Slow down or not?

[ThEmUsIcMaNBJ]

In performance I tend to do something...  Start way too fast...  Obviously the ideal situation would be not to do this, but that's not my question.

What I want to know is if you happen to start a piece faster then you've practiced and faster then you can handle in a performance situation...  Would it be better to fumble all the way through it or perhaps at a rubato like section or tempo change or fermata or long note or something to slow it down to a reasonable tempo?

Sorry If I'm not making sense I'm really sick right now  

But so basically what I'm saying is...  Would it be better to keep it the fast fumbling tempo or ruin the overall pulse of the piece?  Obviously it's a lose lose situation, so it would be better not to do it in the first place; but if it did happen which would be the better reaction?

[robert_henry]

Starting at the wrong tempo should be considered a mistake just as a wrong note would be considered a mistake.  You must practice the moments before beginning the piece jst as much as you practice the piece itself.

There is no excuse for it.  The problem is obviously your concentration before you begin.

Tempo problems can often be corrected by conducting  as if the piece were written for orchestra.

The root of the problem is that you are playing REactively, not PROactively.  

REactive playing means that you are playing on automatic and will deal with problems as they arise.  It is playing based on hope.  It means your fingers have a mind of their own.   They move at whatever programmed speed you've rehearsed in the practice room.  None of these things are good.

PROactive playing means that every motion, every sound, tempo choice, every pedal, etc. has been chosen before you walk on stage.  Being Proactive means you are thinking ahead.  Your fingers move at the will of your intellect.

I didn't answer your question exactly as you asked it, but I'm not interested in doing things halfway.  Giving yourself an excuse or a "way out" of a situation that you've put yourself in just gives you permission to put yourself in that position in the first place.  I know you are looking for the "professional way" or a "trick" to get out of that position, but the professional does not get in that position.  It's that simple.  It is as unprofessional as burping during your piece.  And you have to stop it cold turkey, as they say.  That's blunt, but that's the way it is.  

That said, you should push the piece to the breaking point in the practice room to know what you can handle.  The stage should not be the time to play the piece at a dangerous tempo.  Do that in the practice room.

Robert Henry

[Wired]

I fully agree. My mother, who was a concert pianist during college, gave me these steps, which I use all the time:

1. Sit at the piano, make sure you're comfortable with distance/positioning.
2. Take a few deep breaths.
3. Place your hands over the keys and listen to the piece as you hear it in your head. After the first few seconds, count the same tempo you just heard (mentally, of course).
4. Strike the opening notes.

I also recommend listening to recordings of the piece you are about to play. I did this before my high school piano festivals. The Rachmaninoff Prelude in C# Minor was the hardest I had played up to that point, and I was overly nervous. Sure, the first three notes don't offer too much chance to mess up, but I'd force myself through this routine anyway.

Those are about all the insights I have. With these insights (and having someone who knows what the music is supposed to sound like critique your practice sessions (thanks mom! ), hopefully you won't find yourself in the situation you described.

[rachfan]

I agree with Robert's excellent advice on proactive concentration.  As he said, everything must be planned in advance.  But, of course, you must create the sense of spontaneity in your playing at the same time.  

When you sit down at the piano to perform, you are definitely waiting for a hush in the audience.  But that's not all.  In those moments you are also thinking of every feature of the opening measure.  For example, if the piece is highly atmospheric and you will be depressing the damper pedal before (not immediately after) sounding the opening note(s), that has to be considered; thus, you are already positioning your foot near the damper pedal to prepare for that special effect.  To set the tempo you are "hearing" the right pace in you mind so that your fingers can replicate that once you begin.  Perhaps the first note in the RH may be at a higher dynamic than the other notes in the short phrase, since it's at the top of the phrase, the other notes descending in a waning contour.  You're thinking about executing that too.  And, there might be an essential fingering in the LH to position the hand for what comes thereafter.  So in this hypothetical example, you're thinking of all the critical elements in the opening measure to properly launch the piece, including the early pedaling, setting proper tempo, the loudness of the first note announcing the thematic motif, the contouring of the phrase, as well as a fingering in the left hand.  

Perhaps you think that nervousness will prevent this.  Well, it shouldn't if you discipline yourself to do it every time starting during your practice at home.  You'll find too that if you concentrate on those details for the opening measure, once you  are executing it all, the brain is already in the mindset and mode of proactively and intently concentrating on the rest of the piece in similar fashion.  To keep all this from making your playing sound academic, you must bring in the emotional content to make the piece live and breathe too.  If you can do all this, then you are truly in the service of the composer and striving for the perfect interpretation and performance.

[lobo]

i have had the same problem too at recitals and what i did was to start at a slower tempo than the one i thought of at that moment, but by reading Robert Henry comment i realize i was playing reactively. If Robert or some else could tell me more about how to practice proactively i would apreciate it very much.
Gerardo