Mastering dynamics
· Touch and tone · Level 2 · 14 min
Dynamics are the breathing of music. A piece played "all mezzo forte" sounds like a speech read in a monotone, even if every note is right. That is exactly why the piano was invented: its full name is pianoforte, "soft-loud", because unlike the harpsichord it lets you vary the volume through touch.
The dynamic scale
| Sign | Italian name | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| pp | pianissimo | very soft |
| p | piano | soft |
| mp | mezzo piano | moderately soft |
| mf | mezzo forte | moderately loud |
| f | forte | loud |
| ff | fortissimo | very loud |
| < / cresc. | crescendo | getting louder |
| > / dim. | diminuendo, decrescendo | getting softer |
These signs are relative: a forte in Mozart does not have the breadth of a forte in Rachmaninoff, and a piano in a large hall must still carry to the back row.
How to produce each dynamic
- Pianissimo: fingers very close to the key (in contact), slow descent, arm supported. The danger is that the note fails to sound: you must still reach the bottom, but without speed.
- Mezzo forte: simply the weight of the relaxed arm, transmitted through a firm finger.
- Forte and fortissimo: more weight, more speed, starting slightly above the key. The back and upper arm take part; the fingers remain pillars.
Exercise — the dynamic staircase
- On a single note (G, 3rd finger), play six times in a row from pp to ff: six clearly different steps.
- Come back down from ff to pp. Record yourself: are the steps even? Very often mp and mf blur together.
- Do the same on a five-note scale going up (crescendo) and down (diminuendo).
- Finally play the example below, exaggerating the dynamics.
M:4/4 L:1/8 Q:1/4=72 K:C !p!CDEF !<(!GABc!<)! | !f!d2c2 !>(!B2A2!>)! | !p!G8 |]
Common mistakes:
- Speeding up during a crescendo and slowing down during a diminuendo: volume and tempo are two independent parameters.
- Reaching the top of the crescendo too early. Golden rule: a crescendo starts piano, and most of the increase happens at the end.
- Neglecting pianissimo: it is often the most expressive and the most difficult dynamic.
Tip: imagine every phrase has a "peak" (often the highest or longest note). Shape the phrase towards it, then relax. Even without written markings, a musical phrase is almost never flat.
Then work on dynamics with Ode to Joy: play the first phrase p, the second mf, with a small crescendo towards the end of each phrase.