10 years ago by
A Pianist
I respectfully disagree with that. Often, some of the most beautiful, piano, leggiero playing is obtained by keeping a very still, "high" (as a result of a higher placed elbow) wrist; take Ravel's Un Barque sur l'ocean. It would be almost impossible to play this with a general/overall low wrist. Conversely, if you take a piece with technical similarities of the LH such as Liszt's Un sospiro, a low and completely relaxed wrist will result in an emmensely rich and full forte sound.
I think you have to look closely at what the nature of the music itself, not the dynamics, indicate; forte chords can most certainly benefit from a higher forearm and wrists and a sort of thrusting motion from the elbows/forearm.
But these wrist positions are often so temporary-- if the arm is relaxed, as it should be, the wrist is an ever changing mechanism. Sometimes, depending on the piece, a forte chord is initially struck with a so called "high wrist", but then needs a release of energy (or dip in the wrist). This, to my ears, can produce a richer and warmer forte. It just depends on the piece. Or if rapid notes are being played,( there again Ravel's LH of Un barque is a great example), the inherent patterns can form a particular shape (a sort of elliptical shape) to which the wrist would naturally conform, no matter the dynamic level.
In short, I don't believe wrist height is necessarily (or even often) dependent on dynamics. It is related directly to the musical structure, character and intention of the composer.
