The Good, The Bad and The ugly of piano

[1piano4joe]

I wasn't sure what to call this topic. So that's what I decided.

QUESTION: WHAT IS YOUR GOOD, BAD AND UGLY?

Technique
Repertoire
Technique
Theory
Sight Reading
Memorization
Transposing
Improvisation
Etc.

My Good: Technique, Theory, Memorization, Learning a piece quickly

My Bad: Sight Reading, Repertoire, Looking at my hands, Losing my place

The Ugly: This is what I really what to discuss and get feedback on.

I'm finding these things more and more interrelated.

For example,

Today I learned a simple piece. Focusing on keeping my eyes glued to the score. It was a simple piece so I was able to do this. This is good right? This was an accomplishment right? It was only two pages long. Only 32 measures not including D.C. al Fine. After 47 repetitions (yes I counted them) the piece was still not memorized. This was a first for me. Normally, it's memorized by now.

Conclusion: I Memorize by looking at my hands.

Please tell me how you memorize.


I spend much time practicing technique (sometimes hours and no repertoire (the technique is my repertoire as bizarre as that sounds)) and so have a relatively smaller repertoire as a result.

"The Ugly" seems to me that by improving (concentrating on one aspect) can mean neglecting lots of others as it is illogical that you would be addressing all things at all times.

I believe that everything is important. I don't know if they're equally important and if they're not (being only a mere intermediate pianist) I don't know which are the more important.

Anyway all I can say is that I probably spend too much time on technique (Is that really possible?) and therefore learn a piece that much faster as most of the technique very often has been acquired prior to the learning of the piece. Things tend to feel familiar to my hands and not awkward or foreign. The written notes on the page actually hold them back waiting for my brain to make sense of them.

I can improvise. Excessive technique practice developed this ability. But remember I don't sight read well. That's the price I have paid. (However I could address sight reading and improve that for a while until I'm satisfied and let other things go or just start including it.)

If they are all equally important then perhaps a balanced approach is best.

Practice technique only at your current level.
Sight read only at your current level.
Everything the same at your current level.
Learn pieces only at your current level.

Is that too idealistic?

I think so.

Posters on this forum seem to suggest that.

I have read posts stating that you should have a short term piece, a long term piece and a midrange piece.

I listen to very advanced music and try to follow the score.
Is that a bad thing?

We all have preferences. Some people love scales and others think them a necessary evil while others claim to never practice them at all.

I guess there are "many paths" that get you from point A to point B.

That's all for now.

[_achilles_]

Well, I'll start by saying that if I were to categorize everything in your list I feel like everything would be bad. But, I'm planning (and working harder than I ever have before) to change that. One thing you didn't include that I might be good at already is rhythm (although poly stuff is taking some getting used to).

Reading through your post I couldn't help but think that (my opinion, nothing more) you're focusing too much on grades/levels. I like to believe that I can play anything, it's just a matter of telling my body how to do it.. more of an unlocking process then a grueling learning process. Obviously I still have limits but I would rather hit those limits and realize that they are there, that way I can learn how to overcome them. I also feel like playing lots of stuff well below my level is very advantageous. Playing simple and melodic songs is great practice for giving life to my music, and that experience transfers over to the harder stuff I play.

I find that piano practice is a lot like looking for beauty in the world. You can find beauty in almost anything if you try, just like in piano practice you can learn from any piece (or scale or anything) you play if you try with an open mind.

[outin]

I have always had difficulties memorising anything (expecially numbers). But I have recently noticed the same thing as you, the pieces I memorise by looking at the keyboard. So I have given up trying to learn to sight read well for the time being. Otherwise it would take me ages to get even a few pieces at a level that I could acutally sit down on a piano and play them without a score.

When I close my eyes I can visually see my fingers playing the keys in my mind and sometimes I can also see the score, but it's very difficult for me to remember individual notes. It helps a little that I have no problem remembering the melody and the sounds, even after only hearing them once.

I do think that to be REALLY good at piano requires a brain structure suitable for this kind of acitivity. It's partly developed as a very small child and partly there when you are born. Call it talent or whatever. But I still think one can improve the brain functions by training up to a decent level so I keep working on it