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Da: The Juillard Journal Online Dec. 2003, vol. XIX, n.4

An Intimate Encounter With a Historical Instrument

By AUDREY AXINN

Three chamber music groups have been exploring Classical performance practice this

semester, using a fortepiano instead of a modern piano in their ensembles. They will

present the results of their efforts in a performance of chamber music with fortepiano

on December 12 at 6 p.m. in Morse Hall.

Juilliard's fortepiano, built by Belgian builder Chris Maene, is a reproduction of an

instrument built in 1795 by 18th-century Viennese piano builder Anton Walter.

Walter (1752-1826) was one of the first Viennese piano builders. Harpsichords and

clavichords were the usual home keyboard instruments until the 1770s throughoutEurope. By the 1780s, Vienna had emerged as the world's piano-building center.

Walter, along with married couple Andreas and Nannette Streicher, both enjoyed and

had a role in creating the first explosion of the piano's popularity, supplying

instruments to everyone who could afford them in piano-happy Vienna. Mozart

obtained a five-octave Walter piano in the mid-1780s, on which he composed and

performed his mature piano concerti. Beethoven purchased a Walter piano sometime

before 1800. Beethoven was not a very loyal customer to any one piano firm. He went

on to own pianos built by Erard, Broadwood, Schanz, Graf, and, most likely,

Streicher. Between his switching back and forth between Viennese- and English-style

pianos and his ever-increasing hearing loss, making generalizations about what

Beethoven wanted from a piano is treacherous territory. But one can say with

confidence that as late as the Third Piano Concerto, Op. 37 (1803), Beethoven's piano

works were designed around an instrument much like the one at Juilliard in Room

573.

Late 18th-century Viennese fortepianos are characterized by an all-wooden frame;

thin iron strings; small, leather-covered wooden hammers; knee levers in place of

pedals; and a five-octave range, with narrower keys and a shallower key dip than a

modern piano. One could describe a Mozart-era piano as essentially a harpsichord

with hammers. The fortepiano's sound is thin, focused, and fast-decaying. The

instrument has a sharp attack, excelling at all the articulation marksthe slurs,accents, portamenti, etc.with which the Viennese Classical repertoire is absolutely

littered. The treble, middle, and bass are designed to have very different timbres,

enhancing the drama of leaps and changes of register. Yuko Izuhara, who will be

performing Beethoven's "Spring" Sonata with violinist Erik Carlson, explains: "The

sound in the lower register almost gives a scent of the earth, the dust and dirt of

Germany. The higher register can sound so pure and religious." While the modern

piano has much more volume, a fortissimo or asforzando on the fortepiano can be

more dramatic, because the attack is so strong and fast. Yuko continues: "Sudden

emotional and dramatic changes, and how Beethoven was such a difficult person, can

be expressed without extra effort on the fortepiano."

When playing on a fortepiano at first, pianists often lament the absence of a round,

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singing tone. But it is that absence that nudges players into exploring the expressive

hallmarks of the Classical language: articulation and rhetorical timing. Roger Luo,

who will perform Mozart's Concerto in C Major, Op. 467, explains: "Your fingers

have to be more sensitive on the fortepiano. There is a smaller range of color, so you

have to compensate with expressive timing. Playing on the fortepiano helps me to

play better on the modern piano because I'm paying more attention to all the details."

For most players, the reason period instruments can be so exciting is that they help

define the vocabulary and language of an era. Playing a period instrument can be a

wonderful opportunity to explore how to be expressive within the Classical style, by

virtue of what the instrument can and cannot do. The de-emphasizing of beautiful tone

and long lines forces players to focus on other ways to be expressive, and much of the

heightened rhythmic vitality, expressive timing, and expressive articulation can be

transferred over to the modern piano if the performer chooses. Singer Nils Neubert,

who will perform Schubert Liederon the program, states: "What I enjoy a lot aboutthis work is that we are forced to set aside our preconceptions about tempo and

sonorities. In many cases one gets to know a song again, in a completely different

light, and that is so refreshing. I don't prefer the fortepiano over the modern piano; I

simply enjoy having the opportunity to experiment in both worlds and see these two

worlds start to influence each other in my work."

As someone who has been playing a period instrument for several years, I know that

one of the most striking changes in my perception of the Classical style is how much

freedom the language contains. The common misunderstanding about performance

practice is that it is preoccupied with rules, and performances are overly intellectual.

Good stylistic performances are daring and dramatic and surprisingly free. Intimate

knowledge of the style helps to reveal the daring and risk inherent in the language.

Jeannette Fang, who will perform Schubert Liederwith Nils, sums it up: "Playing the

fortepiano makes me listen much more acutely. Hence, all this freedom results from

the observation of miniscule detail."

Audrey Axinn teaches in the chamber music and collaborative piano departments.