The Workings of the Greater Mind

[cuberdrift]

Okay...this does not SEEM to be restricted to ONLY for piano performance, but I think it can be highly useful for that aspect, among other things.

It's something I discovered quite lately. The "Greater Mind" is a term I generally use to describe that state of mind when our imagination is most active, and when we aren't really TRYING to CONSCIOUSLY think about anything.

By contrast, the "Lesser Mind" seems to govern all the rigid, logical mental processes we do, such as when we're told to solve a puzzle, answer a Math problem, etc.

The thing is that it seems like the Greater Mind can answer things a lot faster than the Lesser Mind. The Greater Mind is the state of mind we are in when we are half asleep - I realize certain things, sometimes weird, strange things, while in this state.

Once, for instance, my head was playing over a Bach fugue IIRC, and I was half-asleep (or maybe just sleepy), and suddenly, I sort of visualized, subconsciously, during a passage of contrary motion, a door opening; the left hand notes and right hand notes going seperate ways seemed to resemble the "opening" of a door, i.e. the increasing size of the space in the entrance when the door opens, just as the notes increase the space between them as they move in contrary motion.

Things like these seem to usually come from the workings of the Greater Mind.

Now, how does it help me in my piano?

Well, when I'm stuck and confused with a certain passage, for instance I don't know what technique to apply, I "freeze" my mind and "free" it from "constraint" and "mental tension", and suddenly the "right technique" appears right before my mind's eye; I need to loosen my wrist, I need to be conscious of the position of my fingers as I strike the keys, etc.; details that I MAY have discovered using Lesser Mind Thinking, but maybe at a slower pace.

This is also particularly effective when thinking of how to interpret a piece. I just need to sit down, bow my head, and close my eyes, and relax my thoughts - suddenly everything seems to flash into focus; what I need to do with the piece, how I should express each passage, etc.

I haven't seem to have encountered this kind of talk about piano practice before. It seems to be highly psychological in nature. It's a rather new theory of mine, however, so I think time still needs to test whether it is indeed highly effective or not.

Have you guys tried it? What do you think of this?

[hardy_practice]

You can transcend the inner speech brain and be part of the process brain.  As it implies, you are beyond speech at that moment.

[indianajo]

There are a lot of things that can go on in your brain besides what is in the cortex, or your "focus".
I got in touch with the inner brain very early by practicing schmitt exercises, which when I had one memorized, I could practice and  read a book clipped to the music rack at the same time.  Not a music book, a novel or something.  See this thread: https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php?topic=60310.0
The "muscle memory" that so many people on this forum disparage, is your inner brain at work.  Don't criticize it, use it is my opinion.  Think (focus)  about the lyrics or make up new lyrics or create some way to affect the tempo, volume or accented line to communicate emotion.  I've wrote one of  my best lyrics wandering  around a factory tracing pipes on the ceiling at my place of work.  Dual track, triple track, my mind is a fun toy. 
I've also found the memory works better when the cortex, ie focus,  is not involved.  Sometimes when I'm trying to remember someone's name, or an answer on a test. I don't know it right away.   i go ahead and "think" about something else.  On tests, I go on to the other questions I do know the answer to immediately.  Some time later, the answer pops up, usually. It takes a while to load and play that magnetic tape, I suppose.   I did that yesterday; some actor on TV I remembered the name of five minutes after the show was off.  I won't win any game shows that way,but I don't get all emotional or stressed when I can't remember something right away.