Benefits to Creating Piano Transcriptions
Piano has been a favorite instrument for many people around the world, providing a vehicle of escape, creative expression, relaxation, and just plain fun. It is also a great way to stimulate the mind and improve physical health. Recently, research has been done that has shown that making music can help with memory, concentration, and focus. This makes it no wonder that many schools are adding musical education to their curriculum.
Traditionally, students learn their pieces through reading music notation on paper. While this method is effective, it has its limitations. It does not allow for the freedom of expression that improvising offers. Creating a piano transcription allows the student to notate a performance so that it can be learned and played by others. It is a way to translate the intention of the composer into a readable form that can be used by all musicians.
The idea of piano transcription was popularized by Franz Liszt, who transcribed many completed compositions. A transcription is a piece of music that has been re-scored for another instrument or a different type of music. The original piece might have been composed for orchestra, for example, and then transcribed for piano.
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Are There Educational Benefits to Creating Piano Transcriptions?
Transcribing is not just about copying what you hear – it’s a highly educational process for the pianist. It forces the musician to analyze the music closely, thinking in relation to the key and how it all fits together. It also helps the pianist to develop their own sense of musical style. For example, the transcriber will take note of the exact vibrato, portamento, or articulation used by their favourite artist and then incorporate those ideas into their own playing.
While the earliest forms of piano transcription were handwritten, it is now common to use digital software for this purpose. This provides a more efficient way to practice the technique and saves time in finding the right sheet music to print. It is also more flexible as it can be accessed from any computer or device with an internet connection.
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As a teacher, I like to encourage my students to transcribe their own music. I have found that this helps them to become better listeners and to understand the musical language that is being used to express a particular performance. It also gives them an opportunity to see the process of composing music as well as the resulting product.
I also encourage my students to transcribe their favourite songs, licks, or phrases from their favourite artists. This can give them a new perspective on their own playing, showing that even masterful jazz players are working with finite musical vocabularies and that imitation is a useful tool in learning to create original work. It can also help them to find ways to incorporate the articulations, slur patterns, tonguing, dynamics, and sound character/quality of their favourite artist into their own performances. If they can do that, then they have really mastered the art of piano transcription.
