In fact, I was inputting Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 8 "Pathétique," but there was a part that I couldn't get quite right. That is the execution of "fps" that follows the opening chord.
Piano Sonata No. 8 was composed between 1797 and 1798, and the piano used is said to have been made by Anton Walter of Vienna.
The damper function of today is said to have been a lever under the keyboard that was pushed up with the knee, instead of pedaling with the foot. However, the sound was not very long-lasting, and it diminished as soon as the lever was returned, so it is expected that it could be played without much problem in the way of the beginning of this score.
Now, modern pianos are much more powerful and stable than those of those days in terms of sound intensity, sustained resonance, pedal function, and so on. We have to play this "fp" on such a piano. Piano is a attenuation instrument, so it is natural that once the key is tapped, the sound decreases according to the decay curve. Therefore, the challenge is how to express the instructions of the great master Beethoven on a modern piano. The image is that a strong chord "f" hitted hard
will rapidly decay to "p" and then lead to the next chord....
I happened to watch a Barenboim master course lesson that my musical advisor introduced to me, and I found out something.
Incidentally, the person who was being instructed in the master course at that time could not perform this technique and had to have it corrected many times.
"Barenboim" seems to have played the following.
First, play the powerful chord "f"
→ Immediately lift his hands off the keys after striking them (while keeping the pedal pressed).
→ Immediately after that, lightly press the same key again (maybe not too much, aiming for resonance).
→ Release the pedal before the next note "p".
I thought it would not be too difficult to realize this in DAW software, since it is just a matter of simulating this Barenboim's action. In other words, normally the volume is controlled by velocity without moving the volume (CC 7), but in this case, after hitting "f", the volume is dropped very sharply. Then, with the next "p", I set the volumetric value back to normal, and I thought I could do it by hitting a reasonable velocity. In the meantime, I leave the pedal depressed and release it before the "p". What do you think? This subtle difference seems important.
Typing "fp
No "fp" process