going from home to lessons to performance: adjustments?

[just_me]

hello!

i have been playing the piano for a few years now and have just gotten a great instrument at my home (~up until this time, i was using the pianos at my university--which served me well until i graduated!).
like everyone, i don't play as well at my lessons or in performance as i do at home.  to minimize error, i would like to know what adjustments should definitively be made when going from practising on an upright (i.e., the one at home) to performing/playing on a grand (as in my lessons or recitals).
also, where should i be looking? my pieces are always memorized and i practice without looking at the keys but when i go to my lessons or perform, i want to be extra careful and i end up looking at the keys  and my brain freaks out with that visual pattern and lose it----soooo, should i take my chances and practice performing without looking or is there some type of set point i should be looking at when performing?
any advice would be appreciated in these problems spots,
thanks!
just me.

[m1469]

hello!

i have been playing the piano for a few years now and have just gotten a great instrument at my home (~up until this time, i was using the pianos at my university--which served me well until i graduated!).
like everyone, i don't play as well at my lessons or in performance as i do at home.  to minimize error, i would like to know what adjustments should definitively be made when going from practising on an upright (i.e., the one at home) to performing/playing on a grand (as in my lessons or recitals).
also, where should i be looking? my pieces are always memorized and i practice without looking at the keys but when i go to my lessons or perform, i want to be extra careful and i end up looking at the keys  and my brain freaks out with that visual pattern and lose it----soooo, should i take my chances and practice performing without looking or is there some type of set point i should be looking at when performing?
any advice would be appreciated in these problems spots,
thanks!
just me.

Welcome!

IMHO there are a couple of things that you could consider.  First, every piano will be different (as you already know).  Not just from upright to grand, but from grand to grand and upright to upright and so on.  So you must figure out what is that thing that is somewhat constant and you always take with you?

You always take your ears, arms, hands, fingers with you.  And of course your thinker!  When you trust these intimately, adjusting to a different instrument is not difficult nor does it need to be time consuming.  As well as bench height, distance from the instrument, acoustics of the room etc.  So the only adjustments that need to take place are largely mental, followed by your personally necessary physical.

As far as knowing where to look:

IMHO it would be silly to assume some exact spot.  I have seen people who look at the bloody ceiling at times and their hands at other times.  I think the biggest problem is thinking about what you are looking at and letting this distract you from your job at hand (he he).

Do you play any sports?  While sports are largely mental as well, they are also about harmonizing physical activity with thought in a non distracting way.  I have found (so far) that it must be the same when piano playing.  Perhaps you are over-intellectualizing and forgetting to also concentrate consciously on physical motions in your practice.  Release any tension (especially thought related) between any jumps big and small, as well as after striking chords or even single notes giving your mind and ear a chance to memorize the feeling related to the sound.

As far as performing without looking, it could only help to know that you can do this should the lights go out or something.  But, the only way to do this without fumbling along is to continue developing a very keen internal sense of the instrument itself and how your particular piece fits into that, not just the piece itself.

Try playing on as many different pianos as you can get your hands on.  If you came upon a large room filled with pianos (drool), how many would you be inclined to touch?  Cultivate a healthy appetite for experiencing the differences between instruments and relish feeding that appetite (mmmm... I am getting hungry).   Play a piece in various registers of the instrument.  But most of all, trust yourself even more than you already do.  This attitude must be consciously and continuously nurtured and practiced simultaneously with everything else you are putting into practice.

m1469 Fox

[pianobabe56]

The only point that I can offer is on the subject of where to look during a performance. I used to have a problem with watching my hands as I played- it would screw me up (which was largely due to me memorizing in a completely wrong way!), and so I always had a tendency to look elsewhere.

Last year at my adjudication, however, the adjuticator noted that "looking heavenward" (i.e. eyes wandering- i don't think he was from the US- he had the greatest accent!) is often very distracting from the performance. The audience begins to wonder "Where is she [/he] looking?" He recommended keeping focused on the keyboard. It keeps the performance more focused.

[Maui]

imo if you can play the piece in question ten times in a row without mistakes you are ready to play it in any piano. Thats because your self confidence andcontrol over the piece are in so high level that you can do any adjust you need (like playing softer, harder...) right in time.

[jlh]

The only times I don't look at my hands are when 1) I'm sightreading and 2) sometimes when I'm at a section where looking at my hands would take my focus off the musical aspect -- usually more contemplative and slow sections. 

Sometimes in practicing it's good to close your eyes and feel where your hands go, but only as a training model.  This helps train your reflexes and can build a sense of security in more difficult passages.  There's nothing wrong with looking down at your hands while performing.

However, you should be equally comfortable looking at your hands when performing, especially if you're having performance issues related to it.  So my advice would be to practice more while looking at your hands.

[MrRonsMusic]

Welcome to the real world... You will always have to make adjustments...  As you continue to develop as a performer, you will inevitably adapt to any circumstance...

Mr. Ron
https://www.mrronsmusic.com

[lostinidlewonder]

You hear this topic all over the discussion forums. I think that the only way to really master beign able to play in any environment is to establish a constant where you are completely listening to yourself when play.

To listen to what you produce is the most important thing, more important than the fingers or anything else. If you can't listen to yourself because you are too caught up on what notes to play then you will make mistakes. It wouldn't matter what else you do in that case, nothing you could adjust will improve you until you memorise your notes, you cannot escape this. For sightreaders, you would definatly benefit in memorising bits and peices and reading what you need to.

LISTEN TO YOURSELF PLAY. If you master this art, then sound production will focus the mind and set up the standard environment. No matter where you play, even in a rock concert Similarly, i think it is important to challenge yourself visually. Playing in dark rooms, or strange lighting to cast shadows on the keyboard. All these things aid you mastering playing in other environemnts. PLay the piano with some other piano music playing loudly in the background.

Also If you have an electrical piano, transpose the keyboard into a different key and play, this will develop your listening further.

If audiences send butterlfies in ur gut, you have to master the art of listening to yourself play. That closes off the world and leaves only yourself and your instrument, which creates a standard which you should be use to playing in. It will limit mistakes, and if you make errors you should have the control to draw it back because you listen to what needs to be done. It is a good idea to make mistakes when practicing now and again, and try to recover. This makes it easier to recover when playing for audiences.

Mistakes made with a disruption in note/finger focus will be detrimental to your playing, where mistakes made which are guided by the intent listening can be recovered much easier.