Practising the Piano - Practice Clinic with Graham Fitch (28 May 2026)

Recording of our "Practice Clinic" for May 2026 in which Graham Fitch responds to a variety of queries submitted in advance in addition to several questions from our live audience. Works and topics featured in this session include: Haydn - Andante con Variazioni in F minor, Hob. XVII:6 – I need some help with the trills in the F major variation, particularly bars 83–88 and 93–98. I’m unsure whether the trills should begin on the upper note, especially where notes are tied from the previous bar, as this seems to risk obscuring the melodic line. I’d also appreciate some advice on practising these passages effectively. Shaping phrases in Schumann and Villa-Lobos - I recently taught two pieces which both begin with an anacrusis followed by a two-note slur: Schumann’s Sailor’s Song from Album für die Jugend and Villa-Lobos’ Assim ninava mamã from Petizada. This seems to create a conflict between the natural movement towards the following beat and the traditional shaping implied by the slur, where the first note receives more emphasis. I’m interested in how to balance these two ideas in shaping the phrase. The Floating Fermata and other practice tools - I’ve been applying the “floating fermata” technique to Bach’s Prelude No. 15 in G major, BWV 860 from the Well-Tempered Clavier and have noticed two things: 1) It has exposed my tendency to rush mentally towards the next group before fully preparing it and 2) The exercise has been very effective for maintaining detached quavers consistently, especially in bars 11–12 where the voices and quavers switch between the hands. I also realise I’m not always sure which practice technique is best suited to a particular musical problem. Schubert – Impromptu in E-flat major, Op. 90 No. 2, D. 899 - I’ve been working on the coda of this work and am finding the final section both exciting and difficult to shape convincingly. In particular, I’m struggling with how to pace the accelerando so that it feels organic and like the true culmination of the piece, rather than simply becoming faster. I’d like to understand how to judge the rate of acceleration while still maintaining a clear structural sense. Repertoire recommendations - I was inspired by Graham’s series on Burgmüller’s 25 Études faciles et progressives, Op. 100 to finally work through the complete set after leaving them untouched on my shelf for years. Having reached the level of the later études, I’d now like recommendations for a similarly progressive collection that could bridge the gap towards more advanced repertoire. Recordings from previous practice clinics are also available here:    • Practice Clinic   More information on how our practice clinics work is available here: https://practisingthepiano.com/resour... There’s more to explore! Join the Online Academy to access Graham Fitch’s full video library plus repertoire guides, technique tools and insights from many other distinguished experts. Click here to find out more: https://www.informance.biz/online-aca...