THE JOY OF SCALES

52 Pages·2016·19.9 MB·English

THE JOY OF SCALES

A CURIOUS eBook
By Dr Sally Cathcart

©2016 !1
CONTENTS
Page 5 Page 11 Page 17
Page 24 Page 29 Page 35
Page 41 Page 47 Page 51
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INTRODUCTION
How did you learn scales as a child? Were they presented in systematic and
imaginative ways or did you struggle to get the point of why they had to be
practised? Maybe you still do!
I have to admit that when I was growing up scales were not at the top of my
popularity list. I was a good girl however, and quite dutiful and usually got through
them all, especially when an exam was looming on the horizon.  It was only when I
started teaching the piano that I began to appreciate their full value and began to
explore how scales could be both played and taught creatively and musically.
This ‘curious’ ebook brings together in all the blog posts that I have written on the
topic into one place and within its pages I explore the playing and teaching of
scales from all sorts of angles and perspectives.
I consider how to teach the theoretical side of scales through the use of
tetrachords, share some thoughts on the various technical aspects of scale playing,
stress the importance of developing systems and strategies in scale work, look at
ideas for gaining fluency, give some ideas on how to prepare scales for the exam
room and explore creative approaches to scales and stepping into wonderful world
of scales beyond major and minor.
I have created a few short videos to illustrate certain
parts of the ebook and Sharon has worked her
magic to create some lovely resources to support
the ideas.
I hope you have fun reading and exploring all the ideas!

Dr Sally Cathcart
Director & Co-Founder
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CHAPTER 1
What’s the Value?
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Chapter 1 | What’s the Value
Let’s start by having a look what some eminent pianists – both past and
present and some of our curious experts – have to say about exactly why we
should play scales.
WHAT IS THE VALUE OF PLAYING SCALES?
4 central themes emerge:
1 Scales as tools
2 The physical benefits of scales
3 Developing evenness of tone through scales
4 Engaging the brain
Let’s look at each one in turn.
SCALES AS TOOLS
Many writers are in absolute agreement about the importance of scales as a
Fundamental tool for any pianist. Kendall Taylor says that both scales and
arpeggios ‘are both indispensable as a foundation for technique’ [1] although
Murray McLachlan warns that ‘scales themselves are not central to technical
understanding. Rather, they are tools which can be used to develop, enhance,
illuminate and inspire healthy, dynamic progress.’ [2].
Graham Fitch  – one of our Curious Experts – points out that as well as
developing the technical side ‘Scales are literally the ABC of musical theory;
we become familiar with the major and minor keys as well as keyboard
geography by studying them, and we develop and refine our technique’. [3]
So it appears that scales, whilst not replacing technical work, can be used to
support and develop it whilst also helping to develop our sense of key
relationships and tonal structures.
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Chapter 1 | What’s the Value?
THE PHYSICAL BENEFITS OF SCALES
The way that scales can be used to help players develop a sense of keyboard
geography has just been mentioned. This essential physical sensation is all
too easy to overlook and  assume sometimes. Yet it forms a vital part of our
relationship with the keyboard. As we play scales in the different keys we
build up in our muscle memory a sense of how the pattern of each key ‘feels’.
As this develops so does our facility to react to the unseen and yet highly
familiar tonal shapes that make up much of the repertoire.
This awareness of the body at the keyboard is one that many argue should be
established from the first lesson onwards.
For Ilga Pitkevica and Heli Ignatius Fleet (both Principal Tutors on the Piano
Teachers Course) the development of an easy and graceful physical sense at
the keyboard is a vital element right from the start. Ilga points out that young
children are very flexible and that it is the perfect time to develop velocity
‘the freedom of moving on the keyboard’ [4]. In just the same way Heli points
out that ‘scales are a marvellous training ground for aural skills and velocity’.
[5]
As scales move beyond the early, hands separately stages, the demands of
co-ordinating the hands and fingers come into play and physically much is
absorbed through mastering the dance of the hands and fingers as they
move through the different octaves. 
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Chapter 1 | What’s the Value?
DEVELOPING TONE THROUGH SCALES
Essential to all this is the increasingly instinctive response of finger patterns
using 3 l 4 grouping. Kendall Taylor tells us that ‘the fingering of scales in
groups provides the most important single principle of fingering’. [6] whilst
Gieseking and Leimer advise pianists that ‘scales are to be played with a view
to training the fingers, so that they do their work evenly and smoothly’ [7].
Although separated by a few decades another Curious Expert  Tim
Topham expresses the same beliefs whilst acknowledging the difficulties of
achieving it: ‘The value is fluidity of motion and evenness of sound through
efficient use of the fingers’ [8]. So scales can be used in order to develop a
refined awareness of sound and the differing role of each finger within that
scenario.
ENGAGING THE BRAIN
There have been some interesting blogs recently about the mindful nature of
playing the piano (Piano Dao, Bulletproof Musician, Practising the Piano) and
playing scales is no exception. Without getting caught up in notation
reading, playing scales allows us to focus on the sensation of the body and
the ensuing sound. For this to happen a high degree of relaxed
concentration is required because playing on automatic with the brain
switched off ‘is a very roundabout way of obtaining results’ [9].
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Chapter 1 | What’s the Value?
So for a final say on the subject of why scales are valuable let’s finish with a
couple of quotes from two of our Curious Experts both of whom in their
individual ways, sum much of the above:
Pam Wedgwood suggests that scales are valuable for the following reasons:
‘Technique-Touch-Fingering awareness-coordination, stretching your weaker
brain side’ [10].
And here’s what Elissa Milne shared with us [11]:
"
If you want to read more about Elissa’s views on why we require our pupils to
learn scales, you can read her blog post Scales as Propaganda.
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TIME TO REFLECT…

CHAPTER 1
WHAT’S THE VALUE?

1. Which of the quotes in this chapter do you agree with the most? Why?
2. Do you disagree with any of the statements? Why?
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CHAPTER 2
Singing & Tetrachords
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