Modern piano play can no longer be reduced to such technical and musical formulas as in the days of Liszt, Czerny, or Dohnányi. The piano works of our contemporary composers do not demand the techniques of the classical scale, broken chords, or series of parallel intervals: they are more likely to require from the performer a secure feeling for position, rich rhythmic imagination, a receptivity to colour and dynamics which will become apparent in refined nuances of touch, and the capacity for lightning adaptation in quickly changing styles of playing - in other words, a richness of colour in playing the instrument that was inconceivable in earlier times.
In order to meet these demands, increased training is required in the kinds of movement used in playing. Additionally, well-developed hearing is also important for the performer to be able to control the variety of sound.
Lajos Papp's small pieces are intended to offer some assistance in teaching these skills, for use at the very beginning of studying the piano. The forty little pieces of this volume are like studies. They lead the pianist towards the playing of 20th century music, but naturally they presuppose the study of traditional piano technique.