiety, and have a negative effect on the interpretation. 52 Ja, Mil'stejn, op. cit., Moscow, 1961, p. 89.Bul stress, prevent straining the body and neck, and be sure the larynx remains at ease. The audience must not perceive the physical effort. A difficult, exhausting work has never been aesthetically attractive. Therefore, the motto lightness and freedom must always be observed. This is especially true in early years of instruction, when basic posture becomes set. 2. Elements of Bayan Technique Strictly speaking, bayan playing technique applies to everything that happens from the moment the bayanist touches the keys of his instrument. Accordingly, the complexity of bayan techniques can be divided into several categories: a) Small finger technique —various passages resembling scales and arpeggios, melisma (elaborations and ornamentations, such as trills and grace notes), tone repetitions, and double notes. b) Large finger technique —finger tremolos, octaves, chords, jumps, and hand technique. ©) Playing the bellows. d) Tone formation. Corresponding to HEINRICH NEUHAUS’ instructions for learning piano technique, eight elements can be isolated for bayan technique. These can be considered the basic elements of bayan technique. Element 1: Creating Tone This theme has been covered quite extensively in the foregoing chapter. In order to avoid unnecessary repetition, I will limit myself to making one suggestion: The bayanist should become instilled with forming a sensitive relationship to the key, to creating a tone, the essence of musical language. The finger- tips must touch each key delicately. Precisely the manner in which a bayanist creates the first tones in “Song” from Suite by ALEKSANDR KHOL- MINOV divulges to what extent he is already in control of cultivating the tone.112 Element 2: Ornamentation This category deals with melisma, tone repetitions, and executing two or more notes with one hand position. Melisma, a type of ornament in music, was widespread in the works of French and Italian harpsichord composers. ® Of all melisma, the grace note and trill have remained the most permanent —even in new music they are used a great deal. A trill is always pleasant to hear when it is played precisely and evenly. In order to achieve this precision, the bayanist should execute trills in different tempos. Play them with two fingers and alternating accents. Lift the fingers energetically before executing the accent. SS SS SS SS SS S = = NOTATION 52a: Practice trills with accent on the first beat ; eS SS Se NOTATION 52b: Practice trills with accent on the second beat Alternate between three fingers to execute the accents. In this instance, the trill is best played in triplet form. 304 °3 4°34 = < NOTATION 53: Practice trills in triplet form Use finger rotation when it is difficult to perform long, uninterrupted trills. 53 Melisma were not only melodious ornaments, but also served to interpret music.113 NOTATION 54: Practice trills with different finger rotation For work on precise, even trills, the bayanist should conceive a number of various exercises himself. The following two notations serve as suggestions. NOTATION 55a: One exercise helpful in achieving precise, even trills NOTATION 55b: Another exercise helpful in achieving precise, even trills Players should execute the exercises with every desirable pair of fingers. At the same time, they should pay attention to economical finger movements. The less the fingers are lifted from the keys, the faster the tempo becomes. Bayanists generally play trills with finger movements. However, it is also possible to execute a trill by rotating the forearm back and forth. Once practiced, we find this is, in fact, more comfortable and anatomically more natural.54 Bayanist IVAN SHEPELSKY, named Honored Artist of the Soviet Union on several occasions and member of the internationally known Ural Bayan Trio, has mastered this method of playing the trill. Be sure to lift your finger before playing grace notes and mordents. This activates the fingers to carry out the embellishment precisely. Exceptional brilliance and intensity in playing a mordent is achieved, by changing the fingers: 54 “The non-participation of the hand and the arm (in executing a trill with only the fingers), ‘as seen from the standpoint of nature, represents a type of confinement.” Heinrich ‘Newhaus, Die Kunst des Klavierspiels (Leipzig, 1969), p. 119.114 Allegro ——= <= NOTATION 56: Domenico Scarlatti, Sonata in F-major, K 107, L 474 Play mordents precisely by lifting the first finger When playing a mordent, rather than alternating the main and adjacent notes in rapid succession, a special tonal effect can be created by holding the main note and playing the adjacent note at the same time. For a brief moment, main and adjacent notes form a two-note chord. The decision which type of mordent to use should depend upon the artistic task at hand and the interpreter’s perspective. Tone repetition is a technical element often brought into play. This can be executed with great speed and differentiated precision on a bayan, even though the keys’ playing surfaces appear much smaller than the keys of a piano accordion. A basic principle in executing repeated notes is to use the most logical finger movement. The most frequently used fingering is alternating the second and third fingers. When the repetition covers an extended passage, more than two fingers can be used in succession to increase the player's endurance. Fingers can be used in any comfortable order. Listesso tempo 2 oo = an) 2 2 padaaapaazaa 3 NOTATION 57: Anatoly Kusyakov, Sonata No. 1, “Finale” One method of fingering a key repeated over an extended passage In this fairly long passage of the “Finale,” endurance is the most important consideration. The fingering presented here provides support.117 b) Finger under Finger under is generally used for descending melody: = 2 3 Gg 2 a BB. ‘TREBLE Bass NOTATION 61b: One finger is placed under another finger on the keyboard Both methods are also used in the reverse manner. ©) Fingers in succession Placing fingers according to their natural order of succession can be used for upward and downward movements. 4 3 2 3 4 2 3 4 3 2 7 ‘TREBLE Bass NOTATION 61c: Fingers are arranged according to their natural order of succession Playing in one position assumes a fingering that corresponds to the natural order of the fingers, Every finger over or finger under movement brings the hand to a new position. In playing the chromatic scale, the bayanist’s fingering is divided into small individual segments, in small positions each consisting of three notes, for example “C,” “C#,” and “D.” Only these notes can be played without repositioning the hand along the keyboard. This is the traditional fingering for the chromatic scale without using the thumb (Notation 62). The transition from “D” to “D#” requires'a repositioning of the hand, because it is necessary to place finger two over finger four. As a result, the hand position changes.118 NOTATION 62: Fingering for a chromatic scale; hand position changes after every three notes. In Notations 61a and 61b, three positions change one after the other; every new note requires a finger over or finger under and therefore a new position. In Notation 61¢, the same notes are played in only one position. In one position, notes can either be played close together (Notation 63) or spread apart (Notation 64). Allegro moderato oo NOTATION 63: Edvard Grieg, Lyric Suite, Opus 54, “Parade of the Gnomes” (arranged by P. Gvozdev) Notes close together played with all five fingers in one position [Allegro strepitoso] s 2 + 7 be —— SE NOTATION 64: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Spanish Rhapsody “Ispaniada” Notes spread apart played with all five fingers in one position Including the first finger (thumb) in playing on a bayan expands the limits of the positions. Then it is possible to play a larger number of notes in succession without repositioning the hand. The advantage is one can execute the musical composition in larger sections, which ultimately works posi-ey tively on the virtuosity and stability of the presentation. This shows the value of using five-finger fingering on a bayan.®5 Element 3: Scales and Scale-Like Passages The third technical element includes all kinds of scales including their scale- like passages, which requires repositioning the hand. Element 4: Arpeggios in All Forms This element can be seen as closely related to the third element. It includes all forms of arpeggios, for example on triad, seventh, or diminished chords. Bayanists often work a long time on various sections in compositions and do not realize these passages “primarily consist of different combinations of scales and arpeggios,” as successful Russian educator and pianist VASILY SAFONOV aptly formulated.5® When we study the passages and simultaneously train the hands for these elements, mastery becomes easier. This knowledge is confirmed in an aphorism from HEINRICH NEUHAUS: “The scale, in and of itself, is a pre-product—but this same scale in a musical composition is already the finished product.” When the hand obtains good technical form through regular work on scales and arpeggios, it is practically ready to play a large number of similar passages without wearisome training. I contend that working on technique as a goal in itself is wasted ‘i time. Always play scales, arpeggios, and simple exercises musically, artistically, and technically correct. Scales must sound light, beautiful, and proficient. Pay attention to evenness of playing, shading, coordination of both hands, and tone quality. Never play scales sloppily. Avoid making jerking sounds when shifting bellows direction and repositioning the hand(s). This is accomplished by depressing a key with one finger and immediately preparing the next finger to activate the following key. The hand makes a flowing 58 As long as one is not concerned about achieving self-confidence in speed and stability, it is sufficient when the passage in Notation 63 is played on the treble manual with a different four-finger fingering, for example 2-3-4-3-2 or 4-3-4-3-2. 56 See: L, Nikolaev, et al., “K voprosu o stiljah fortepiannoj literatury,” in: Vydajuséiesja pia- nisty-pedagogi o fortepiannom iskusstve (Leonid V. Nikolayey, et al., “Questions About Piano Literature Style,” in: Important Pianists and Educators Discuss Piano Art| (Moscow/ Lenin- grad, 1966), p. 123.120 movement as it contributes to the free working of the fingers. Actively rotating the forearm plays an important role in relaying tone to the fingers. While playing scales, listen to how your left hand creates tones. Unfortu- nately, bayanists incorrectly think the left hand just delivers the metric- rhythmic foundation for a piece. In difficult passages, the left, hand often lags behind or runs uncontrolled ahead of the right hand. As already mentioned, the greatest difficulty in playing scales or long passages with the left hand arises when the bayanist must reposition his hand along the keyboard and simultaneously manipulate the bellows. Repositioning the left hand becomes more difficult as the dynamics increase. Therefore, the bayanist should, for example, in Partita by VLADISLAV ZOLOTARYOY, be clear from the beginning whether the ascending passage in the second movement is better played with the bellows opening or closing—he must definitely plan ahead. Similar performance details have highly individual character and can only be worked out in daily practice. To develop smoothness, play scales and arpeggios with different fingering. It is helpful to play scales with the third, fourth, and fifth fingers in the treble as well as on the free bass manual. On a chromatic bayan, one works most easily with traditional fingering—that is with the second, third, and fourth fingers, especially because the middle fingers have little differentiation in their length. It always astounds me that when playing scales most bayanists use exclusively one of the many different fingering possibilities, either the traditional, four-finger method, or the five-finger position fingering.57 It is no wonder they are unable to differentiate between various fin- gerings to select the most favorable one in practical situations. An interesting variation of executing scales is to use right hand position fingering without including the index finger. Make sure this finger, which has been freed from playing, doesn’t stick out conspicuously. This fingering exercise is especially suitable for disciplining weak fingers. NOTATION 65: Use right hand position fingering without index finger to strengthen weak fingers 57 ‘The expression “playing the scale with four (or five) fingers” is widely circulated among bayanists. Of course, it is not precise, because the scales are played with the traditional three- finger fingering (with the exception of harmonic minor scales, when starting from the first and third rows) and the four-finger position fingering.121 Each bayanist should conceive his own variations of position fingering for the free bass manual. The following notation provides an example. 5 a 3 2 a 3 2 BB. NOTATION 66: Variation of left hand fingering for a scale on the free bass manual A good exercise to develop finger dexterity and hand flexibility is playing scales with only two fingers—for example the third and fourth fingers. Note how the hand takes on different positions. = g NOTATION 67: Playing scales with two fingers is a finger-strengthening exercise Small arpeggios can be played with or without the thumb. NOTATION 68: Play arpeggios with and without the thumb On a bayan, all long arpeggios should be played using the thumb. In order to achieve the perception of freedom and flexibility in the right hand’s wrist, play scales at a slow tempo while rotating the forearm gently. Asa fingertip is connected with the key, it feels the weight of the whole hand. These movements can be used on all four notes in small arpeggios. These playing methods prove useful in extended ostinato figures:122 [Allegro vivace con anima] NOTATION 69: Vladislav Zolotaryov, Sonata No. 3, 4 movement “Allegro vivace con anima” Work on arpeggios proves useful in extended ostinato figures Practice curving the wrist smoothly. In general, scales and arpeggios should be played with economical finger movements and a free, but controlled hand. Consistent work on scales and arpeggios yields indisputable benefits. Prac- tice scales with many variations, such as changing rhythms (dotted rhythm or polyrhythmic variations), different dynamic shadings (pianissimo to fortissimo), and uniform as well as undulating dynamics (ascending with crescendo and descending with decrescendo). Use various forms of articulation and different tempos. Play scales at a slow to medium tempo using energetic finger pressure and lifting the fingers actively and decisively. Always direct your focus to achieving a light quality and rhythmical uniformity with economical finger movements. Element 5: Two-Tone Combinations ‘Two-note chords generally have intervals from seconds to twelfths. Prior to the 1960s, bayanists used the first finger (thumb) relatively seldom. They even tried to play passages with chords arranged in thirds and sixths legato without the thumb. Naturally, this had a negative effect on the quality of the tone, Today, bayanists play two-note chords with five fingers. On the free bass manual, it is more complicated to execute two-tone chords. Knowing these difficulties, composers try to avoid writing such passages. Playing single-note thirds or sixths presents no particular difficulty. How- ever, two-tone combinations cannot always be executed as desired. This problem can be solved by using a few clever tricks. a) Faking the two-tone chord. b) Separating the articulation: for example, one voice is played legato and the other non-legato.123 ©) Using back-up rows on the bayan keyboard.®§ Unsuitable finger combinations for thirds, as in the following example, should be avoided. [Allegro brillante] 4 4354 ent = NOTATION 70: Nikolay Chaykin, Sonata No. 1, “Scherzo” Avoid using unsuitable finger combinations for thirds I cannot understand why many bayanists play thirds in a forked position, that is with the first and third fingers alternating with the second and fourth fingers. An interesting variation of fingering on a bayan results in playing successive chromatic sixths—with adroit fingers this fingering can also be used for thirds. AoA SS SS SS oe rn = cf a 2 1 SS. > NOTATION 71; Fingering suggestion for successive chromatic sixths played on a bayan This fingering is suitable for playing legato in moderate tempo. However, if this fingering were used in passages like the following from Italian Polka by SERGEY RAKHMANINOV, where the run of sixths must sound like a homoge- neous glissando, the effect would be similar to racing on all four limbs in light athletics. The passage is essentially easier, more natural, and above all faster when mastered with another fingering. 58 N. Risol, Principy primenenija pjatipal'cevoj applikatury na bajane (Nikolay Risol, Princi- ples of Using Five-Finger Fingering on the Bayan] (Moscow, 1977).124 [Allegretto] 5 4 NOTATION 72: Sergey Rakhmaninoy, Italian Polka (arranged by I. Yashkevich) Fingering suggestion for sixths played in fast tempo on a bayan The octave is one of the most frequently practiced playing forms. Its technical basis should be mastered early in a child’s music education. It is recommended that work on octaves be coupled with chords, the sixth element of bayan technique, because hand movements and methods are similar.°? The thumb position on a bayan, of which there are four variations, are especially important in playing octaves: a) b) c) d) 59 Behind the keyboard. This traditional position is not always acceptable although it is quite comfortable and justified for fixing the hand. On the keyboard. Although this position is the most uncomfortable, it is widely used. The fixed position of the thumb enslaves the hand, because it is attached to the keyboard. Repositioning and/or moving the hand along the keyboard is difficult, especially in the lower part of the treble keyboard. This method is only suitable for pieces and situations where movement of the hand along the keyboard is not necessary. However, individual players may find this method suitable for certain situations. Along the first row of buttons or outer edge of the keyboard. This gives the hand considerable freedom in moving along the keyboard, and the contact of the first finger with the keyboard transmits a sense of light, hardly detectable support. In playing octaves. Octaves and chords are generally played by lifting the entire hand. In repeating octaves, the hand turns into a sort of fly wheel (the same applies for reiterating chords). When octave passages are played on all three basic button rows, the hand must be supported by the fingers as they alternately curve and stretch. Fingering of oc- Hand technique includes not only playing repeated octaves and chords, but also various multiple tones as well as intervals. This is reminiscent of Caprice Staccato by MAX VosRicn.125 taves can be static (for example, a run played with only two fingers— the index finger and little finger) or flexible, due to the compact propor- tions of the keyboard. Naturally, it is no simple task to play octaves fast over an extended period of time. A trick here is not to think of every single octave. Rather, divide the theme into individual phrases. ‘Then plan enough time before the first accented octave in each group to shake out the wrist lightly to release tension. During short repetitions of octaves or chords, lift the hand, strike the first chord, and play the rest with the end of the passage in mind. I recommend thinking in advance and imagining the whole as a single complex. Norarion 73: Viadislav Zolotaryov, Children’s Suite No. 1, “March of the Tin Soldiers” Play the chords with the end of the passage in mind Executing hand technique becomes easier when the interpreter has occupied himself sufficiently with the emotional side of the performance. Music brings the technique with it and dictates the necessary movements. In playing octaves, you can also practice a method widely used by pianists. With one finger, for example the index finger, play only the lower note of each octave and hold the little finger in the imagined interval of an octave without actually depressing the key. The little finger hovers silently above the keys. Of course, this method of playing can also be practiced in the reverse manner. Element 6: Chords This includes all chord techniques—playing three-, four-, and five-tone chords—as well as clusters. Technical execution is similar to the principles for octaves, Therefore, points made in the previous section also apply here. Nevertheless, there are several specific characteristics to be observed in playing chords. a) Pay strict attention to pressing all notes of the chord simultancously. Otherwise, an arpeggio or some other undesirable effect results.

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