Methodological development “Principles of working on polyphonic works in the piano class of the Children's Art School.

Grebenshchikova Yulia Evgenievna,
additional education teacher
Center for Extracurricular Activities of the Kalininsky District
St. Petersburg "Academic"

Art choral singing involves the singing of a choir for several voices. This gives an extraordinary expressiveness to the performance. The essence of two-part singing is based on the combination of two phenomena in the art of music: artistic and technical. A two-voice texture is a diverse combination of two melodic lines in which the voices move either independently or in parallel, which creates various conditions for children to sing junior choir. Polyphony includes artistic, psychological, acoustic and musical performance components

Just like singing a` capella, the performance of polyphonic compositions requires a certain level of development of hearing and thinking of singers, painstaking work to acquire the necessary skills. The main thing in polyphonic singing is the ability of the singers to independently lead their part and thoughtfully weave it into the overall choral sound.

Distribution of children by choral parts carried out not for vocals(since only by the age of ten in the voice apparatus of children are the prerequisites for the formation of a timbre), and music data(the level of development of musical ear, the ability to pure intonation, the power of voice). The main thing is that the parties should have evenly distributed well-intoned and weakly intoned children, children with bright and quiet voices. This distribution helps the efficient work of all singers.

In my opinion, one of the serious mistakes of choirmasters is when children with good developed hearing, and in soprano - almost "hooters". As a result, the harmonic hearing of children singing the upper voice does not develop at all, and two-voice is still not obtained, because. sopranos are out of tune, knocking down the altos with this.

How to teach kids polyphony? Of course, in younger age it's only First stage work, but it is extremely important. If we do not instill the taste and initial skills of polyphony in the junior choir, then subsequently the children will not sing by themselves in 2-3 voices. Polyphony should be practiced from the very first rehearsals.

Polyphony should be dealt with from the very beginning of work choir, combining polyphonic singing with unison. You can come up with very simple tasks, as long as they are interesting, arouse children's interest and love for music. By this we achieve that they cease to be afraid and willingly engage in polyphonic singing.

Teaching two-voice singing to younger children school age happens in stages. Preparation starts from the very first music lessons when the leader introduces the children step by step into the world of music, discovers the beauty of the performed compositions, unites the choir into a single sounding ensemble, and at the same time constantly develops hearing, vocal skills, musical memory, receptivity and responsiveness of the singers, the theoretical knowledge of children also gradually accumulates, ability to analyze and understand music.

Schematically, this long and complex learning process can be divided into three stages:

1. accumulation of listening experience;

2. performing preparatory activities;

First stage - accumulation of listening experience - very important for the development of the skill of polyphonic singing. From the first lessons, it is necessary to teach elementary analysis of listened and performed works (and not only vocal, but also instrumental): the structure and direction of the melody, the role of the accompaniment part, registers and timbre of instruments, etc. The ability to hear the musical fabric will develop and improve throughout the teaching of children to sing in the choir. Working on a polyphonic work, we will constantly draw the attention of the singers to leading value of this or that voice, on their independence or, on the contrary, complete unity.

IN performing preparatory activities includes, first of all, the development of an intonationally stable unison of the entire choir under a wide variety of conditions, and especially when singing without accompaniment. It is very useful to master the game on the simplest musical instruments (spoons, bells, rattles, drums). This is an excellent base for the development of the children's polyphonic hearing, the feeling of the ensemble.

Immediate the formation of the skill of singing in two voices starts with preparatory exercises.

Exercise 1. Such work can be started after the children have learned to sing a joke on one sound and become familiar with the concept of musical pitch. The work begins with an auditory analysis of the chord on the steps of the tonic triad. Initially, the chord is perceived as one sound in a kind of timbre coloring. But, carefully listening to the chord when playing it again, the children begin to distinguish individual sounds from it. When comparing these sounds, they distinguish them by pitch. Further, these auditory representations are fixed in the singing of all levels of the triad in turn.

And after a while it is possible to start singing some joke already in the simultaneous sounding of all the steps of the triad. Later, this exercise can be sung in the position of the sixth chord.

(Performance of the joke "Andrey the Sparrow", or any other chants on the same sound. Perform it at different stable steps)

Exercise 2 (singing the choir) :

· scale singing (the choir sings the scale, and the teacher holds the 1 step, and vice versa);

· singing the scale with the canon;

· “embracing” stable steps (singing of stable steps in simultaneous two-voice);

· "Dili-don" (violas hold ostinato I step, and the sopranos sing a melodic line from V To I steps and vice versa).

Therefore, in the third stage of training, you can go completely different ways. Let's analyze each of them.

A rich experience folk craftsmen in polyphonic singing allows us to draw the most important practical conclusions related to the search for the right methodology for educating these skills. The use of folklore in the initial period of musical education opens up broad prospects for mastering the classical heritage and contemporary creativity in the future.

Russian folk songs use various types of polyphony (combinations of voices):

· heterophone type, the most ancient, in it the voices are not divided into leading and subordinate, their melodies are close variants;

· second, relatively young in time of origin, in it the main leading voice is supported by parallel movements of the remaining melodic lines, most often in a consonant interval, the voices are correlated here as options;

· chord-harmonic, the youngest in time of formation; voices in it move synchronously; the consonances formed at each given moment acquire a very definite significance.

The simplest kind would be "pedal" double voice, in which the second voice appears episodically and is associated with the inclusion of only one sustained sound performed small group choir.

It is not at all necessary for a choirmaster to look for songs with a "pedal" in special collections. It is perfectly acceptable in some cases to compose echoes yourself. Particularly convenient in this regard are folk songs with frequently repeated basic or fifth tones. For example, Russian folk songs “Lap, hop jump, young blackbird”, “Cat’s house”, “Long-legged crane”, “At the grumbling cat”, “Rides, rides a steam locomotive”.

Exercise 3 (Performance of the songs "Skok, skok", "A locomotive is going")

Now let's move on to song with bourdon in the lower voice. Wonderful songs with bourdon are the so-called "gookanki". In them, the part of the lower voice is performed by the choir, and the main melody is performed by the soloist. Of interest for the development of the skill of two-voice singing are also such songs in which one of the parties of the choir is built on a constantly repeating chant based on two or three sounds (varied bourdon), such as, for example, Russian folk songs “Like under a hill under a mountain”, “In the field of a birch”, Ts. Cui “The dawn caught fire”.

Exercise 4 (Performance of the song "Like under a hill under a mountain")

When learning such songs, it is necessary that children, while solfegging, consciously intotone the intervals formed along the horizontal. It is also useful to give preference in dynamic sounding to the lower voices, as well as to perform their part with words, and the upper one - with a closed mouth or on any syllable.

As for songs with subvoice-polyphonic development, the learning technique is suggested by their structure. The distinctly expressed independence of the voices determines the need for the entire choir to master both melodic lines.

The development of polyphonic hearing and thinking of singers- an important task in the work of the choir. It is in the singing of polyphonic works that the level of skill of the choir, the degree of technical equipment of the choir and its artistic capabilities are manifested. Complicated polyphonic forms are not yet available to the novice choir. But the repertoire should include works with elements of imitation and, of course, canons.

Canon would like to pay special attention. One can talk a lot and interestingly about the canon, but then it is necessary to devote a separate topic of conversation to this.

Canon (from Greek. Canon- rule, sample) - one of the methods of polyphonic writing, based on imitation. This is one of the most common genres of vocal polyphony of the Middle Ages. Canon is a strictly restrained imitation, in which each of the voices performing the same melody enters with some delay in relation to the previous one.

Singing the canons on the one hand is quite an easy task, because. it seems that it is good enough to learn one single melody with the whole choir and you can sing it in several voices. It is no coincidence that some believe that it is better to start learning polyphony precisely from the canons. But to fulfill the canon qualitatively and truly competently actually turns out to be a very difficult task. The undeveloped ear of singers does not allow them to listen to other parts and weave their melody into the melodies of other voices. Beware of the main mistake - to formally connect parts in the performance of the canon, when children sing according to the principle "I see nothing, I hear nothing", otherwise it will be a waste of time.

It is best to start working on the canons when the little singers have already developed enough melodic ear, when they have already begun to sing a` capella, when harmonic hearing is sufficiently developed. But in order to interest children, to introduce an element of the game into the lesson, to accustom children to the independence of leading their party, I begin to include the canons at the very beginning of training. But the canons are unusual. I want to recommend the manuals of the Chelyabinsk composer, teacher E.M. Poplyanova - “Playing canons in music lessons” and “Lessons of Mr. Canon”. She suggests using various types of canons: speech canon, “hopping” canon, mimic canon, gesture canon, timbre canon, melodic-rhythmic canon, and habitual, melodic canon.

Before learning any canon, it is necessary to explain what it is. There is a very child-friendly explanation that a little girl came up with.

“Canon is when there are a lot of delicious things on the table and everyone takes turns eating them. First I try an orange. Then I proceed to ice cream, and my mother tries an orange. I drink tea with a cake, my mother starts the ice cream, and my father tries the orange. Then I eat chocolate, mom has tea and cake, and dad starts ice cream. When mom eats chocolate, dad drinks tea with cake. And finally, dad finishes his chocolate.". Such a delicious canon.

Exercise 5 Mimic canon. In such a canon, the theme becomes the sequence of certain movements of the muscles of the face. To facial expressions, you can add sounds-exclamations, shaking your head, a minimum of gestures.

Exercise 6 speech canon. The theme of the canon is poetic text performed in a well-organized rhythm. Children are very fond of poetry, especially comic "with a twist." A very useful lesson for developing a sense of rhythm.

Exercise 7 melodic canon. First, the melody and text are learned, and performed as a monophonic song. We have already accumulated a fairly large repertoire of canons.

Execution of the canons: "Cornflower", "Rain", "Grandfather Yegor", "Jump-counting". Gamma in D major.

Singing scales in a canon is an extremely useful activity. In addition to the concept of the canon, this exercise will help to establish the purity of the intonation of the major and minor scale, will be a useful training in singing parallel thirds, and with a rearrangement of voices.

Singing in the canon greatly facilitates the assimilation of all other types of two-voice. Let's talk a little about this kind of second. When the voices are combined, chains of consonant intervals arise, the upper voice is like a colored undertone. I recommend starting with songs in which the main melody is in the lower voice.

Exercise 8 M. Slavkin “Music Song” - children sing the lower voice in unison, then the upper voice adds the piano, then the soprano part (or soloists) sing the upper voice.

The most difficult type of two-voice - works with indirect and opposite movement of votes. These types of combination of voices are found in folk music often. Indirect movement occurs when the melody passes in the lower voice, and in the upper one - a figurative pedal.

Exercise 9 Estonian folk song "Everyone has their own musical instrument".

The greatest difficulty for little singers is represented by works with two-voice parallel thirds. Various paint tertian consonances, timbre and register proximity of voices introduces certain difficulties into the work. Piano support, the ability to listen to its sound will help here. It is important to teach children to accurately hit the first sounds of each initial construction. The main difficulty in the third texture is the ensemble unity of voices in dynamics, the nature of sound science, phrasing, in the balanced sound of each part. Such works are very useful for developing the sensitivity of the singers.

Summing up, I would like to remind once again basic principles of work on two-voice in the junior choir:

1. Preliminary work is very important to prepare the hearing of the choristers for the perception of polyphony. Listen to more music and analyze. Learn to listen to musical fabric.

2. Competent and constant distribution of children in choral parts: evenly in quantitative and qualitative terms.

3. Playing music on accessible music different instruments, the creation of small ensembles, orchestras from them - not only interests children, is a source of joy and pleasure for them, but also serves as an excellent basis for the development of polyphonic hearing of children, a sense of the ensemble, and also teaches them the elements of musical literacy (after all, at first we play by ear , and then by scores).

4. Include in the repertoire polyphonic works first with piano accompaniment. Harmonic support of the instrument, unobtrusive duplication of voices will help in the first stages of mastering two-voice, add quality and expressiveness to it.

5. Introduce two-voice works into the repertoire according to the principle “from simple to complex”. First, episodic two-voice - works where the parties sing alternately, alternating with each other, and only sometimes combine into a full-fledged two-voice. Later introduce a stable two-voice.

6. The main difficulty in the artistic performance of the canons is the uniformity of the parties. When learning a melody in one voice, it is necessary to achieve expressiveness, convexity of phrasing, the nature of sound science, features in the presentation of the text, so that later, when singing in several voices, all this can be preserved and transferred from voice to voice. Here it is very useful to sing according to the principle of "echo" - singing the same phrase, sentence, period in different parties in turn. The task of repeaters is to accurately convey the performing style of the previous performance.

· singing of the whole choir in a duet with the choirmaster (thus, we prepare the ear for a new unusual sound, improve the harmonic ear, the ability to hear others, the sense of the ensemble);

· to begin the analysis of a new work with a unison performance by the whole choir of each part separately (this is how children represent the melodic movement of both voices);

sing with one part, for example, soprano, with a closed mouth, and the other part with solfeggio or with words (we learn the melody of the voice, while hearing the resulting consonances);

sing the work alternately in batches or sentences.

Bibliography:

1. Kuznetsov Yu.M. "Practical Choir Studies". Choreology training course. - M .: "Music", 2009.

2. Nazarenko I. "The Art of Singing". Reader. - M .: "Music", 1968.

3. Roganova I. "Modern choirmaster". Digest of articles. “The Development of Traditions. New trends. Experience". - M.: "Composer", 2013.

4. Semenyuk V. “Choral texture. Performance problems. - M.: "Composer", 2008.

5. Chesnokov P. “Chorus and Management. Benefit for choir conductors". - M .: "Music", 1961.

List of Internet resources:

1. Volkova T.S. "The Beginning of Two-Part Singing in Primary School". Article on the site "Festival of Pedagogical Ideas": http://festival.1september.ru/articles/412603/

STAGES OF WORK ON POLYPHONY WITH STUDENTS OF A MUSIC SCHOOL

1. Stages of work on polyphony with students of a music school 3
2. Work on polyphony in elementary grades 4
2.1 "Notebook" 4
2.2 Bach's Little Preludes and Fugues 5
3. Where to start? 8
4. About phrasing 9
5. About articulation 9
6. About fingering 10
7. About editions 10
8. About pace 10
9. About rhythm 11
10. About harmony (Khubov) 11
11. French and English suites (Schweitzer) 11
12. Well-Tempered Clavier by J.S. Bach (Ya.I. Milshtein) 12
13. Prelude and Fugue moll I t 12
14. Prelude and Fugue f – moll II t 13
15. References 15

1. STAGES OF WORK ON POLYPHONY WITH STUDENTS OF A MUSIC SCHOOL.

Polyphony is a kind of musical speech and, consequently, a kind of musical thinking. All piano music is polyphonic.
Polyphony - polyphonic music, but polyphonic and homophony.
What is the difference between polyphony and homophony?
Polyphony, in contrast to homophony, in which different voices perform different functions, is a plexus of voices that perform the same melodic function.
Polyphony and homophony are two types of musical speech and therefore two types of musical thinking.
An excellent school for developing the skills of thinking, hearing and the technique of performing a polyphonic texture of any warehouse is the work on polyphony in its purest form.
Neuhaus said: “The most dear to me, the most wonderful in piano music, I consider polyphony. Fortunately, there is no need to talk about exercises and studies here, because thanks to the great worker and teacher I.S. Bahu coincide with music itself at its best, with the purest and noblest art.

The performance of polyphonic works requires the development of inner ear and polyphonic thinking.
It is necessary to teach the pianist to hear well the part of each voice and combination of voices, to hear the theme, its development, and various oppositions to it.
A student will not be able to properly perform a work if he does not hear the polyphonic fabric, but only accurately performs the musical text.
Much attention should be paid by the teacher to the student's ability to understand the musical notation of polyphonic music. But here, too, the most important thing is that everything that the students see in the notes becomes the property of their inner hearing.
In our music schools, it is not uncommon for children to be indifferent to the works of I.S. Bach. This indifference can turn into disgust. “But what does Bach have to do with it,” said Roizman, “A teacher can only teach what he knows, understands, and loves. In the class of the teacher, for whom the works of I.S. Bach is a miracle of art and poetry, children do not experience not only "disgust", but also indifference, learning polyphonic works.

Work on the simplest forms of polyphonic presentation should begin in the very first year of study, as soon as the student is able to perform light arrangements of songs on the piano. The repertoire may include polyphonic pieces by Russian and Western European composers (including arrangements of folk songs) included in the School of Playing the Piano, ed. Nikolaev, at 1 o'clock. “Collection of polyphonic pieces for piano” by Lyakhovitskaya, to the Reader “Young Pianist”, A.M. Bach, Notebook V.A. Mozart. On the simplest songs, you can introduce the student to imitation, talk about a number of cases when imitation is associated with certain phenomena of life (with the roll call of groups of players, imitation as an “echo”, like a conversation, conversation), etc.
Students meet with somewhat different performing tasks when learning the canonical arrangements of folk songs. The difficulty of performing such pieces lies in the fact that not this or that phrase is imitated, but almost the entire song as a whole.
In all cases, articulation and dynamic designations must be respected.
As Neuhaus said, we will begin, as usual, the study of polyphony with
"Magdalena", two-headed. Bach's inventions, let's move on to three-voices, then to the "well-tempered clavier"
“At the very early stage of pianistic development,” said Neuhaus, “I suggest the following simple exercises for acquiring the variety of sound needed for playing in general, and especially for playing polyphonic music:
Then do the same on four-sound and five-sound chords; it is enough to work it out in 3-4 keys.
The following initial exercises are also helpful. They should be worked out in several keys at a slow, accelerated and fast pace, alternately playing one voice staccato, the other legato.

2. WORK ON POLYPHONY IN YOUNGER GRADES.

In the first classes of music. schools, a large place is occupied by Bach's light polyphonic pieces.
The works included in A.M. Bach (as well as "Little Preludes and Fugues") are among the best examples of the pedagogical repertoire. On this material, the skills of performing polyphony and a sense of musical form, and sound diversity are developed.

2.1 "MUSIC NOTEBOOK"

Let's analyze the minuet in D minor No. 36 from the Notebook. This is a lyrical piece with its melodiousness, melodiously reminiscent of a song rather than a dance. When playing such pieces, you need to achieve maximum melodiousness, while remaining in the rhythm of the dance. This is a difficult task. The tempo of the play is unhurried, smooth. The dynamic gradation is also smooth, the volume of the sound rises and falls gradually. In its form, this play is simple and harmonious. The student must hear the form of the minuet, its tempo, the nature of the sound, the dynamics. The direct perception of music has the strongest artistic impact on young musician. Verbal explanations should only be of an auxiliary nature. Both voices are original both in terms of intonation and in their pattern. Their independence is also reflected in the difference in the dynamic plan, articulation, censorship, climaxes, and so on. Here the big task is to teach to hear these two equal voices in dynamic development, achieving coordination of movements (because there are different strokes). When combining voices, it is important to keep all of them individual characteristics, which will give the performance more expressiveness. There is a big phrase here. Achieving flexible phrasing is also a big task.
Work should begin with separate hands. It is even useful to memorize the voices. They are quite independent and, being performed separately, sound quite expressive. You should learn by phrases, understand the reference points in each phrase, intonation structure. Try to achieve all this with your voice first, and then with the piano. It is useful during the performance of one voice, another to sing. left hand it is better to play portamento, and not under the league, achieving a deep, beautiful sound.
The performance of polyphony requires a lingering sound, this sound must move forward. Each lingering sound is perceived as alive. Overcoming the attenuation of sound is an important task. We teach the student to actively listen to sounds and perceive them as stretching against the background of others that are also moving. It is necessary to explain to the student the features of the piano, to compare it with a violin, with a voice, etc. To teach the student to listen to the fading sound, to teach how to adjust the sonority. After the lingering sound, the next sound should be taken a little quieter. Then the impression of movement is created. The ability to hear two melodic lines is an important task in the development of a student's pianistic technique.

In the minuets in G minor No. 5 and G major No. 4, the tasks are the same.
Somewhat different are the performing tasks in the minuet by I.S. Bach Y - dur №7
By its nature, this minuet is lively dancing, gallant. Its main feature is a strict rhythm. This is reflected in the nature of polyphony. There are many rhythmic imitations in the minuet. So, for example, when the upper voice passes to the 2nd half of the first motive, stated in quarters, the lower voice imitates rhythmically and intonationally the first half of the motive, stated in eighths.
The same happens in the second motive. As a result, a continuous movement of eighth notes over 4 measures is formed, enhancing the motor clarity and activity in this phrase. It will not be easy for the student to make sure that the upper voice at the moment of imitation would be able to complete the first motive - the first dance “pa” with a “polite bow”. This polyphonic difficulty needs special work.
The rhythmic character of the voices and individual polyphonic details relates even more to the polonaises and marches included in the Notebook.

POLONAISIS in G MINOR №19

Here tutti (played solemnly loud, full sound) seems to be opposed to solo instruments (or soloists dance). Played with a quiet, gentle sound. Rhythm is essential.
In the first two bars, despite the small leagues, you need to play in the same breath.
In the second element, it is necessary to work on the thirds as recommended by Neuhaus. It is necessary that these two measures should also be played in the same breath.
For the student, this is difficult. Here you can teach the upper and lower voices separately on legato, then two voices at once. You can sing with your voice.
In the next part of the difficulty - listen to and sing all the syncopations on the instrument.
Both in the left and in the right hand.

POLONAISIS No. 17 in G MINOR

Here, in addition to the difficulties that we analyzed in the previous polonaise, there is a part that reminds us of a real 3-voice polyphony. Work on this piece approaches work on 3-voice inventions and fugues. Here you need to teach each voice separately. Play the top voice with your right hand and the middle voice with your left. You can sing the middle voice and play the top voice and vice versa. Play with different sound quality. Various stroke. Then learn these 2 voices at once with one hand. Fingering is very important here.
Thus, work on polyphonic pieces from this collection contributes to the development of inner hearing, the development of harmonic hearing,
(in the form of conclusion of cadences). In addition to the fact that the student must hear the form of the work, he must hear the harmonic desire for cadences. In addition, his auditory polyphonic baggage accumulates.

2.2 BACH'S LITTLE PRELUDE AND FUGE

Written by him with pedagogical purposes for his sons and students.
A. Schweitzer wrote: “It is in these small pieces that the incomprehensible greatness of Bach is revealed. He wanted to write simple exercises for students of music, but created such creations, the content and spirit of which the one who once played them can no longer forget and to which, having matured, he returns, finding new delightful features in them.

BACH PRELUDE in C MAJOR No. 2

PRELUDE No. 3 in C MINOR

This prelude contributes to the development of lightness, tenacity, smooth motor finger technique.
It is also useful to play chords here.
All harmonious shifts will be heard more clearly. The dynamic plan will be clearer.
It is important not to get carried away with small dynamics here.

PRELUDE No. 6 in D MINOR

Here we encounter real polyphony. This is a fugue in miniature. She happens to be preparatory stage to 3 goals. inventions and "preludes and fugues".
There are 4 voices here.
First of all, you should deal with the topic, its phrasing. Listen to how the theme sounds in different registers.
You can help the student to instrument.
Play the theme affectionately, angrily, plaintively, etc.
Then trace each voice separately.
Identify convenient starting points and try to connect the voices. But not all at once, but gradually. Work in the same way as in Polonaise No. 17. The student must hear the voices clearly. It is very important to play one voice brighter once a second time - another.
Thus, the ability to play differently is developed. Subsequently establishes an implementation plan. All possibilities are in the hands of the student.
Sound technology is of great importance.
Fingering is of great importance, you need to help the student understand this. The choice of fingering for submission to the task of music. expressiveness. Here it is appropriate to explain to the student about the Bach fingering. Learn places with difficult fingering. Suggest to play scale 5 _4, 2 _1 with fingers.
Here the big task is to listen to the stretching sounds against the background of others moving.
When played on the f-no, a note cannot “sing” for a long time without sufficient initial depth of sound, therefore melodic notes require fullness of tone in accordance with their duration.

PRELUDE No. 10 in G MINOR "MINUET - TRIO"

Here the task is to listen to a long sound and its transition to another. Point out to the student that while the lower voice moves in eighth notes, the upper voices drag on. Here, it is important to distribute sonority and play expressively.
Neuhaus recommended that his students do the following exercises: take one sound on f - but one sound and listen to it until the moment when it completely fades away. You need to extract the sound so that it lasts as long as possible. This useful exercise. It teaches you to carefully follow the sound, not only at the moment of its occurrence, but also until the transition to another sound. In smooth melodies with a gradual dynamic gradation, one must carefully measure the strength of the emerging sound with the strength of the previous one at the moment of its transition to another sound.
This makes the decay of the piano sound less noticeable.
About phrasing. Czerny recommends coming from the beginning of bar 2. Researchers recommend accentuating syncopated or long notes. In this case, the syncopation is at the end of the 2nd bar.

PRELUDE No. 12 in A MINOR

The prelude is one-part.
There is a big sound task here, to achieve a smooth melodious and light legato. To play as if in one breath, in one layer. Triplets should not be intrusive.

SIX PRELUDE.

They are all 2 private. This form is borrowed from the song.

PRELUDE No. 4 in D MAJOR

Here is an interesting opportunity to play each voice with a different touch.

Here is an example of a live Bach legato. This legato is like breathing. There are many twists and turns in the melody. Each turn must be heard by the student.
First of all, you need to deal with the phrasing of the topic.
There are many options here. Here it is necessary to build on not only the taste of the teacher, but also on the ability of the student.
The teacher should help the student to break the fugue into pieces from which it would be convenient to start. Of course, the pieces don't have to be random. Work in pieces. Learn each voice separately. The voices here themselves are very expressive and flexible. Here the big task, in spite of the many turns in the melody (which must be heard), is to play on a long breath, with long periods of development.
Singing on the piano is developed only by studying masterpieces. With this mindset, J.S. Bach wrote his inventions for “those who want to learn,” in order, as he said in the preface, “to achieve melodiousness in the game.”
Three-voice symphonies, fugues of the "well-tempered clavier" - the highest school of polyphonic singing on the piano, a model for exercises in the study of all great works. Three-voice singing is the minimum requirement for a pianist.” Martinsen.

"INVENTIONS"

The name "invention" Bach probably did not invent himself, but took over from unknown author, whose works he copied for his sons. He created perfectly new form- without external divisions that impede the natural development of the muses. thoughts. It proceeds from the thematic and motive principles of development, and not melodic ones.
For Bach, the basis of music is the melody - the vocal principle, and all of his work stems from this principle. This refers to the various types of expressive speech declamation, which are so rich in Bach's compositions.

Neuhaus said: “As you know, Bach wrote his inventions to teach the players melodiousness. But no matter how much you teach, the piano does not sing as you would like it to sing. What to do? Only by demanding the impossible from the piano, you will achieve the possible on it.

3. WHERE TO START?

First of all, a new piece needs to be performed by a student. In order for the teacher to be able to perform the work well, as well as to give appropriate explanations, he needs to learn the invention himself and understand its structure.
So, the student will hear the form, character, dynamic plan of the work, tempo.
Next, you should indicate the division into parts.
This is very well shown in Busoni's edition.
Then mark the climax in each part. Then deal with the topic, its phrasing, articulation. It is necessary to play the theme in all registers. Pay attention to how it changes color depending on the case.
Then you can move on to working on the voices. Here is what McKinnon writes about the method of work in The Game by Heart:

1. Select each voice separately, sing it, dividing it into phrases and outline the color of the sound (expressiveness). You should not learn a piece by voices for too long, so as not to relearn them later in the process of coordinating playing skills.
2. Put all the voices together, temporarily focusing on the fingering.
3. Play the entire piece at a very slow tempo, focusing on the bass voice, but at the same time keep an eye on everyone else in your mind. Play the piece again, this time following the tenor voice.
4. Decide for yourself the question of the ratio of voices and set the appropriate coloration of the sound.
5. In each play, it is recommended to put down several starting points.

Sometimes it is impossible to follow the voices throughout the play. It is important from the very beginning of the work to focus on the topic and its development. The main section in polyphony, the division of such pieces will not be between voices, but between thematic and non-thematic material.
In some cases, this does not preclude the need for division into votes.
Some teachers believe that the theme should be played a little louder than other voices, wherever the theme occurs.
L. Roizman says: “With such an interpretation, we often find ourselves witnessing a performance, about which one can say, “forty times the theme and not a single time of the fugue.”
The topic needs to be heard first. It doesn't have to be pushed out at all. Sometimes it may sound quieter than other voices, but it should always be significant, expressive, noticeable. A logically constructed dynamic plan should include topics of varying degrees of strength and mood.

4. ABOUT PHRASING

Phrasing in music, like punctuation marks in speech, delimits sentences (phrases) and parts of a sentence (motives) according to their meaning.
In Bach, "accenting correctly" is almost the same as "phrasing correctly", and phrasing correctly implies "articulated correctly"
Particular difficulties arise when dividing polyphonic music into phrases, and in particularBach music .
The most important thing, according to Schweitzer, is "to establish the place of the main accent, to which, restlessly, all the previous tends." As soon as this accent is found, "the theme clearly emerges with its contours in front of the listener", "the tension is resolved and everything that precedes becomes clear."
In order to reinforce the above considerations and make it easier to find the sound on which Bach should emphasize, the researchers, who were at the same time major practicing performers, even tried to establish a special (double) rule, suitable, if not in all, then in the vast majority of cases.
First, they strongly recommend accentuating notes at the end of a melodic line going up or down: if the line is continuous, then the accent falls on its last note; if the line is interrupted by pauses, then the accents fall on the final notes of each section, with the main accent being the accent of the last section.
Secondly, they point out that the accents most often fall on syncopated or non-syncoped notes that interrupt the movement unexpectedly, these notes representing either an unusual "characteristic interval" or syncopation.
There should be no hesitation here; it is these notes that should always be “boldly accentuated”.

5. ABOUT ARTICULATION.

Articulation should be understood as a way of performing the sounds of muses. speech (legato, staccato, etc.).
Here is what Schweitzer writes about Bach's legato and staccato: “In Czerny, Clementi, Cramer, legato begins with an accented note, while the rest are played as smoothly as possible. Bach's legato, on the other hand, is much less piano, but more lively: in the big league he has many small ones that combine notes into subgroups. There are no equal notes in his passages. All of them have a relative value - exactly the one that they should have, according to the place they occupy in a certain combination of several notes.
Bach's staccato coincides only in rare cases with our modern light blow. It's more of a jerky heavy detache. It does not sound easy, but accentuates the corresponding note.

6. ABOUT APPLICATION

Under Bach, the scales were played with the fingering 343434 or 543221. Schweitzer writes: “That legato and that fingering will be correct, cat. allow you to convey all the diversity general connection notes and their accents as Bach conceived them, but they "sounded"".
“Each performer of Bach's clavier works,” writes A. Schweitzer, “will inevitably be forced to use “shifting”, especially the third through the fourth and the fourth through the fifth. Bach's music itself teaches us his fingering and even forces us to it to a certain extent.
Busoni's fingering instructions revive the widely used technique of shifting fingers. Subsequently, Busoni writes: “I now use little or no change of fingers on a repeated note and more and more avoid putting the first finger. Finally, I no longer dwell on minor details and secondary points - facial expression is more important to me than its individual features.
L. Roizman considers Czerny's fingering to be the most convenient for students (“less complicated and more accessible to children”).
The teacher must decide for himself in which case which fingering is more appropriate to use.

7. ABOUT EDITIONS

There are many editions of Bach's works. The worst edition is considered to be Czerny's. Perhaps its only advantage is the fingering.
In Czerny's edition, there is no lively characteristic phrasing - continuous legato dominates. Wave-like dynamics prevail, exaggeratedly fast rates. For us, this is unacceptable. Bach looks sentimental.
Polyphonic thoughts require long breathing, long periods of development. This is necessary for the development of pianism in general. Variegation, small nuances interfere with the clarity of the development of polyphony. This is important quality working on a polyphonic style.
Busoni subsequently proposed such a 3-goal phrasing. Inventions No. 15 h-moll.

8. ABOUT PACE

Little can be said about the tempos of Bach's clavier works. The better you play Bach, the slower you can play him; the worse you play, the faster the pace should be taken. Playing well means phrasing and emphasizing in all voices, noting the details. This sets certain technical limits for speed. Those who phrase poorly, do not give accents and therefore lubricate most details, let him calmly play a little faster, in order to interest the listener at least a little. In general, liveliness in Bach's works is based not on tempo, but on phrasing and accents. In this direction, each performer should strive for a characteristic temperamental game. A. Schweitzer.
L. Roizman writes: “Those musicians are right who say: “Bach does not have fast pieces; they are all slow.” This does not mean that rapid rates are generally denied; but it means the call to "hurry slowly!".

9. ABOUT RHYTHM

The correct sense of tempo is directly related to the distribution and strength of rhythmic accents. In Bach, almost everywhere we meet with a free, unfolding melodic line, very far from the rhythmic of the symmetrical structure of the melody, characteristic, for example, of the classics of the Viennese school. In Bach, accentuation very often does not coincide with strong bar time: there are often climaxes - and therefore dynamic accentuation - on the so-called weak beats of the bar. Schweitzer quite accurately says this: “To play Bach rhythmically means to emphasize not strong times, but those parts that are under emphasis. More than for any other artist, the subdivision of tact is for him only the outer shell of topics whose metrics cannot at all fit into simple types tact." Schweitzer refers to R. Westphal, who, in his well-known work on musical meter and rhythm in Bach, more than once indicates that those who consider Bach's bar lines to be the boundaries of rhythmic groups play him non-rhythmically.

10. ABOUT HARMONY (KHUBOV)

In the depths of Bach's polyphony, with its pronounced folk melodic beginning and relief rhythm, colorful harmony naturally arises. Despite its still subordinate significance, it constitutes a very important qualitative feature of Bach's polyphonic style. For it is harmony that reveals in it both internal unity and new potential possibilities for musical and thematic development. Without exaggerating the independent significance of harmony in Bach, one should, however, emphasize its functional connection with polyphony in the disclosure of the theme - the plot, in the formation and development musical image. This connection was undoubtedly realized by Bach, which, as you know, paid the most serious attention to the "general - bass".

11. FRENCH AND ENGLISH SUITES

(SCHWEITZER)

How they got their name is unknown.
The suite was created by musicians - trumpeters of the 17th century, who performed a number of dances of various nationalities in their performances. From them they passed to the German claviers, from whom they received further development. As a rule, suites included at least 4 parts: allemande, courante, sarabande, and gigue.
The allemande is distinguished by a calm 4/4 size, the lead-in is formed by an eighth or sixteenth note;
Courant in 3/2 time: it is characterized by continuous movement with notes of equal duration;
Sarabande - a solemn Spanish dance, also in 3/2, taking place in notes of large duration, coquettishly entwined with decorations;
Gigue - in a wide variety of tripartite sizes, usually in a fast and uniform movement. It takes its name from the word "gigue", which means "ham" - a derisive French nickname for an old violin; therefore, jig, in fact, means "dance of the violinist."
The French introduced all sorts of dances into the suites. Their suites include:
Gavotte in 3/2 time with a half-bar backbeat;
Minuet, in simple three-beat rhythm;
Bourre in live 4/4 time is an angular dance from the province of Auvergne. Rondo, rigaudon, polonaise, even free non-dance pieces were also introduced into the French Suite.
Bach adopts this rich suite form from his French predecessors.
Following tradition, between the sarabande and the gigue, he includes dances in the suite that were not originally included in it, so that the giga forms the conclusion. He places the freely composed parts at the beginning. So, English suites begin with preludes. French suites start right from the allemande.
Bach spiritualizes the dance form and gives each of the main dance pieces a distinct musical identity.
In the allemande, he conveys a full of strength, calm movement;
in the chimes - moderate haste in which dignity and grace are combined;
his saraband is an image of a stately solemn procession;
in the gigue, the freest form, a fantasy-filled movement dominates. Thus, he creates the highest art from the suite form, without violating the old principle of combining dances.

12. J. S. Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier

(Y. I. MILSHTEIN)

“This is a reference book for every thinking musician, a must-have for a lifetime! - a teaching aid and at the same time an inexhaustible source of the purest pleasure.
"Not a stream! “The sea must be his name…” said Beethoven, who had studied the Well-Tempered Clavier since childhood, calling it his “musical bible”.
Schumann in " life rules for musicians" directly instructed the young musician:
"Play hard fugues great masters, and above all J. S. Bach. The Well-Tempered Clavier should be your daily bread.
Stasov characterized Bach's "well-tempered clavier" as a "reliable staff on a long journey."
Pablo Casals said: “This music is the best source of youth. She renews the soul."
The goal of The Well-Tempered Clavier is to introduce clavier players to all 24 major and minor keys, many of which were not in use until that time.
Neuhaus wrote:
“One of my pedagogical eccentricities” is the advice: to replace a certain number of etudes by Czerny and Clementi with a set of “motor preludes from the tempered clavier”
It - Nos. 2, 3, 5, 6, 10, 11, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20, 21;
IIt - Nos. 2, 5, 6, 8, 10, 15, 18, 21, 23;
Only 21 preludes! Learn them - this will allow you to "save" at least 50 highly useful studies.

13. PRELUDE AND FUGE GIS MOLL I T

Prelude
The feeling is sad, sad, and at the same time deep, concentrated, serious - something in the spirit of "passions".
Its presentation is polyphonic and, in essence, similar to the presentation of the three-part invention. The topic appears frequently in circulation. The volume of the prelude is 29 measures. Its structure is undoubtedly two-part;
Busoni offers the scheme 12:17, Bartok - 13:16 - another confirmation of how continuous the flow of music is in Bach. The performance requires expressive simplicity and at the same time softness, calmness, tenderness. The pace is moderate, but not stretched.
The fugue (4-voice) is one of the most expressive fugues of the 1st movement. Its theme, starting with the tonic from the weak part of the measure, modulates into the key of the Dominant and ends with a full perfect cadenza. According to the main mood, it is filled with severe mournful reflection; it is characterized by a slow pace and the presentation is most often in low and medium registers.
The answer (tonal) enters almost immediately after the end of the topic.
The counterposition is built on the material of the theme and plays an essential role in the further development of the fugue.
There is also a second counterposition in the fugue, but its role in the general presentation is less significant. In the interludes, there is an intensive development of thematic material. And often by means that are homophonic (which is unusual for a fugue!). Its structure is more often considered as three-part.
The performance of the fugue should be restrained - expressive, strict and noble.
The mournful - with elements of meditation - character of the fugue predetermines the restrained pace of performance, which is closest to Andante.

14. PRELUDE AND FUGE F-MOLL II T

Prelude
In this prelude, which is one of the most popular preludes, Bach's mighty, original fantasy manifested itself extremely vividly.
The musicians readily compared the prelude to Pergolesi's "stab at mater". The theme of sacrifice is very suitable here. (Michelangelo's "Sistine Madonna").
The impression of unusualness is further enhanced by the very nature of the presentation, which is more homophonic than polyphonic.
Constant opposition of "light and dark" episodes. Interesting bass. Performance with all simplicity and modesty requires graceful softness, tenderness, special emotional expressiveness.
The pace largely depends on the nature of the interpretation.
The dynamic plan is clearly defined by the introductions of the theme, the difference between the theme and interludes. Here contrasts F and P are needed.
The principle of dynamic contrast extends to large sections of the prelude as well.
Busoni proposes in the dynamic interpretation of the prelude to proceed from its possible (imaginary) instrumentation for woodwind instruments: “sighs” in thirds and sects - clarinets, part lion. hands - bassoons, in bars 4 -8 flutes are added. According to Busoni, then a special mood is created - as in the introductions to arias in cantatas. The articulation of the theme is based on the fusion of “sighs” and the separation of the upbeat from the pivot point. Braudo says: "The rehearsal itself inclines us to cut off the beat."
As in some other cases, various pictorial associations may arise when interpreting this prelude.

The fugue (3-voice) is clear from the drawing.
Its theme is built on the principle of contrast: one part of it has a decisive leap, sharp rhythm, the other is more “neutral”, aligned and rhythmically and with its smooth movement, as it were, replenishes the melodic jumps of the first part.
However, along with detente with movement, the second half of the theme also gives continuity. further development. In the dominant tone, a tone response is performed.
The counter-addition, like the theme, is divided into two (but not equal in length) parts: the first immediately begins after the end of the theme and directly continues its movement, the second consists of characteristic eighths.
The continuity of development is enhanced and emphasized by interludes connected with various elements of the theme and opposition.
The structure of the Fugue is more often defined as tripartite.
The fugue must be sufficiently definite in character. The pace is fluid, but no frills. The articulation of the theme of this Fugue requires lightness and finesse of stroke.

15. USED LITERATURE

1. Albert Schweitzer. J. S. Bach.
2. Ya. Milshtein. "The Well-Tempered Clavier by J.S. Bach".
3. McKinnon. "Game by heart".
4. G. Khubov. "Sebastian Bach".
5. K. Martinsen. "On the Method of Piano Teaching".
6. L. Roizman. "Teachers - practitioners ask."
7. Hoffmann. "Piano game. Answers to questions about piano playing.
8. Savinsky. "The Pianist and His Work".
9. G. Neuhaus. "On the Art of Piano Playing".
10. Rabinovich. "On the work on polyphony with students of primary and secondary classes of music school."

Work on polyphony

Polyphonic repertoire as a basis for the auditory education of pianists in the junior and middle grades of the music school

Polyphony (poly- + Greek phonos - voice, sound) is a type of polyphony in music, based on the equality of voices that make up the texture, and in which each voice has an independent melodic meaning (a related term is counterpoint). Their association is subject to the laws of harmony, coordinating the overall sound.

Invention (from lat. inventio find; invention, in the late lat. meaning - [original] fiction) - small two- and three-voice pieces of a polyphonic warehouse, written in various types polyphonic technique: in the form of imitation, canon,

The canom in music is a polyphonic form in which the melody forms a counterpoint with itself. The main technical and compositional technique underlying the canon is called (canonical) imitation

Fumga (from lat. fuga - "flight", "chase") - musical form, which is the highest achievement of polyphonic music. There are several voices in the fugue, each of which, in accordance with strict rules, repeats, in the main or modified form, the theme - a short melody that runs through the entire fugue.

Sub-vocal polyphony is characteristic of Slavic music, in works of this type it is easy to distinguish the main voice from the accompanying voices, the solo voice is more developed, the other voices play the role of accompaniment. In terms of intonation, they are related to the main voice (there is no such connection in contrasting polyphony). Examples are the plays of M. Krutitsky "In Winter", D. Kabalevsky "At Night on the River", D. Levidova "Lullaby", etc.). Accompanying voices can not only sing along, but give a new character to the sound, for example, Alexandrov's "Kuma", at the beginning of which we hear a calm character, at the end - a dance one. The content should be clear to the student (words suggest content).

The next step is to introduce the concept of imitation, where the melody appears in different voices alternately. Soprano and bass - imitation (the bass "mimics" the soprano), the melody moves from one voice to another. The simplest examples for acquaintance: Gedike "Rigodon" op.46 No. 1, K. Longchamp-Drushkevichova "Two Friends", Myaskovsky "Carefree Song". In imitative polyphony it is difficult to say which voice is the main one, in interludes - the upper voice. WITH imitative polyphony we get to know each other at various plays, fughettas, fugues. Then you can move on to the concept of canon (ie, imitation of the entire work). Voting does not take place immediately. First, the upper voice, almost ended - the lower one enters, then in the middle the 2nd voice. Canon in Greek means pattern, rule. Examples can be used as initial material: R. Ledenev. Little canon (F-dur), Russian folk song "On the river, on the Danube" arranged by S. Lyakhovitskaya and L. Barenboim, I. Khutoryansky "Little canon" (d-moll), Russian folk song "Oh, you, zimushka » in the processing of I. Berkovich.

In two-voice polyphonic pieces, try to emphasize imitation not with dynamics, but with a timbre that is different from the other voice. If the upper voice is played loudly, and the lower voice is played lightly and quietly, then the imitation will be heard more clearly than when it is performed loudly. It is this manner of playing that reveals the presence of 2 independent voices, which is the basis for polyphony. That is, dynamics is not the best way to make the theme in any voice clearly distinguishable. What is heard is not what is loud, but what has its own special timbre, phrasing, articulation, different from another voice. The light sound of the bass voice contrasts well with the ringing "singing" of the top voice and is perceived more distinctly than the loud performance of the imitation. polyphonic repertoire pianist melody

In classes with a student, one should try to include works of art in the work various countries, eras, draw the student's attention to the nationality (hidden song, dance), reveal the aesthetic richness and artistic charm of polyphony, teach to love this music. Polyphonic works should become an indispensable material for the development of musical thinking, for nurturing the initiative and independence of the student, and even the key to understanding all musical styles.

So, in working on polyphony, one should take into account - the ability to hear the melody “horizontally”, revealing emotional and intonational expressiveness in it. For very young pianists, the best repertoire is songs. It is the song that is easiest to interest the child, to find with him mutual language. Bright, memorable melodies and rhythms of folk and the best modern songs are close to children in terms of images, available for all types of performance.

From monophonic songs, it is logical to move to songs of a folk character of an under-voiced warehouse, where the second voice is not independent, but only supports the first. Here you can tell the student how these songs were sung by the people: first the singer entered, and only then the melody, slightly changing it, was picked up by the choir with undertones.

At this stage of learning, playing in an ensemble with a teacher is especially effective, simulating folk collective activity. One voice is entrusted to the student, the others are played by the teacher. It is also advisable to turn to the synthesis of vocal and piano performance: we sing one voice - we play the other.

One-voice melodies and pieces of a sub-voice warehouse prepare the child for work on imitative polyphony, contrast polyphony. Excellent examples of arrangements of folk songs for beginners can be found in such musical anthologies as the "Collection piano pieces, etudes and ensembles for beginners” (comp. S. Lyakhovitskaya and L. Barenboim), “Pieces for Piano on Folk Themes” (comp. B. Rozengauz), “Collection of Polyphonic Pieces” (comp. S. Lyakhovitskaya) and others.

At the next stage of pianistic education, the core of the polyphonic repertoire for junior schoolchildren are the works of the great composer Johann Sebastian Bach.

Maturity, deep content is combined in Bach's works with accessibility, pianism. The composer specially wrote many pieces as polyphonic exercises for his students, striving to develop their polyphonic thinking. These compositions include Anna Magdalena Bach's Notebook for Music, Little Preludes and Fugues, Inventions and Symphonies. The composer sought to ensure that these works were accessible for perception and performance by young musicians. In them, each melodic voice lives independently and is interesting in itself. Without disturbing the sound of the whole and the life of the entire piece of music.

Light polyphonic pieces from Anna Magdalena Bach's Music Notebook are the most valuable material for the development of students' hearing and thinking. The largest dance pieces from the Music Notebook: minuets, polonaises, marches, are distinguished by a rich palette of moods and unusually beautiful melodies. Variety of articulatory and rhythmic nuances.

The timbre is enriched - dynamic representations of the student. He gets acquainted with the originality of Bach's dynamics - its step-like nature, when sonority is added with the first note of each new motive.

The requirements for the melodic ear of a young pianist are also becoming more complicated. First of all, this concerns the articulatory aspects of the melody. The student's ear must master such types of melodic articulation as inter-motive and intra-motive. He learns to distinguish iambic (out-of-bar) and choreic motifs (starting on a strong beat and ending on a weak one).

Even greater opportunities for the auditory education of a pianist are found in the work on Inventions and Symphonies, which is also associated with a higher level of performance. The purpose of the Inventions is formulated by the composer himself: “A conscientious guide in which clavier lovers, especially those eager to learn, are shown a clear way to play cleanly not only with two voices, but with further improvement, correctly and well perform the three obligatory voices. Learning at the same time not only good inventions, but also the correct development; the main thing is to achieve a melodious manner of playing and at the same time acquire a taste for composition ”From this text it follows what high demands Bach made on the melodious manner of playing and, consequently, on the melodic and intonational ear of the performer. The real sound of "Inventions" especially expands the student's stylistic auditory horizons. Big role acquires auditory imagination associated with the presentation of the sound of ancient instruments - the harpsichord and clavichord, the timbre originality of each. In contrast to the subtle melodious sonority of the clavichord, the harpsichord has a sharp, brilliant, abrupt sound. The feeling of the instrumental nature of this or that invention extremely activates the pianist's timbre ear and allows him to achieve the possible through the seemingly impossible in the colorful sphere of polyphonic technique.

guitars"

Working on polyphonic works is an integral part of learning piano performing arts. After all, guitar music is all polyphonic in the broad sense of the word.

The education of polyphonic thinking, polyphonic hearing, that is, the ability to dissect, differentiate (hear) and reproduce on the instrument several sound lines that combine with each other in the simultaneous development, is one of the most important and most difficult sections of musical education.

Modern pedagogy with great confidence refers to musical intelligence children.

Based on experience, the teacher opens up an interesting and complex world of polyphonic music for the child from the first year of study at a music school. The polyphonic repertoire for beginners is made up of light polyphonic arrangements of folk songs of an under-voiced warehouse, close and understandable to children in their content.

The teacher talks about how these songs were sung by the people: she began to sing a song, then the choir (“accompanying voices”) picked it up, varying the same melody.

Playing both parts alternately with the teacher in the ensemble, the student not only clearly feels the independent life of each of them, but also hears the whole piece in a simultaneous combination of both voices, which greatly facilitates the most difficult stage of work - the transfer of both parts into the hands of the student.

In order to make the understanding of polyphony more accessible to the child, it is useful to resort to figurative analogies and use program compositions in which each voice has its own figurative characteristic. For example, Sorokin's arrangement of the song "Merry Katya", which he called "Shepherds play the flute". two-voice subvocal polyphony in this play becomes especially accessible to the student due to the program name. The child easily imagines two planes of sonority here: as if the game of an adult shepherd and a little shepherdess playing along on a small pipe.This task usually captivates the student and the work is quickly argued.This way of mastering polyphonic pieces significantly increases interest in them,and most importantly, it awakens in the mind of the student a vivid, figurative perception of voices. It is this that is the basis of an emotional and meaningful attitude to voice leading. A number of other pieces of the sub-voice warehouse are learned in a similar way. They can be found in many collections for beginners. Kiryanov's collections, "Small Etudes for Beginners", "Preparatory
exercises".

Composing is extraordinarily useful as one of the types of creative music-making for children. It activates thinking, imagination, feelings. Finally, it significantly increases interest in the studied works.

The active and interested attitude of a student to polyphonic music entirely depends on the method of work of the teacher, on his ability to lead the student to a figurative perception of the basic elements of polyphonic music, its inherent techniques, such as imitation.

In Russian folk songs "I walk with a loach" or "Woodcutter", where the initial melody is repeated an octave lower, one can figuratively explain the imitation by comparison with such a familiar and interesting phenomenon for children as an echo. The kid will be happy to answer the teacher's questions: how many voices are in the song?What voice sounds like an echo?And arrange (himself) the dynamics (fand p) using the "echo" technique. Playing in an ensemble will enliven the perception of imitation very much: the student plays the melody, and the teacher plays its imitation ("echo"), and vice versa.

It is very important from the first steps of mastering polyphony to accustom the child to the clarity of the alternate entry of voices, the clarity of their conduct and ending. It is necessary at each lesson to achieve a contrasting dynamic embodiment and a different timbre for each voice.

On the plays of Bach and other contemporary authors, children comprehend the originality
musical language contemporary composers. On the example of Bach's play
"Opposite movement" shows how important the game of polyphony is for the upbringing and development of the student's ear, especially when it comes to the perception and performance of works of modern music. Here the melody of each voice individually sounds natural. But during the initial playing of the piece with both hands at once, the student may be unpleasantly struck by the dissonances that arise during the opposite movement and the listings of f-fa-sharp, C-c-sharp. If, on the other hand, he assimilates each voice separately, as it should, then their simultaneous sound will be perceived by him as logical and natural.

Often, in modern music there is a complication of polyphony with polytonality (carrying out voices in different keys).

Following the mastery of simple imitation (repetition of a motif in a different voice), work begins on canonical pieces built on a straight imitation, which enters before the end of the imitated melody. In plays of this kind, not one phrase or motive is imitated, but all phrases or motives until the end of the work.

Since stretta imitation in the polyphony of J.S. Bach is a very important means of development, the teacher, who cares about the prospect of further polyphonic education of the student, should focus on it.

Further, the study of polyphonic pieces of the Baroque era acquires particular importance, among which the works of J. S. Bach occupy the first place. In this era, the rhetorical foundations of the musical language took shape - musical - rhetorical figures associated with certain semantic symbolism (figures of a sigh, exclamation, question, silence, amplification, various forms movement and musical structure). Acquaintance with the musical language of the Baroque era serves as the basis for the accumulation of the intonational vocabulary of a young musician and helps him understand the musical language of subsequent eras.

Vocal compositions - arias and chorales included in the collection - were intended for performance in the home circle of the Bach family.

I usually start introducing students to the "Notebook" Minuetd-moll. The student will be interested to know that nine Minuets are included in the collection. During the time of J.S. Bach, the Minuet was a widespread, lively, well-known dance. It was danced both at home, and at fun parties and during solemn palace ceremonies. In the future, the minuet became a fashionable aristocratic dance, which was carried away by prim courtiers in white powdered wigs with curls. You should show illustrations of the balls of that time, draw the attention of children to the costumes of men and women, which to a large extent determined the style of dancing (for women, crinolines, immensely wide, requiring smooth movements, for men - legs covered with stockings, in elegant high-heeled shoes, with beautiful garters , - bows at the knees). The minuet was danced with great solemnity. His music reflected in its melodic turns the smoothness and importance of bows, low ceremonial squats and curtsies.

After listening to the “Minuet” performed by the teacher, the student determines his character: with his melody and melodiousness, he is more like a song than a dance, therefore the character of the performance should be soft, smooth, melodious, in a calm and even movement. Then the teacher draws the student's attention to the difference between the melody of the upper and lower voices, their independence and independence from each other, as if they were sung by two singers: we determine that the first - a high female voice - is a soprano, and the second is a low male - bass; or two voices perform two different instruments, which ones?Be sure to involve the student in the discussion of this issue, wake him up creative fantasy. It is sometimes convenient to make this distinction clear to the student by means of figurative comparisons. For example, the solemn, festive "Little Prelude in C-dur" is naturally compared with a short overture for an orchestra, in which trumpets and timpani take part. It is natural to compare the thoughtful “Little Prelude in e-moll” with a piece for a small chamber ensemble, in which the melody of the solo oboe is accompanied by string instruments. The very understanding of the general nature of the sonority necessary for this work, will help the student to develop the exactingness of his ear, will help to direct this exactingness to the implementation of the necessary sound.

In Minuetd minorthe melodious, expressive sound of the first voice resembles the singing of a violin. And the timbre and register of the bass voice approaches the sound of the cello. Then it is necessary to analyze together with the child, asking him leading questions, the form of the play (two-part) and its tonal plan: the first part begins ind- moll "e, and ends in parallelF-dur "e; the second part begins inF-dur "eand ends atd- moll "e;phrasing and associated articulation of each voice separately. In the first part, the lower voice consists of two sentences clearly separated by a cadence, and the first sentence of the upper voice breaks up into two two-bar phrases: the first phrase sounds more significant and insistent, the second is more calm, as if in response.

In the same way, you can work on Minuet No. 4G-dur, where "questions" and "answers" consist of four bar phrases. Then the entire first voice of the Minuet is played by the student, expressively intoning "questions" and "answers"; work on the expressiveness of the strokes deepens (bars 2.5) - here figurative comparisons can help the student. For example, in the second measure, the melody "reproduces" an important, deep and significant bow, and in the fifth - lighter, graceful bows, and so on. The teacher can ask the student to depict different bows in motion, based on the nature of the strokes. It is necessary to identify the climaxes of both movements - both in the first movement and the main climax of the entire piece in the second movement almost merge with the final cadence - this is a distinctive feature of Bach's style, which the student should be aware of. The question of the interpretation of Bach's cadences was
such authoritative researchers of Bach's work as F. Busoni, A. Schweitzer, I. Braudo. All of them come to the conclusion that Bach's cadences are characterized by significance, dynamic pathos. Very rarely does a Bach piece end on the piano; the same can be said about the cadences in the middle of the work.

Of the many tasks that stand in the way of studying polyphony, the main one is work on melodiousness, intonational expressiveness and the independence of each voice separately. Independence of voices is an indispensable feature of any polyphonic work. Therefore, it is so important to show the student, using the example of the Minuet, how exactly this independence manifests itself: in the different character of the sounding of voices (instrumentation); in different, almost nowhere coinciding phrasing (for example, in measures1-4 the upper voice contains two phrases, and the lower one consists of one sentence); in a mismatch of strokes (legatoand poplegato); in the mismatch of culminations (for example, in the fifth - sixth measures, the melody of the upper voice rises and comes to the top, and the lower voice moves down and rises to the top only in the seventh measure); in different rhythms (the movement of the lower voice in quarter and half durations contrasts with the mobile rhythmic pattern of the upper melody, consisting almost entirely of eighth notes); in the mismatch of dynamic development (for example, in the fourth measure of the second part, the sonority of the lower voice increases, and the upper one decreases).

Bach's polyphony is characterized by polydynamics, and for its clear reproduction one should first of all avoid dynamic exaggerations, one should not deviate from the intended instrumentation until the end of the piece. A sense of proportion in relation to all dynamic changes in any work by Bach is a quality without which it is impossible to convey his music stylistically correctly. Only through a deep analytical study of the basic laws of Bach's style can one comprehend the performing intentions of the composer. All the efforts of the teacher should be directed to this, starting with the Notebook of Anna Magdalena Bach.

When performing vocal compositions by I.S. Bach (Aria No. 33f-moll.Aria No. 40F-Dur), as well as his chorale preludes (at a later stage of learning), one must not lose sight of the fact that the fermata sign in these pieces does not mean a temporary stop, as in modern musical practice; this sign indicated only the end of the verse.

When working on Bach's polyphony, students often encounter melismas, the most important artistic means of expression musicXVII-XVIIIcenturies. If we take into account the differences in editorial recommendations both regarding the number of decorations and their decoding, it becomes clear that the student will definitely need help and specific instructions from the teacher here. The teacher should proceed from a sense of the style of the performed works, his own performing and pedagogical experience, as well as available methodological guides. So, the teacher can recommend the article by L.I. Roizman "On the performance of decorations (melismas) in the works of ancient composers", in which this issue is analyzed in detail and instructions are given by I.S. Bach. You can refer to the capital study of Adolf Beischlag "Ornamentation in Music", and of course, get acquainted with Bach's interpretation of the performance of melismas according to the table compiled by the composer himself in the "Night Notebook of Wilhelm Friedemann Bach", covering the main typical examples. Three points are important here:

1. Bach recommends performing melismas due to the duration of the main sound (for
individual exceptions).

2. All melismas start with the upper auxiliary sound (except for the crossed out mordent and a few exceptions, for example, if the sound on which the trill or non-crossed out mordent is set is already preceded by the nearest upper sound, then the decoration is performed from the main sound).

3. Auxiliary sounds in melismas are performed on the steps of the diatonic scale, except when the alteration sign is indicated by the composer - under the melisma sign or above it. So that our students do not treat melismas as an annoying hindrance in a play, we need to skillfully present this material to them, arouse interest, curiosity.

For example, while learning Minuet No. 4G-dur, the student gets acquainted with the melody, not paying attention at first to the mordents written out in the notes. Then he listens to the play performed by the teacher, first without decorations, then with decorations and compares. The guys, of course, like the performance with mordents more. Let him independently look for where and how they are indicated in the notes.

Having found badges (mordents) new for him, the student usually waits with interest for the teacher's explanations, and the teacher says that these badges, decorating the melody, are an abbreviated way of recording melodic turns, common in the XVII - XVIII centuries. Decorations, as it were, connect, unite the melodic line, enhance speech expressiveness. And if melismas are a melody, then they must be performed melodiously and expressively, in the character and tempo that are inherent in this piece. In order for melismas not to be a "stumbling block", they must first be heard "to oneself", sung and only then played, starting at a slow pace and gradually bringing it to the desired one.

The student got acquainted with imitation in the first grade of the music school. In middle school, his understanding of imitation expands. He must understand it as a repetition of the theme - the main musical idea - in a different voice. Imitation is the main polyphonic way of developing the theme. Therefore, a thorough and comprehensive study of the topic, whether it is a Little Prelude.Invention, Symphony or Fugue, is a priority in working on any polyphonic work of imitation warehouse.

Starting to analyze the topic, the student independently or with the help of a teacher determines its boundaries. Then he must understand the figurative-intonational nature of the topic. The chosen expressive interpretation of the theme determines the interpretation of the entire work. That is why it is so necessary to capture all the subtleties of sound performance of the theme, starting from its first introduction. While still studying the pieces from Anna Magdalena Bach's Notebook, the student became aware of the motive structure of Bach's melodies. Working, for example, on a theme in Little Prelude No. 2C major(Part1), the student must clearly understand that it consists of three ascending motives (example 3). To clearly identify its structure, it is useful to first teach each motive separately, playing it from different sounds, achieving intonational expressiveness. When the theme, after a thorough study of the motives, is played in its entirety, the distinct intonation of each motive is obligatory. To do this, it is useful to play a theme with caesuras between motives, making on the last sound of each motivetenuto.
On the example of the InventionC majorthe student should be introduced to inter-motive articulation, which is used to separate one motive from another with the help of a caesura.

The most obvious type of caesura is the pause indicated in the text.
In most cases, the ability to independently establish semantic caesuras is required, which the teacher must instill in the student. In InventionC-dur theme, opposition and new implementation of the theme in the first voice are separated by caesuras. Students easily cope with caesura when moving from a theme to a counter-addition, but from a counter-addition to a new implementation of a theme, it is more difficult to perform a caesura. You should carefully work on taking the first sixteenth in the second bar more quietly and softly, as if on an exhalation, and imperceptibly and easily releasing your finger, immediately lean on the second sixteenth group (sol), sing it deeply and significantly to show the beginning of the theme . Pupils, as a rule, make a gross mistake here, playing the sixteenth before the caesura staccato, and even with a rough, sharp sound, without listening to how it sounds. Braudo recommends that the last note before the caesura be played according to
possibilitiestenuto.

The student must be introduced to different ways designations of intermotive caesura. It can be indicated by a pause, one or two vertical lines, the end of the league, the signstaccatoon a note before the caesura.

Speaking of intramotive articulation, the child should be taught to distinguish between the main types of motives:

1. The motifs are iambic, which go from a weak time to a strong one.

2. Choreic motives, entering on a strong beat and ending on a weak one. An example of a staccato iambic is the iambic motifs in bars 4-5 in Little Prelude No. 2C major. Because of the hard ending, it is called "male". In Bach's music, it is constantly found, because it corresponds to its masculine character. As a rule, iambic works by Bach are pronounced dissected: the off-beat sound is staccated (or played poplegato), and the reference sound is playedtenuto. A feature of the articulation of a chorea (soft, feminine ending) is the linking of a strong tense with a weak one.

As an independent motif, trochee, due to its softness, is rarely found in Bach's music, being usually an integral part of a three-member motive formed from the merger of two simple motives - iambic and trochaic. The three-term motif, therefore, combines two contrasting types of pronunciation - separation and fusion. One of characteristic properties Bach's themes are dominated by the iambic structure. Most often, their first holding begins with a weak beat after the previous pause at a strong time. When studying Little Preludes No. 2, 4, 6, 7, 9,11 from the first notebook, Inventions No. 1, 2, 3, 5 and others.Symphonies No. 1, 3, 4, 5, 7 and others, the teacher should draw the student's attention to the indicated structure, which determines the nature of the performance. When playing on a theme without accompanying voices, the child's hearing must immediately be included in the "empty" pause so that he feels a natural breath in it before the melodic line unfolds. Feeling such polyphonic breathing
very important when studying cantilena preludes, inventions, symphonies, fugues.
The iambic structure of Bach's themes also determines the peculiarity of Bach's phrasing, which students must be aware of. Starting from a weak beat, the theme freely "steps over" the barline, ending on a strong beat, thus, the boundaries of the bar do not coincide with the boundaries of the theme, which leads to softening and weakening of the strong beats of the beat, subject to the inner life of the melody, its desire for semantic culminating peaks - the main thematic accents. Bach's thematic accents often do not coincide with metric ones; they are determined not by the meter, as in a classical melody, but by the inner life of the theme. The intonational peaks of a theme in Bach usually fall on weak beats. “In the Bach theme, all movement and all power rush to the main accent,” wrote A. Schweitzer: “On the way to it, everything is restless, chaotic, when it enters, the tension is discharged, everything that precedes immediately becomes clear. The listener perceives the theme as a whole with clearly minted contours". And further "... in order to play Bach rhythmically, one must emphasize not the strong beats of the measure, but those that are stressed in terms of the meaning of the phrasing." Students unfamiliar with features
Bach's phrasing often replace the thematic accent with a clock accent, which is why their theme breaks into pieces, loses its integrity and inner meaning.
Another essential feature of Bach's thematic art is the so-called hidden polyphony or hidden polyphony. Since this feature is common to almost all Bach melodies, the ability to recognize it seems to be an extremely important skill that prepares students for more complex tasks.

Let us draw the student's attention to the fact that Bach's melody often creates the impression
concentrated polyphonic fabric. Such a saturation of a monophonic line
achieved by the presence of a hidden voice in it. This hidden voice appears only in the melody where there are jumps. The sound left by the jump continues to sound in our minds until the moment when the tone next to it appears, into which it resolves.

We will find examples of hidden two-voices in Little Preludes No. 1,2,8,11,12 parts of the first. In Little Prelude No. 2 in c-moll(part two) we will introduce the student to the hidden two-voice of the type that is most often found in clavier compositions Bach.

Such a movement of a hidden voice will help to fix in the mind of the child a figurative name - "path". Such a track should be performed loudly, with support. The hand and finger descend on the keys slightly above, which results in a lateral movement of the brush.

A voice repeating the same sound should be played barely audible. The student will use the same technique when working on more complex works, for example, Alemanda from the French Suite E-dur.Minuet 1 from Partita 1 and others.

So, having determined the nature of the sound of the theme, its articulation, phrasing, culmination, having carefully won, having sung into the theme, the student proceeds to get acquainted with the first imitation of the theme, called the answer or companion. Here it is necessary to direct the student's attention to the question-answer dialogue of the topic and its imitation. In order not to turn the imitations into a monotonous series of repetitions of the same theme, Braudo advises playing one of the themes, singing the other, then performing the dialogue between the leader and the companion at two pianos.

Such work greatly stimulates the ear and polyphonic thinking.

Often teachers have a question: how to perform imitation - to emphasize it or not. There is no single answer to this question. In each specific case, one should proceed from the nature and structure of the play. If the opposition is close in nature to the theme and develops it, as, for example, in Little Prelude No. 2 in C-dur(h.1) or Invention No. 1 C-dur, then in order to preserve the unity of the theme and opposition, imitation should not be emphasized. As L. Roizman figuratively expressed, if each presentation of the theme is performed somewhat louder than other voices, then"... we are witnessing a performance that can be said: forty times a theme and not a single time of a fugue." In Bach's two-voice polyphonic pieces, imitation should most often be emphasized not by loudness, but by a different timbre than the other voice. If the upper voice is played loudly and expressively, and the lower one is easily and invariably quiet, the imitation will be heard more clearly than when it is performed loudly. The theme - depending on the dynamic plan - may sometimes sound quieter than the rest of the voices, but it should always be significant, expressive, noticeable.

Marking Braudo's imitations is considered appropriate in cases where the main character of the work is associated with a constant alternation of motives, with their constant transfer from one voice to another. The roll call of voices is included in this case in the main image of the work. It is with such a roll call that the bright, not devoid of humor nature of Invention No. 8 is connected.F-dur.Little Prelude No. 5 E-dur.

Following the development of the topic and the answer, work begins on the counteraddition.
The countercomplexity is worked out differently than the theme, since the nature of its sound and dynamics can only be established in combination with the answer. Therefore, the main method of work in this case is the performance of the answer and opposition in an ensemble with a teacher, and at home - with two hands, which greatly facilitates finding the appropriate dynamic colors.

Having worked out the theme and counterposition well, having clearly realized the correlations: theme - answer, theme - counterposition, answer - counteraddition, you can proceed to careful work on the melodic line of each voice. Long before they are combined, the piece is performed in two voices in an ensemble with a teacher - first in sections, then in its entirety and, finally, completely transferred to the student's hands. And then it turns out that in most cases the student, even if he hears the upper voice quite well, does not hear the lower one at all, like a melodic line. In order to really hear both voices, one should work by concentrating attention and hearing on one of them - the upper one (as in non-polyphonic works).
Both voices are played, but in different ways: the top one, to which attention is directed, -f,
espressivo, lower - pp (exactly). G. Neuhaus called this method the "exaggeration" method.

Practice shows that this work requires just such a big difference in the power of sound and expressiveness. Then not only the upper voice, the main one at the moment, is clearly audible, but also the lower one. They seem to be played by different performers on different instruments. But active attention, active listening without much effort is directed to the voice that is performed more prominently.

Then we shift our attention to the lower voice. Let's play itf,espressivo and the top one is pp. Now both voices are heard and perceived by the student even more clearly, the lower one because it is extremely "close", and the upper one because it is already well known.

When practicing in this way, good results can be achieved in the shortest possible time, since the sound picture becomes clear to the student. Then playing both voices as equals, he equally hears the expressive course of each voice (phrasing, nuance).

Such exact and clear hearing of each line is an indispensable condition for the performance of polyphony. Only having reached it, one can then fruitfully work on the work as a whole.

When performing a polyphonic work, difficulty hearing the entire fabric

(compared to two-voice) increases. Concern for the accuracy of voice leading makes one pay special attention to fingering. One cannot base the fingering of Bach's pieces solely on pianistic conveniences, as Czerny did in his editions. Busoni was the first to revive the fingering principles of the Bach era, as the most appropriate for the identification of the motive structure and the clear pronunciation of motives. The principles of shifting fingers, sliding a finger from a black key to a white one, and soundless substitution of fingers are widely used in polyphonic works. At first, this sometimes seems difficult and unacceptable to the student. Therefore, we must try to involve him in a joint discussion of fingering, clarifying all controversial issues. And then make sure it's enforced.

A more vivid identification of the form is facilitated by the knowledge of the originality of dynamics in polyphony, especially Bach's, which consists in the fact that the very spirit of music is not characterized by its excessively crushed, undulating application. For Bach's polyphony, architectonic dynamics is most characteristic, in which changes in large constructions are accompanied by new dynamic lighting.

The study of Bach's writings is, first of all, a great analytical work. To understand Bach's polyphonic pieces, special knowledge is needed, a rational system for their assimilation is needed. Achieving a certain level of polyphonic maturity is possible only under the condition of a gradual, smooth increase in knowledge and polyphonic skills. A music school teacher who lays the foundation in the field of mastering polyphony always faces a serious task: to teach to love polyphonic music understand it, enjoy working on it.