Movement Strategies and Sensory Feedback in Piano Playing

While performing, pianists not only listen to what they play, but also may watch themselves and most importantly sense with their finger tips the topography and the reactivity of the keyboard. This sensory feedback is perceived in relation to the movement efforts put into the keys and will influence the execution of future movements. Different ways of touching the keys (hitting, pressing, etc.) produce tones that may sound almost identical to listeners, but the fundamentally different tactile sensations may let the pianist feel these tones as dissimilar. The purpose of this project is to study the relative importance of these different sensory modalities in piano playing, that is tactile, auditory, and visual information. In a series of experiments, different movement strategies for touching the keys and for executing basic pianistic tasks are recorded and investigated. Issues studied in other motor-control contexts, such as finger enslaving characteristics of the hand, anticipatory behavior, and coarticulation are addressed in the context of piano playing. The precise arm, hand, and finger movements are monitored by a motion capture system with several combined video cameras. This data is supplemented by expressive performance data from an electronic keyboard and a novel computer-controlled grand piano that registers continuous key movements. Quantitative techniques to assess and evaluate the 3-dimensional time-series data are enhanced based on existing methods (e.g., Functional Data Analysis). Real-time applications for intuitive data display and movement visualization are developed. This project will deliver insights to fundamental psychological processes that support pianists` movements at skilled music performance, such as anticipatory planning, memory, and motor control. Additionally, knowledge on tactile sensitivity of pianists may help to improve electronic instruments as well as extend and enhance in the long run existing teaching situations.