One of the questions I am asked most often by diploma piano students is, “Teacher Jenny, your hands are quite small. How do you play Chopin’s Étude Op.25 No.1 with so many huge arpeggios and wide stretches?” Interestingly, the secret is not having large hands. The secret lies in using the right piano technique. Many pianists mistakenly believe that this étude is simply an exercise for stretching the fingers. In reality, forcing the hand to stretch continuously usually creates tension, uneven tone and even injury. Instead, Chopin’s “Aeolian Harp” teaches something far more sophisticated—efficient movement of the entire playing mechanism.
For diploma piano students who choose Chopin’s Étude Op.25 No.1, it is constructed almost entirely from wide arpeggios and broken chords, creating the magical illusion of a harp floating behind a beautiful singing melody. The right hand constantly travels over a very wide range of the keyboard while the melody is hidden inside the upper notes of each broken chord. The pianist therefore has to produce an even flowing arpeggio, project the hidden melody clearly, maintain an extremely soft accompaniment, connect wide intervals smoothly and create a continuous legato sound using intelligent pedalling. This combination makes the work considerably more difficult than it first appears.
My diploma piano students are often surprised that I do not try to hold every large interval physically. Instead, I frequently release one note slightly earlier, move freely to the next position and allow the sustain pedal to complete the legato line. To the listener, everything still sounds beautifully connected. This technique requires careful timing and precise coordination between the fingers, wrist, arm and pedal. Rather than stretching the fingers to their limit, the hand remains relaxed while the entire arm helps transport the hand efficiently across the keyboard.
Many of these ideas come from the Russian School of Piano Playing, which I encountered during my postgraduate music studies in Germany. The Russian school views the entire arm as a coordinated playing mechanism rather than relying solely on finger strength. It emphasises free-fall arm weight, flexible wrist movement, rotational movements, economical hand shifting, independent finger lifting, a relaxed forearm and continuous transfer of arm weight. Rather than forcing large stretches, the pianist allows gravity to assist movement. The arm naturally “falls” into the keyboard before immediately moving towards the next position. This is particularly effective in Chopin Op.25 No.1 because the arpeggios span such large distances, allowing the movement to become fluid rather than mechanical.
Another fascinating challenge is voicing. Although the right hand appears to play only broken chords, Chopin actually hides a beautiful singing melody inside the highest notes. Using subtle shifts of arm weight together with carefully balanced finger pressure, we can project the melody while keeping the surrounding arpeggios delicate and transparent. The audience hears one beautiful singing line floating above a cloud of sound. This is one of the greatest artistic challenges of this étude.
Diploma piano students learning with me will probably smile when reading this because during lessons we have spent much more time discussing the German School of Piano Playing. This approach has greatly influenced my diploma level piano teaching over the years. The German school places strong emphasis on finger touch, weight transfer, tonal layering, warm singing tone, controlled finger independence, efficient fingering and structural understanding. One technique I frequently teach is what I describe as the “gripping” feeling of the hand, where the fingers naturally engage the key to produce a deep, rich and resonant tone without excessive force. This approach is particularly effective for composers such as Bach, Beethoven, Brahms and Schumann, where architectural clarity and tonal depth are essential. Students who have attended my diploma lessons will also know that we spend a considerable amount of time discussing German fingering principles, helping passages feel natural, efficient and secure.
Another influential tradition is the French School of Piano Playing, which introduces a completely different tonal philosophy. Instead of emphasising weight and structural solidity, French piano playing focuses on colour, atmosphere and transparency. It places great importance on refined pedalling, sophisticated half-pedal control, una corda colour changes, sostenuto pedal effects, delicate finger touch, luminous tone colours and impressionistic sound. Diploma piano students who have learnt Debussy or Ravel with me have already experienced some of these techniques, especially the creative use of the una corda and sostenuto pedal to produce subtle changes in colour that cannot be achieved through finger technique alone. In the French tradition, pedalling becomes an artistic palette rather than simply a way to sustain notes.
Among the most influential traditions of piano playing are the Russian, German and French schools, and although they developed in different countries, they complement one another beautifully. The Russian school contributes natural movement, arm weight, rotational freedom and virtuoso technique. The German school develops tone production, structural clarity, finger control and a rich sonority. The French school enriches a pianist’s palette through tone colour, pedalling artistry, transparency and impressionistic sound. A mature concert pianist should understand all three approaches and know when each style best serves the music.
One of my goals as a piano teacher is not simply to teach diploma piano students how to play the correct notes. Instead, I hope to introduce them to the different traditions of piano playing that have shaped great pianists throughout history. Many of my students are already familiar with the German approach because that is what we have explored most often during lessons. Perhaps it is time for us to begin discovering more about the fascinating world of the Russian School and later the beautiful tonal colours of the French School. The more approaches we understand, the richer our musical imagination becomes. After all, technique is never an end in itself—it is simply the language we use to express music.
If you are preparing for Trinity LTCL Piano, ABRSM ARSM, DipABRSM, FRSM, LCM DipLCM, ALCM or LLCM Piano Diploma examinations, I offer specialised one-to-one diploma piano lessons in Singapore focusing on advanced piano technique, Chopin Études, diploma repertoire interpretation, tone production, voicing, arm-weight and wrist techniques, professional recital preparation, performance psychology, pedalling techniques for Romantic and Impressionist repertoire, and the practical application of the Russian, German and French schools of piano playing. Whether you have small hands or are aiming to refine your artistry for diploma-level performance, understanding these great piano traditions can transform not only your technique but also your musical expression.
Contact Jenny WhatsApp 98256286 for a trial lesson.
