Facing a daunting piece of sheet music, how do you go about learning it?

[hastur]

As the topic title says; How do you go about learning a piece that feels really daunting to read and figure out (Maybe it's more dense note-wise than you are used to, maybe it has intervals you aren't comfortable reading, perhaps the rhythm is really difficult for you to figure out. That sort of thing)?

[p2u_]

As the topic title says; How do you go about learning a piece that feels really daunting to read and figure out (Maybe it's more dense note-wise than you are used to, maybe it has intervals you aren't comfortable reading, perhaps the rhythm is really difficult for you to figure out. That sort of thing)?

It was created by humans, so it can't be difficult; there must be a system of some kind. You start looking for patterns that make it easier; if you don't see it yourself, you ask somebody who might know or see it. That's basically it. There are no difficult pieces; they are either easy or temporarily impossible.

Paul

[hastur]

It was created by humans, so it can't be difficult; there must be a system of some kind. You start looking for patterns that make it easier; if you don't see it yourself, you ask somebody who might know or see it. That's basically it. There are no difficult pieces; they are either easy or temporarily impossible.

Paul

Interesting take on it, looking for patterns does work for most pieces. Although some composers amused themselves with composing pieces where finding patterns is nigh impossible, and the patterns you find don't cover the whole piece. (I'm looking at you, Beethoven!)

So essentially you suggest to ask a friend?

[rachmaninoff_forever]

Go on YouTube and listen to how it's supposed to sound, and then just plow through it.  I know it's such a drag, but that's what I do.

[chadbrochill17]

Like rach said above , I listen to multiple recordings to get a sense of the tempo, expression, etc. determine my own interpretation and then dive in at measure one and plow through bar by bar.

[p2u_]

So essentially you suggest to ask a friend?

I think you are among friends here, you so don't have to look too far. If you give an example, we could easily take a shot...

Paul

[j_menz]

All good advice above. I'd just add: take it slowly at first. Get the notes and timing right and then work it up.

[49410enrique]

all these kats sound pretty spot on. i would add that the more 'daunting' the piece the more time and consideration should be spent on the 'adoption process' , that is, for pieces of music you take on as difficult long term projects, please please please choose the work you most love, connect with, are obsessed with, that you (relatively speaking) cannot grow tired of easily.

understand you can and probably will be spending many months on sections  and will probably have weeks (or stretches of several weeks) where it won't sound like anything remotely close to what the finished product will be (think slow hands separate practice, coordination and timing and fingering work throughs, etc.), you really want to make sure you just dont' grow bored witht he whole thing and fizzle out before you can come out on the other side with a playable work.

also, find at least two very very good recordings that have interpretations you really feel are where you wnat to approximate your own expression, put them on a CD or portable player etc. and listen to that thing daily. multiple times daily even.  you want your ear to really steer the boat and should treat listening and aural memorization as a sort of 'passive' practice or just part of working it out away from the piano.

memorize. as quickly as possible. priority no. 1, it cannot happen quickly enough. especially with thick/busy textures and large jumps, tricky passage work etc. there is simply too much going on to be 'reading' a lot of the time, the real work actually begins once you have a basic work out of thepiece at a controlled tempo with solid memory. think of it as your price of admission to really start to work things out. a piano professor at my previous school would not even listen to you unless the work was memorized as described above, that is you didn't even have your first lesson until you learned the basics on your own.

hope tha helps, it's what i pretty much go through on my end.