HELP!! mental block with really tough piece.

[dee101]

Hey,

I've recently realised I'm having a bit of a mental block with one of my new grade pieces.the adagio movement from Beethoven's Sonata no 1 in F minor.

I'm able to play my other two pieces no problem and have got a good grasp of them but this Beethoven one is a bit of a pregnant dog. Not sure if I'm making it into something its not.I got about the first two pages of it learnt on the right hand and left hand separately but it's time to move on and put it together, well I've the opening couple of bars together, but moving on with the rest of it is proving tough.

Maybe I'm a bit too much pressure on myself but I kinda have set the deadline to be able to play the treble and bass clefs separately by the end of June. My lessons are finished for the summer than and soon after I'm back, I'll have to apply for the exam and that session starts beginning of November so I need a good grasp of it soon enough.

Thanks

[pianisten1989]

Haha, welcome to piano playing!
That has happened to EVERYONE.

So what you do is: play it slowly, but not so slow that you can't follow what is happening. And I know it's super boring sometimes, but you have to stay focused. When you get upset, it's only making things worse.

This will happen to you loads of times (Have fun learning your first Bach-fugue ) and you just have to learn not to get upset.

Good luck!

[quantum]

Try to think of the piece from other perspectives.  Look at what is going on structurally, harmonically, melodically.  Try to understand the piece from more then just a technical and physical finger-action perspective. 

Beethoven can often have a lot of meat in his slow movements.  Chew well.   

[mike_lang]

Dee,

I think you may be making this a bit more difficult than it has to be, and setting your goals lower than you could be!  Why don't you post two different videos for us:

1) 10-20 minutes of you practicing, candidly and uncut, this movement
2) A run-through from start to finish, at whatever tempo you can do it

I think this is the best way for us to figure out what is going on, and help to get the best from you that you have to give!

Best wishes,
Mike