Khan 1 Mariam Khan Professor Fuentes English 1101 November 15, 2013 Piano Playing A or!

ing to the Piano "e hni ians #uil!, $the %iano is the most %o%ular instrument in e&isten e' an! it ontinues to be the %remiere instrument aroun! the (orl! )Piano "e hni ians #uil!, 200*+, "he members of the musi ommunity of %ra ti e have been %laying musi al

instruments, more s%e ifi ally, the %iano, for the %ast three generations, "he %laying of the %iano among the members is more than -ust a %ast time, it is a tra!ition that is very lose to them an! they ontinue to %lay their musi at family.so ial gatherings, /ue to the !ifferen e in generations an! ulture among the members, musi that is %laye! is either 0olly(oo! or lassi al musi , "he resear h in this ethnogra%hy (ill sho( the !ifferen es bet(een the generations by the use of !ifferent ty%es of %ianos an! ho( the members of the ommunity %ra ti e an! intera t (ith ea h other, 1n or!er to get a better un!erstan!ing of the ommunity of %ra ti e, the resear h metho!s that (ere mostly use! in lu!e (ebsites that orrelate (ith the ty%es of %ianos an! its history, %ersonal observations of the ommunity, an! a %ersonal intervie( (ith one of the members of the ommunity, "he first ty%e of resear h that (as !one (as observing the members of the ommunity of %ra ti e (hile they (ere engage! in the share! a tivity, (hi h (as %laying the %iano, "he members %ra ti e! %laying the %iano at !ifferent times !uring the !ay an! (ere overloo2e! by the members that ha! the authority (ithin the ommunity of %ra ti e, 3ne of the members (as a beginner at %iano %laying an! (as (at he! over by one of the e&%ert %iano %layers, 1n or!er for the beginner to un!erstan! (hat (as being %laye!, the e&%ert %iano %layer

Khan 2 (rote little ti%s on the musi sheets to hel% them un!erstan! (hat is e&%e te! to be %laye! an! ho( it shoul! soun! )0eginners, 2013+, Another thing that (as onstantly being !is usse! (as the han! %la ement on the 2eys, "he beginners ha! trouble %la ing their han!s on the orre t 2eys of the %iano (hi h ma!e it !iffi ult for them to om%rehen! the musi notes, 1n or!er to om%rehen! an! !e i%her the musi notes in sim%ler terms for the beginners, the e&%erts (rote numbers ne&t to the notes for them to un!erstan! (here to %ut their fingers, For 2ey $4' on the %iano, the number t(o (as (ritten ne&t to it for the beginners to a 2no(le!ge that their in!e& finger must be %la e! on that 2ey, Mushfa2ing (ithin the ommunity is highly a%%arent among the beginners, "he younger %layers a te! as if they un!erstoo! (hat (as being e&%e te! to be %laye! by the e&%erts, ho(ever that (as not the ase, Mushfa2ing (as noti eable be ause the beginners have not yet fully gras%e! a om%lete un!erstan!ing of the musi an! the notes, (hi h (ill be e& elle! only by thorough %ra ti e by going to musi lessons an! getting hel% from their su%eriors )0eginners, 2013+, 5ithin the ommunity of %ra ti e, there are three grou%s (hi h in lu!e6 the beginners, the interme!iates, an! the e&%erts, "he ol! timers in lu!e the members from the ol!er generations that onsist of the %arents of the younger grou% members, "hey are the (iser ones out of the rest of the grou% !ue to the fa t that they have been %ra ti ing %laying the %iano for more years an! are a!van e!, "he ne( omers are the younger generation (ho -ust starte! out to %lay the %iano, "hey are the least a!van e! an! have a lot more to learn than the other t(o grou%s, "he last grou% is the interme!iates, "he interme!iates are the members that are more in the mi!!le of the t(o grou%s, "hey un!erstan! (hat is being %ra ti e! an! have gras%e! an un!erstan!ing of the musi )0eginners, 2013+,

Khan 3 Among the three grou%s, there is $light' onfli t bet(een the interme!iates an! the ne( omers, "he interme!iate %layers usually tease the ne( omers alling them $ne(bies' be ause of the fa t that they are not as (ise as them, 7ivalry is very ommon bet(een the t(o grou%s (hi h sometimes go overboar! until the e&%erts ste% in to fi& the issue an! situation, Parti i%ants (ithin the grou%s have !iffi ulty at times (ith the (or2 if they !o not %ra ti e, other(ise, !iffi ulty is not very ommon be ause there is al(ays a member that is (illing to hel% another out )0eginners, 2013+, "he most ommonly use! me hanism of inter ommuni ation among the members of the ommunity of %ra ti e is the sharing of musi note sheets, 1t hel%s the members un!erstan! (hat is e&%e te! to be %laye! an! ho( it must be %laye!, Furthermore, it im%roves the %erforman e of the musi ian (hen it is %laye! at the a tual so ial gathering, 3ther me hanisms of ommuni ation in lu!e te&t messages, %hone alls, 82y%e, emails, an! the sharing of musi using 980 !rives, Members of the ommunity !o not live lose by (hi h ma2es it !iffi ult to %ra ti e, A%%li ations li2e 82y%e an! Fa e"ime ta2e a(ay the !etrimental boun!aries of !istan e (hi h im%rove the :uality of the %erforman e as (ell as give members a (ay to say (hat nee!s to be im%rove! on an! (hat is satisfa tory )0eginners, 2013+, "he members of the ommunity of %ra ti e have a s%e iali;e! le&is among ea h other that is use! onversing as (ell as in the genres of ommuni ation, 8%e iali;e! le&is is use! only (hen onversing about (hat is being %ra ti e! on the %iano an! the !iffi ulties they are e&%erien ing (hile %laying )0eginners, 2013+, "he most ommon (or! that is use! among the ommunity is o tave, An o tave is a su ession of eight notes om%rising a s ale, 1f a member is tol! to %lay an o tave lo(er than (hat it is set to, the soun! of the %iano (oul! be !ee%er an! lo(er, 3n the other han!, if a member is tol! to %lay an o tave higher, the soun! of the musi

Khan < (oul! be higher, "here are !ifferent names for !ifferent tem%os (hen %laying the musi , A!agio in!i ates a slo( tem%o as a %laying !ire tion in musi , Allegro is a fast an! lively an! is a favorite among the younger generations of the musi ians !ue to the liveliness an! fun beat, 3n the other han!, A!ante is more of a mo!erate tem%o (hi h is normal %a e!, 8ta ato is a !ot that is %la e! above or belo( a note (hi h ma2es the note that is being %laye! short an! is use! in allegro tem%os )#lossary of Piano "erms, 2013+, "o gain further 2no(le!ge about the ommunity of %ra ti e, a %ersonal intervie( (ith one of the members (as re or!e!, 3mair =ai!i, a so%homore in high s hool, starte! %laying the %iano at the age of si&, =ai!i first starte! out (ith %laying sim%le songs su h as $>a%%y 0irth!ay' or $7o( 7o( 7o( ?our 0oat' but as time %rogresse!, he starte! ta2ing on an a tual interest of %laying the %iano (hi h le! to to %iano lasses in the fifth gra!e, A or!ing to =ai!i, he (as initially involve! in %laying the %iano be ause he (as surroun!e! by family members that %laye! at least one ty%e of musi al instrument, >e sai! that, $,,,1 have been sort of on!itione! to li2e it an! %lay it, 0ut 1 li2e %laying it for my o(n %leasure be ause it %uts me in a %ea eful state, es%e ially (hen (e %lay at so ial gatherings be ause you an a tually see the -oy it gives to others' )=ai!i, 2013+, =ai!i %ra ti es for at least 30 minutes every evening an! on every 8un!ay %ra ti e is e&ten!e! to an hour an! fifteen minutes, 1n or!er to %ra ti e the musi that is set to be %laye! at so ial gatherings, =ai!i says, $5e usually %ra ti e on our o(n an! then %ra ti e together at least t(i e -ust to ma2e sure everyone is on the same %age an! same tem%o, My un le is some(hat of the maestro be ause he usually lea!s us as a grou% on (ho %lays (hat an! (hen it shoul! be %laye!' )=ai!i, 2013+,

Khan 5 5hen as2e! about the goals of the ommunity of %ra ti e, =ai!i ans(ere! (ith, $5e are a family (ith a history of musi that goes from generation to generation, 1t has be ome some(hat of a tra!ition for all the members to 2no( ho( to %lay at least one ty%e of instrument, (hether it is the %iano, or the guitar, or as sim%le as the harmoni a, 3ur main goal is to arry the tra!ition from generation to generation an! s%rea! our musi to our families an! family frien!s, "hese so ial gatherings o ur almost every t(o (ee2s an! it gives an ease of stress (here everyone an be together an! -ust en-oy musi an! have fun' )=ai!i, 2013+, "he goals of the ommunity are mostly tra!itional an! ontinue to be %asse! from one generation to another, As a grou%, the members %lay at family gatherings or some sort of so ial event, 5henever there is a s%e ial o asion among the ommunity an! its members, they %lan beforehan! on (hat (ill be %ra ti e! an! %laye!, /ue to the fa t that most of the members@ family are of the ol!er generations, they are not intereste! an! fans of the mo!ern !ay musi , Members of the ommunity %ra ti e an! %lay ol! 0olly(oo! songs from the 1A*0s to late 1AA0s that the ommunity members 2no( an! an have a goo! time singing along (ith them )0eginners, 2013+, "he e&%erts an! some of the interme!iate %layers %ra ti e an! %lay the ol! 0olly(oo! songs using the #ran! Piano, 0artolomeo 4ristofori, re!ite! as the inventor of the %iano, reate! the instrument for the ability of the %layers to $mo!ulate the volume solely by hanging the for e (ith (hi h the 2eys (ere stru 2' )>eilbrunn "imeline of Art >istory, 200*+, 8in e the instrument reates an inharmoni ity, it orrelates (ith the lassi al musi that is %laye! among the members of the ommunity of %ra ti e, Also, the inharmoni ity re:uires the o taves to be tune! to a lo(er o tave@s orres%on!ing shar% overtone (hi h reates a %ure soun! an! sustains tone :uality, "he beginners an! some of the interme!iate %layers usually %ra ti e an! %lay

Khan * mo!ern !ay songs using the ele troni 2eyboar!, 8in e mo!ern !ay musi in lu!es %o% an! u%beat tem%os, the 2eyboar! is benefi ial for the members !ue to the fa t that it is ele troni an! an ma2e various ty%es of soun!s, "he members of the %iano %laying ommunity of %ra ti e have be ome mu h more a!van e! as time has %rogresse!, 8in e the members are follo(ing in the %ast generations@ footste%s, it has be ome very sentimental for them as in!ivi!uals an! they ho%e to arry on the lega y an! tra!ition that the %ast generations have set, 1ntera tion among the members is e&tremely or!ial an! there is a lot of %atien e among them, "he ommunity of %ra ti e has ma!e a very big im%a t on the %eo%le outsi!e of the ommunity by easing stress an! filling the environment (ith -oy an! e& itement, "he goals that the members have reate! are a om%lishe! every t(o (ee2s (hen it is time to %erform in front of a large ro(! at a so ial gathering,

Khan B

5or2s 4ite! 0eginners, Personal observation, 1 Nov, 2013, C4elebrating 300 ?ears of the Piano,C Piano Technicians Guild, N,%,, n,!, 5eb, 0< Nov, 2013, C#lossary of Piano "erms,C Glossary of Piano Terms, N,%,, n,!, 5eb, 0< Nov, 2013, C>eilbrunn "imeline of Art >istory,C Made by Bartolomeo Cristofori: Grand Piano (89.4.1 19!, N,%,, n,!, 5eb, 05 Nov, 2013 =ai!i, 3mair, Personal intervie(, 1 Nov, 2013,