As I have mentioned in previous blogs, one of the reasons I didn’t like practicing piano when I was growing up was because of the isolation. I would go in what my parents called “the piano room”, or a a practice room when I was in college, and practice for hours without sharing my ideas, excitement or accomplishments with anyone except in a recital. I looked forward to my lessons for those very reasons. But unlike members of an orchestra, band or choir, pianists are on an island a major part of the time.
Having students play duets can alleviate that isolated feeling and heighten a student’s musicality. I don’t have students do duets enough, but whenever I do I am reminded of the benefits. At our last group night I had two girls perform ” Chopsticks Theme and Variations” Opus 6 by Randall Compton. If you are not familiar with it, check it out. There are two fun parts in the piece: one is where the secondo performer’s right hand crosses the primo performer’s left hand. The other showy bit is where the primo performer gets up in the middle of the piece, walks around the piano and then becomes the secondo player. At the same time, the secondo player is doing ascending chromatic octaves and thus becoming the primo player . (got all that??) It’s truly a novelty piece and a crowd pleaser. Although there may not be a lot of musical qualities about the piece, it is pure fun for all.
But there is real value in preparing a duet. Duets are beneficial for numerous reasons:
1. Duets offer a social aspect to a pianist.
2. They are motivational. A student does not want to let down their duet partner and therefore practices and prepares carefully.
3. The students get a feeling of ensemble. As a soloist, a pianist is his own boss, but in a duet the student has to share the lime light.
4. The students have to discuss musical interpretation, collaborate on practice strategies and coordinate a practice schedule.
5. Most important: students have fun sharing music and make new friends.
For the Chopsticks duet I paired an eighth grade student with a ninth grade student. They met during my group lessons, went to the Kingston Institute during the summer and became music friends. They had so much fun collaborating on the the duet. I have never heard the two of them laugh so much! Another of my Suzuki parents reported seeing them skipping arm in arm up my drive way on the way to their lesson.
So what’s next? Nutcracker duets at Christmas! Do you have any must do duets? I would love to hear about them.
I am planning on having all my students do duets at the beginning of the year. I’m so excited about it. None of them have played duets, except with me during lessons.
I really want to find that Chopsticks piece! That sounds like so much fun to play and watch! I bet the kids loved showing off like that!
Oh, I love to play duets! Every time I’m at my mom’s house I make her play duets with me. It’s SO satisfying because I’m not nearly good enough to get that kind of sound on my own (especially when the left hand is complicated or there’s lots of pedal involved). Plus, being mother and daughter, our ensemble is eerily perfect. 🙂
Come to think of it, my mom always used to start off her piano recitals with duets. She’d have one or two (usually beginner) kids come up and play those easy Diabelli duets with her. As you point out, duets teach skills that solo musicians wouldn’t pick up. Plus, for the recitals, they were a great ice breaker.