Professional pianist. Pianists. severe scoliosis with contraindications to working in a static position and heavy loads on the spine and arms

Pianist (~ ka) - musician, piano player. Professional pianists can perform as independent performers, play accompanied by an orchestra or ensemble, or accompany one or more musicians.

Usually pianists begin learning to play the instrument at an early age, some sit at the piano as early as three years old, as a result of which, at a more mature age, a "wide palm" develops, that is, more developed hands with increased stretching of the fingers, due to which makes it seem that the pianist's palm is larger.

A "wide palm" and narrow long fingers are also considered one of the hallmarks of a good pianist. Many famous composers were also talented pianists. For example, Franz Peter Schubert, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Liszt, Johann Brahms, Frederic Chopin, Robert Schumann, Sergei Rachmaninoff and other composers were virtuosos of piano playing.

Most pianists specialize in the music of certain composers or times. However, the repertoire of many pianists is not limited only to classical music, but includes works of such styles as jazz, blues, and popular music.

The pianist must master a wide range of material, be fluent in it, feel and understand various musical styles. Playing the piano requires from the student such personal qualities as musical talent, strength of character, will, purposefulness, the ability to work long and concentrated, and it is interesting to think.

The diploma of the pianist, who continued his studies at the conservatory, lists: soloist, accompanist, ensemble player and teacher of a music school.

The pianist-soloist wins the right to perform in recitals at music competitions or fruitful work in educational institutions and concert organizations (Moskontsert, Lenkontsert, etc.). But he must confirm the right to enter the philharmonic stage with each of his performances. And this is achieved by titanic work, constant improvement of skills, self-education and self-development. In addition to high professional qualities, excellent technical equipment, a good school (for which physiological data mean a lot - the structure and shape of the hands, the size of the hands, the length of the fingers), the solo pianist must have a bright creative personality, be a personality.

They are not born a person, they become a person. The scale of the personality depends on what a person is, what are his moral principles, how firm his convictions and strong character are. And this scale is clearly delineated in the work of any performer, including the pianist.

Many pianists suffered from hand diseases. It is known that Scriabin's right arm was hurting for a long time.
The common hand diseases associated with overexertion, such as tendovaginitis and ganglia, have been well studied.
Tenosynovitis occurs from prolonged stress on the hand when playing octaves and chords, especially at a fast pace. The arm is equipped with numerous muscles, the tendons of which on the hand are located close to each other. Each tendon is attached as if by a sheath, a sheath made of elastic and dense connective tissue. The inner surfaces of the membranes are constantly irrigated with the so-called synvial fluid. With prolonged monotonous work in these membranes, conditions are sometimes created for inflammatory changes that disrupt the normal mobility of the tendons and lead to painful swelling and edema of the surrounding tissue. Recurrent and long-term tenosynovitis can take a form of chronic disease that is difficult to treat.

Ganglia are formed on the back of the hand, at the junctions of the small bones of the wrist. The fluid that lubricates the articular surfaces of these bones, with excessive hand swings, is vigorously secreted and accumulates under the ligaments, forming dense, often painful nodules.
Disorders of the neuromuscular apparatus are often observed, causing a sensation of pain in the muscles of the hands during prolonged play of technically difficult pieces. It happened with Rachmaninoff. In a letter to I. Morozov, he writes: “I am very tired and my hands hurt. Over the past four months he has given 75 concerts. All four unnecessary movement of my hands tires me, so I am writing to you, wild< туя» .
Muscle pains can also appear in a pianist when, after a significant break in playing, he immediately begins to study a difficult piece or tries to complete an unbearable technical task without appropriate preparation.
With timely rest, such painful phenomena can quickly disappear, but with strong and prolonged muscle tension, especially if it is combined with incorrect techniques, the pianistic movement may be disrupted.
In this case, we can talk about an occupational disease that requires special treatment. It manifests itself either in painful spastic tension of the muscles of the arm, or vice versa in its weakness, the so-called paresis. Pathological phenomena arise precisely during the performance on the piano, other, dissimilar to pianistic, movements are performed freely.
This disease is still poorly understood. It can be assumed that it is similar to the writing spasm that occurs from overwork during prolonged writing. Both this disease and writing spasm cannot be considered as a local disease of the hand.

With this disease, there is no organic damage to muscles, joints and nerves; violation of movement in the pianist's hand is a consequence of the violation of the patterns of excitatory and inhibitory processes in the central nervous system during the construction of the motor act. At the same time, the entire functional system that forms the pianistic movements suffers.
This painful condition manifests itself in two forms - spastic and paretic. The spastic form is characterized by painful overstrain of the muscles of the pianist's arm, which appears when playing the piano. At the same time, the pianist loses freedom, accuracy and fusion of movements. In the future, the increasing overstrain in the muscles of the arm turns into a tonic spasm (clamp).
In the paretic form, during the performance, weakness appears in the pianist's hand, which gradually increases, trembling can be added to this. As a result, strength and precision of movement are lost. In both cases, the pianist is forced to stop playing.
The paretic form arises mainly as a result of overwork during prolonged play without interruptions with monotonous techniques.

Muscle weakness in the hands with a paretic form is physiologically explained by the fact. that with excessive and prolonged irritation of certain foci of the nervous system, excitation turns into a kind of persistent inhibition (parabiosis according to Vvedensky). Therefore, the paretic form is a deeper movement disorder than the spastic one.
In the future, such weakness can become persistent and spread to other muscle groups.
In the spastic form, we see the predominance of the process of excitation over inhibition - an excessive and inappropriate flow of impulses from the central nervous system to the muscles.
In the third and fourth chapters, it is shown how unfavorable the improper construction of pianistic movements affects the performance. The same mistakes can be a source of occupational disease in the event that they are repeated many times and turn into the wrong skill.Let's give a few examples of such mistakes:
1. The habit during the game to keep the shoulder girdle raised, causing limitation of the movement of the scapula and shoulder joint.
2. Elbow pressed to the torso or excessively abducted, which limits the function of the shoulder joint.
3. The tendency to produce a strong sound with your fingers without sufficient participation of the upper sections of the pianistic apparatus.
In the first two cases - when fixing the scapula and the shoulder joint - static tension may occur in the muscles of the shoulder girdle, which is not replaced by relaxation, a clamp, which is often accompanied by pain. When limiting the movement of the shoulder, its function is partially forced to perform the forearm and hand, the weaker links of the hand, not adapted for this work. As a result, they become prematurely tired, which in turn can lead to spasms or muscle weakness.
In the third case, the pianist makes unbearable demands on the weakest parts of the pianistic apparatus that do not correspond to their capabilities, causing overstrain and overwork in the forearm, hand and fingers.
In all the above examples, there is a violation of synkinesis (coordination) of movements in different parts of the hand, which leads to discoordination in the nerve centers and is a prerequisite for the development of coordination neurosis.

General fatigue and, moreover, fatigue, in which movement is always disturbed to one degree or another, is very important in the development of coordination neurosis.
It is therefore interesting about the opinion of I. Hoffman. He believed that with a weary state of mind and body, we completely lose the ability to notice the formation of bad habits, and since "learning is to acquire the right habits to think and act," we should beware of anything that can damage our vigilance in relation to bad habits. "
Indeed, with strong general fatigue, will and attention weaken, apathy and absent-mindedness appear. We cannot concentrate for a long time, we lose clarity of thought. All these mental disorders affect the movement, it becomes indistinct, inaccurate, slowed down. The work efficiency drops dramatically.
Fatigue occurs as a result of prolonged and strenuous work, both mental and muscular, and in both cases, in the absence of timely rest, it can spread to the entire body. There is no fundamental difference between muscle (physical) and mental fatigue.
In both cases, the nervous system suffers - the patterns of inhibitory and excitatory processes are violated, their strength, balance, mobility, the ability to spread and concentrate nervous energy. This affects the functions of those organs that are controlled by the corresponding nerves, reducing their ability to work.
Pavlov regarded the appearance of fatigue as a signal for the cessation of activity and the need for rest, and rest as a protective inhibitory state. Resting however is not just shutting down activities; during rest, nervous energy is restored.
It is necessary that in the phase of inhibition there was a compensation of the energy expended in the phase of excitation for action. This is the balance of these two processes. When this rhythm is disturbed, fatigue sets in. If, trying to overcome fatigue, do not interrupt the activity, while continuing to keep the nervous system in a state of excitement, then the waste of energy in it increases more and more and its exhaustion sets in.

Due to prolonged overexcitation, the natural inhibitory response may not occur. It is known that often with pronounced fatigue, a person cannot fall asleep. This condition is characteristic of overwork and is already painful, requiring special treatment.
A performer musician has both muscle and mental fatigue, since his work combines mental and physical stress.
Fatigue can come imperceptibly for the performer: his movements become less clear, errors appear. During this period, the musician often overestimates his strength, does not take into account his functional capabilities and continues to work, which further aggravates fatigue. In the future, the accuracy and clarity of movements are even more disturbed. It was about this state that Hoffman spoke, warning about the danger of "the formation of bad habits."
If during this period the musician does not stop working, then he will become overworked with all its consequences. The emotional state of a musician is very important for the preservation of the ability to work.
With a passion for work, he can forget about food, rest and sleep and not feel tired. Emotional rise, as it were, mobilizes his mental and physical energy. With negative emotions - anxiety, self-doubt, the ability to work quickly falls, and fatigue sets in. Impaired coordination in the motor system is also characteristic. Everyone knows that in a bad mood nothing goes right, "everything falls out of hand."

Emotions play an important role in the development of coordination neurosis. As already indicated, negative emotions disrupt the balance of the nervous system and contribute to discoordination in the locomotor system. The inability to engage in professional activities during this illness depresses the pianist. Sometimes this leads to a real neuropsychic state with depression and sleep disturbance. Naturally, this contributes to the further discoordination of the pianistic apparatus.
We see that the reasons for the appearance of a coordination neurosis in a pianist are three factors: improper working methods, overwork, and a breakdown of the nervous system. However, they develop under the condition of a combination and duration of exposure to these three factors. Accordingly, treatment should be directed at the same time to restore the balance of the nervous system and the function of the diseased arm.
Treatment should be comprehensive - medications, physiotherapy are used, hydrotherapy is especially important. Physical culture plays a leading role. It raises the general tone, improves coordination not only in the neuromuscular system, but throughout the body, regulating all its functions. The pianist needs to regain control over the movement of the hands, to restore the clarity, coherence and beauty of the pianistic movement.
The main condition for successful treatment is the complete cessation of pianistic work for the entire duration of the treatment. Only when resting from professional activity can the correct coordination connections be restored.
Other movements that cause increased tension and fatigue in the hands (lifting and carrying weights, prolonged writing) should be limited. The sore arm should rest as much as possible.
However, some non-arm sports are very beneficial. The pianist is recommended to walk, hiking, swimming, skiing, ice skating, some types of athletics (running, jumping). To avoid hand injuries and overstrain - gymnastics on apparatus, especially on the uneven bars, horizontal bar and rings (supports, hanging), discus throwing, hammering, shot, rowing, basketball and volleyball should be avoided.
To restore the functions of the hands in case of coordination neurosis, it is necessary to apply a course of special gymnastics, which should be combined with hydrotherapy and massage.
Treatment can be divided into three periods. In the first period, the task of treatment with a spastic form is to reduce the tone of overstrained muscles, with a paretic form, on the contrary, to strengthen the weakened. In the second period, with both forms, the development of correct coordination. In the third - for both forms - further development of coordination with complication of movements and the transition to outdoor games.
Later, when the pianist regains control of the movement, he can start playing the piano. At the same time, it is necessary to strictly observe the working regime - to play at the beginning for 20-30 minutes a day at a slow pace, avoiding those movements that caused the disease.
The load must be increased gradually, carefully. Attention should be paid to the fact that at this stage there are no technically difficult pieces in the repertoire that require great strength and the same type of movements.
The entire treatment process should take place under the supervision of a physical therapy physician, and therapeutic exercises under the guidance of a methodologist.
Music educational institutions should have special-profile physical education rooms, where the specifics of the musician's work would be taken into account.
To prevent occupational diseases, the most important factor is the correct work regime. This is discussed in detail in the fourth chapter. Here it is necessary to dwell on the question of how to rest the pianist during work.
Most people cannot rest even while sitting and lying down. It depends on the fact that even in inactivity the muscles are in a certain tension and, by sending nerve impulses to the brain, keep it in a state of excitement. The performer needs to be able to relax the muscles. To do this, he needs to use every minute of rest, not only in breaks between classes, but also during the transition from one piece to another, and even during pauses. In sum, these short periods of rest compensate for a significant expenditure of energy, preserve the potential activity of the gaming machine and the health of the performer.

Description:

Pianist (s) - musician, performer on the piano. Professional pianists can perform as independent performers, play accompanied by an orchestra or ensemble, or accompany one or more musicians.

Usually pianists begin learning to play the instrument at an early age, some sit at the piano as early as three years old, as a result of which, at a more mature age, a "wide palm" develops, that is, more developed hands with increased stretching of the fingers, due to which makes it seem that the pianist's palm is larger.

A "wide palm" and narrow long fingers are also considered one of the hallmarks of a good pianist. Many famous composers were also talented pianists. For example, Franz Peter Schubert, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig van Beethoven, Franz Liszt, Johann Brahms, Frederic Chopin, Robert Schumann, Sergei Rachmaninoff and other composers were virtuosos of piano playing.

Most pianists specialize in the music of certain composers or times. However, the repertoire of many pianists is not limited only to classical music, but includes works of such styles as jazz, blues, and popular music.

Famous and great pianists:

• Prokofiev Sergei Sergeevich
• Weber Karl Maria von
• Goldmark Peter
• Rubinstein Arthur
• Rachmaninov Sergei Vasilievich
• Debussy Ashile-Claude
• London Jack
• Balakirev Miliy Alekseevich
• Scriabin Alexander Nikolaevich
• Grieg Edward

Duties:

The duties of a pianist are the professional performance of musical material.

In addition to this main responsibility, he takes part in the development of thematic plans and speech programs.

He can also conduct teaching activities.

Requirements:

Personal qualities

Playing the piano requires from the student such personal qualities as musical talent, strength of character, will, purposefulness, the ability to work long and concentrated, and it is interesting to think.

Professional knowledge and skills

The pianist must master a wide range of material, be fluent in it, feel and understand various musical styles.

Education

The diploma of the pianist, who continued his studies at the conservatory, lists: soloist, accompanist, ensemble player and teacher of a music school.

The pianist-soloist wins the right to perform in recitals at music competitions or fruitful work in educational institutions and concert organizations (Moskontsert, Lenkontsert, etc.). But he must confirm the right to enter the philharmonic stage with each of his performances. And this is achieved by titanic work, constant improvement of skills, self-education and self-development. In addition to high professional qualities, excellent technical equipment, a good school (for which physiological data mean a lot - the structure and shape of the hands, the size of the hands, the length of the fingers), the solo pianist must have a bright creative personality, be a personality.

They are not born a person, they become a person. The scale of the personality depends on what a person is, what are his moral principles, how firm his convictions and strong character are. And this scale is clearly delineated in the work of any performer, including the pianist.

Great pianists of the past and present are truly the brightest example for admiration and imitation. Everyone who is fond of and was fond of playing music on the piano has always tried to copy the best features of great pianists: how they perform a piece, how they could feel the secret of each note and sometimes it seems that this is incredible and some kind of magic, but everything comes with experience: if yesterday it is seemed unreal, but today a person himself can perform the most complex sonatas and fugues.

The piano is one of the most famous musical instruments, permeating many genres of music, and has created many of the most moving and emotional compositions in history. And the people who play it are considered giants of the music world. But who are these greatest pianists? When choosing the best, many questions arise: should it be based on technical ability, reputation, breadth of repertoire or ability to improvise? There is also the question of whether it is worth considering those pianists who played in past centuries, because then there was no recording equipment, and we cannot hear their performance and compare with modern ones. But during this period there was a huge number of incredible talents and if they received world fame long before the media, then it is quite justified to give them respect. With all of these factors in mind, here's a list of the top 7 pianists of the past and present.

Frederic Chopin (1810-1849)

The most famous Polish composer Frederic Chopin was one of the greatest virtuosos, performer-pianist of his time.

The vast majority of his works were created for solo piano, and although there are no recordings of his playing, one of his contemporaries wrote: “Chopin is the creator of the piano and composer school. In truth, nothing can compare with the ease and sweetness with which the composer began to play piano, moreover, nothing can be compared with his works full of originality, features and grace. "

Franz Liszt (1811-1886)

In a rivalry with Chopin for the crown of the greatest virtuosos of the 19th century was Franz Liszt, a Hungarian composer, teacher and pianist.

Among his most famous works are the insanely complex Années de pèlerinage piano sonata in B minor and the Mephisto Waltz waltz. In addition, his fame as a performer became a legend, even the word Listomania was coined. During his eight-year tour of Europe in the early 1840s, Liszt gave over 1,000 performances, although at a relatively young age (35) he stopped his career as a pianist and focused entirely on composing.

Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943)

Rachmaninoff's style was, perhaps, quite controversial for the time in which he lived, as he strove to maintain romanticism of the 19th century.

He was remembered by many for his skill stretch your hand 13 notes(octave plus five notes) and even a glance at the etudes and concertos that he wrote, one can verify the authenticity of this fact. Fortunately, recordings of this brilliant pianist's performance have survived, starting with his prelude in C sharp major, recorded in 1919.

Arthur Rubinstein (1887-1982)

This Polish-American pianist is often cited as the best Chopin performer of all time.

At the age of two, he was found to have perfect pitch, and when he was 13 he made his debut with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. His teacher was Karl Heinrich Barth, who in turn studied with Liszt, so he can be safely considered part of the great pianistic tradition. Rubinstein's talent, combining elements of romanticism with more modern technical aspects, made him one of the best pianists of his time.

Svyatoslav Richter (1915 - 1997)

In the struggle for the title of the best pianist of the 20th century, Richter is part of the powerful Russian performers who appeared in the middle of the 20th century. He showed a tremendous commitment to composers in his performances, describing his role as a "performer" rather than an interpreter.

Richter was not a big fan of the recording process, but his best live performances have survived, including 1986 in Amsterdam, 1960 in New York and 1963 in Leipzig. For himself, he kept high standards and realizing that at an Italian Bach concert, played the wrong note, insisted on the need to refuse to print the work on a CD.

Vladimir Ashkenazy (1937 -)

Ashkenazi is one of the leaders in the world of classical music. Born in Russia, he currently holds Icelandic and Swiss citizenship and continues to perform as a pianist and conductor around the world.

In 1962 he became the winner of the International Tchaikovsky Competition, and in 1963 he left the USSR and lived in London. His extensive catalog of recordings includes all piano works by Rachmaninoff and Chopin, Beethoven's sonatas, Mozart's piano concertos, as well as works by Scriabin, Prokofiev and Brahms.

Martha Argerich (1941-)

Argentine pianist Martha Argerich amazed the world with her phenomenal talent when she won the International Chopin Competition at the age of 24 in 1964.

She is now recognized as one of the greatest pianists of the second half of the 20th century and is famous for her passionate playing and technical ability, as well as for performing works by Prokofiev and Rachmaninoff.

It is up to you how to choose the path! But first -