page turns

[gaurang]

how to practise page turns while sight reading. ok if the last measure of the page contains lond durated noted then its fine  but what if it has short durated noted.
even if u leave one hand to change the page u will have to leave either treble or bass clef for a moment. how to prevent it.
how do professionals do this.
thanks in advance

[quantum]

Read ahead.  When you are on the last system, read to the end of the page and buffer that in memory.  Make the page turn before your playing reaches the end of the page. 

Sometimes you may need to photocopy a strip from the next page and paste in on the previous if the music requires. 

If the music is too busy all the time, just get a page turner. 

[gerryjay]

 beside the good advice by quantum, the fundamental trick is to keep playing with one hand while the other turns the page. choose the hand with the more important material to play, and use the other one. it's easy, isn't it?

[jlh]

Also, it can be a big help if you were to fold back the corner of the page to be turned so you don't have to fumble around trying to get it.  Also, use pedal if you must sustain material from either hand while that hand turns the page.

Plus what the others said: read ahead, turn the page fast, let you rother hand help, get a page turner.  If you can't get a page turner, you must make due - just don't mess up the page turn or you will end up with pages on the floor and have to stop completely (that's why I use a 3-ring binder for photocopies). lol

[Bob]

I do the photocopying thing a lot.  Gets nuts something though when you have 10 pages laid out at once.  Not aesthetically pleasing at that point.

Find a pause in the piece.  Or a loud spot so the page turn doesn't get heard.

Or leave out a few notes in the left hand.  I've done that a few times too.  Then you can make a quick page turn with the left hand while the right is still going.  Sometimes even adding a little rit to give yourself more time.  Not a musical reason, but a practical one.

[dan101]

I am always facing this situation when accompanying choirs in reheasrals. I generally try to keep a bass line going while turning he page with my right hand.

As for sightreading, I wouldn't worry too much about disrupting the flow of a piece when turning a page. It's only a read through, after all.

[gerryjay]

 

It's only a read through, after all.

but don't you get annoyed when you are reading it very well and *bang* must turn a damn page (and then it falls on the floor)? 

[quantum]

Practice subbing in with your toes, just in case you need to pick something off of the floor.