Tips for taking my pieces to another level?

[kayleesom]

This year I am completing my Grade 8 Royal Conservatory of Music exam. I am also participating in my local festival with all 6 of my pieces. I have them fully "prepared" (memorization, dynamics, articulation) but I want to take them above and beyond the regular standard.

My repertoire:
List A: Fantasia in D Minor, TWV 33:2 - Georg Philipp Telemann
List B: Sonatina in A Major, op. 59, no. 1 Second Movement - Friedrich Kuhlau
List C: Waltz in A flat, op. 39 no. 15 - Johannes Brahms
List D: Jazz Exercise No. 2 - Oscar Peterson
Study/Etude 4: Dance of the Marionettes - Mario Tarenghi
Study/Etude 12: Jane's Song - Christopher Norton

If any of you are familiar with these pieces, I would love your thoughts on how to take them from good to excellent. Performance techniques, tempo, inflection, and anything else.

Thank you

[chopinlover01]

Go to your score and see if you're following the phrasing. That seems to be the thing that does it for me a lot of the time... Often we forget about phrasing when technique is our main concern.

[iansinclair]

Another thought (chopinlover's is very good and somewhat along the same lines).  Start thinking a little about what you are saying with each piece, and what the composer is saying.  I'm assuming that technically they are all very good, and that what is wanting is some "feeling" to them (and yes, feeling is Important even in Bach!).  The Telemann will be the hardest to do this with.

[lostinidlewonder]

Play them for a few more years. i only ever get that feeling of completely absorbing a favorite piece of mine after many years, you can controll a piece and play with great expression in a short time but for it to really become a part of you in every way takes many years relationship imo.

[chopinlover01]

Play them for a few more years. i only ever get that feeling of completely absorbing a favorite piece of mine after many years, you can controll a piece and play with great expression in a short time but for it to really become a part of you in every way takes many years relationship imo.

Yes! ^