I'm learning a lot of repitoire, how should I organize my practice?

[musicsdarkangel]

My goal for next year's MTNA competition (around early October) is to have the following performance ready/mastered:

Bach - Partita no 2
Beethoven - Tempest Sonata
Chopin - Ocean Etude
Chopin - Winterwind Etude
Crumb - Dream Images
Liszt - La Campanella
Rachmaninoff - Rhapsody on a theme by Pagannini
......also - Ravel - Gaspard de la Nuit; I have also just started the Scarbo, and am hoping to have it prepared for my junior recital which would probably be around Feburary of 2007   

How should I organize my practice?

I have never taken on this many long term goals.  Luckily, I have previously learned La Campanella, Dream Images, the Ocean Etude, Winterwind Etude, and half of the Rhapsody on a Theme by Pagannini previously.

Should I split them up by time?  Should I just focus on memorizing first?  Practice them all slowly?  Quickly and later slowly to solidify?

I just figure it's good to think about these things now seeing as I'm going to be practicing these pieces for a year or so.

P.S.  I also have the Polonaise op 44 which I could reincarnate, should I do that instead of the Chopin etudes?

[presto agitato]

Next year? you mean  year 2006 or year 2007

If you mean 2006, i think you are in troubles...you need more time¡¡¡.

Only the Bach partitas takes 2 months to master it IMO.

[BoliverAllmon]

I would take each piece and practice it at least 30 min. Then work extra on one of the pieces with the extra time you may have. Make sure you rotate your choice of pieces when practicing.

[zheer]

Bach - Partita no 2
Beethoven - Tempest Sonata
Chopin - Ocean Etude
Chopin - Winterwind Etude
Crumb - Dream Images
Liszt - La Campanella
Rachmaninoff - Rhapsody on a theme by Pagannini

  Not an easy choice of music, the one i would worry about the most would be the Rachmaninoff. If you are starting from scratch, then one year of preparation is a little crazy unless you are truly outstanding. However if you already know them all, then 6 months is all you need.

[paris]

i'm faced with same thing, i'm working on several repertoires at the same time. its not easy, i always try to them all every day. some pieces i just play through few times, to keep them in shape, and work on tricky bits, other i do more intensively.
only thing which try to avoid (i know what i'm talking about, i've experienced it ughh) is, to not practise one of pieces for a week. its always better work half an hour every day on one piece,rather then not practising it for whole week and then spend 3 hours repairing damage

[musicsdarkangel]

yes, I mean at the end of 2006/beginning of 2007 I will have a performance.



I have technically memorized all of the Rhapsody before, but never learned it all comfortably.

I learned about half of it comfortably.

[BoliverAllmon]

I think you can do it fine, if you practice every day and focus on the pieces. Get a schedule and stick to it. That is my biggest problem, I will work out a schedule and never follow it. Never turns out pretty.

[musicsdarkangel]

Schedule where I divide my time into sections for each piece?


Or like a goal schedule?

[Nightscape]

That is a lot of music, however, in order to win that MTNA competition you spoke of, that would be the kind of program you would have to play!

I'm doing that competition as well, but my state level is held in mid-Novemeber 2006.  I'm playing a similar program as you - a Bach partita (only no.3 instead), a Beethoven sonata (op. 90), Book 1 of the Debussy preludes, Ravel's Ondine and either the Tchaik no.1 or the Rach no.2.

Actually, I played this year as well, but it was the first year I was eligible, I played the above program, but I was nowhere near ready with the Bach and Beethoven and ended up getting 2nd at State (sigh...). 

So like you, I'll be spending most of this year preparing my program.  This is what I would suggest for a practice schedule:

Don't work on every piece every day.   Sometimes, I find that skipping a piece a day gives my mind some time to "refresh" on it and give it a different outlook.  Also, some of your pieces will require more work than others (like you don't already know that), such as your Rachmaninoff and your Ravel.  Also, try to spend more time on the passages in the music that you have problems with - and above all try and learn the music right from the start.  Of course, I can't stress how important the learning the proper fingerings are.

A lot of this seems like common sense, but in a way I think that practicing should be like common sense - powerful, but not complicated.

It is comforting to know, that you won't have to play all of that music, either.  Unfortunately, you don't you what they'll pick.  But you can play on predictability of course: for example, I prepared the whole book 1 of the preludes this year, but I knew they would only make me play about the first 5 or so- esp since I choose it as my starting piece.  It's good to play 'sets' like this, because they impress the judges and you won't have to play them all.  So yeah, they will probably only hear the first half of the Paganini Rhapsody (not that you shouldn't prepare the 2nd half!  You never know.).

[BoliverAllmon]

Schedule where I divide my time into sections for each piece?


Or like a goal schedule?

both

[ramseytheii]

I think what is also really important here is remembering to study the scores away from the piano.  You will move a lot faster along, if you don't rely on practice time with the piano to advance your interpretation of these pieces.  I advise marking the score, and really going deep inside the score when you are not practising.

Also, find categorizable technical things in the different pieces.  For instance, if two pieces have scales in thirds, practice those two parts of the two pieces.  Find ways to practice flexibly, and not just one piece for an  hour, adn then the next piece for an hour, etc.

Walter Ramsey

[pianowelsh]

early and late practice sessions daily ie

day 1

EPS

Half of repertoire.



LPS

other half


Day2

EPS - 2nd half again

LPS - concerto

Day 3

EPS - Concerto

LPS - First half prog

etc and rotate each week until you get the two weeks before. Then Id swap onto playing whole programme each day then in the late one alternate touching up work on the programme and concerto.

Good luck