Technique and Pedagogy in Czerny-Germer, Volume I: Étude No. 21

Year 2025, Volume: 12 Issue: 2, 784 - 801, 31.12.2025

Uğur Özalp

https://doi.org/10.26650/CONS2025-1751629

https://izlik.org/JA66EA57ZF

Abstract

In piano education, études support students’ holistic development by integrating technical mastery with musical expression. These works systematically strengthen pianistic skills ranging from finger agility to richness in articulation. This study analyzes the technical, tonal, and rhythmic characteristics of the 82 études in Volume I of the Czerny-Germer Edition, with a detailed examination of Étude No. 21 from Part II for its technical and pedagogical contributions. Using qualitative document analysis, tempo, tonality, time signatures, and technical distributions were evaluated through frequency and percentage data. Etude No. 21 was selected for its representativeness, pedagogical importance, and technical diversity; its technical content was analyzed in depth on a measure-by-measure basis. Findings indicate that Part I emphasizes legato, scale, and chord techniques, with C major and 4/4 time. In Part II, legato, arpeggio, and scale techniques prevail, with Étude No. 21 integrating legato, tenuto, arpeggio, intervals, and octave techniques. This study confirms the Czerny-Germer Edition’s role as a structured curriculum for piano education, with Étude No. 21 fostering technical fluency.

Keywords

Czerny-Germer , piano pedagogy , technical analysis

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