I’m trying to get a better grasp of what technique is … my understanding is technique is about how to use your body (i.e. fingers, wrists, hands, arms, and body) to get the sound we are after out of a piano.

I should note that I am from the camp that believes that an individual piano note’s sound is dependent on the speed of the hammer hitting the strings, and how long you hold the key down (we won’t talk about pedals). I do realize some think you can do more, nevertheless …

Starting with the basic keystroke, my understanding re all keystrokes from PP to FF involve a steady acceleration to almost the bottom of the keystroke, a very rapid deceleration of the fingers just before impact at the bottom of the keystroke (to avoid ham fisting the piano), holding the key at the bottom of travel for the length of time you are after, then release. Finger, wrist, arm, and body movements across multiple notes and chords match the flow of the music based on phrasing to bring out expression.

My understanding is that most discussions about “technique” are about choosing which finger, wrist, arm, and body movements are best suited to match the phrasing of the music and to achieve proper keystroke (acceleration, rapid deceleration, hold, release) for the situation at hand … and to enable the pianist to play relaxed and efficiently.

From what I’ve seen, disagreements about technique are generally differences in philosophy about which finger, wrist, arm, and body movements best achieve these results … Gould for example had what many would consider “quirky technique”, but was able to achieve the sound he was after … so in the final analysis, it is the sound that matters.

Does this "sound" about right?

Glenn Gould is an anomoly when talking technique.
He had terrible posture. This is the one major factor in saying he had terrible technique.
He was a strange character and who knows, he may have really been suffering with how he carried his body (or not) at the piano, after all he did pass at age 50.

In otherwords, I would not use him as an example on how to play the piano well. Even though he did manage quite well. He was too much of an eccentric for me to take him as an example on how to play the piano.

Correct technique to me is to be able to play easy pieces with a beautiful singing tone and balance, as well as very difficult pieces with good tone, balance, effortless playing and with no fatigue. Also having no pains or tendonitis in the coming years, of being a pianist.

If you can play like this, with natural technique, you will then naturally sound good. You won't sound like you are banging on the piano. You will have a good, pleasing to the ears, tone. And no piece then should be too difficult.

"everything is technique", my teacher once said. i sort of understood it then. what he actually meant is that the sound or the playing movement or finger position or phrasing or everything that associated with playing a piece has much to do with techniques. in another word, techniques are not isolated from what you intend to protrait with the music you are playing, and everything is related.

Gould had terrible posture, but he had fantastic finger techniques which was projected in the sound he produced from playing music. i always wonder what if he would have sit a little bit higher (on a normal chair), he would have much easier time on piano...