pianoFORTE: A system for piano education beyond notation literacy

Abstract

This is a study of a future vision of piano education assisted by multimedia computer technology. Systems are already implemented which allow a piano student to acquire notation literacy, but what happens next? In order to go beyond reading the notes to making music it is necessary to ask how communication between teacher and student may be facilitated. Beyond establishing whether or not a student `gets the notes right,' it is possible to use MIDI technology to record several aspects of a performance, including dynamics, tempo, articulation, and synchronization. If these records are then displayed in a suitable representation, it will be easier for a piano teacher to communicate to a student the distinction between the art of playing piano and the technique of playing the correct notes.