Evolution of one-handed piano compositions

J Hand Surg Am. 2008 May-Jun;33(5):780-6. doi: 10.1016/j.jhsa.2008.01.002.

Abstract

Electronic searches were performed to investigate the evolution of one-handed piano compositions and one-handed music techniques, and to identify individuals responsible for the development of music meant for playing with one hand. Particularly, composers such as Liszt, Ravel, Scriabin, and Prokofiev established a new model in music by writing works to meet the demands of a variety of pianist-amputees that included Count Géza Zichy (1849-1924), Paul Wittgenstein (1887-1961), and Siegfried Rapp (b. 1915). Zichy was the first to amplify the scope of the repertoire to improve the variety of one-handed music; Wittgenstein developed and adapted specific and novel performance techniques to accommodate one-handedness; and Rapp sought to promote the stature of one-handed pianists among a musically sophisticated public able to appreciate the nuances of such maestros.

Publication types

  • Historical Article
  • Portrait
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amputees / history*
  • Biomechanical Phenomena
  • Hand / physiology*
  • History, 18th Century
  • History, 19th Century
  • History, 20th Century
  • Humans
  • Motor Skills / physiology
  • Movement / physiology
  • Music / history*