Got a new teacher, Question on methods? Should I dump him? Open for suggestions.

[outin]

what are you charging for exactly, Louis? just curious.

Whatever he is charging, his conduct these days is somewhat suspicious... Those of us who have been here longer have already been exposed to his ideas of pianism. He is a preacher with a mission, but at some point he stopped preaching on the forum and instead started asking for students to contact him by PM. No doubt because of the criticism he received on his ramblings that he was never really able to respond to and rather chose to ignore. I am not saying he was all wrong in his advice, but clearly he does not want it to be exposed to peer review anymore and that can be dangerous for those students who are eager to blindly follow advice from self proclaimed authorities. Self learners might benefit from any reasonable advice, but to try to interfere with a student-teacher relationship this way is thougthless and irresponsible IMO.

[reiyza]

Did you tell your teacher your goal of entering a conservatory?

Unfortunately I wasn't able to, he kept rambling about how he was going to help me improve then gave me a bunch of assignments, we haven't had any time to talk, since he has another student waiting in line, I'll tell him, but I don't know if I'll be able to fit into a conservatory since my work is so much time constraining.

I estimate it will take me 5 years of practicing 2 hours a day to be somewhat within the realm of okay.

Isn't 2 hours a bit too short for practice? Even on working days I average about 3-4 hours at the piano, then on days off, I max out at 7-10 hours(of course 1 take short naps when I get too exhausted). Am I doing too much?

Don't beat yourself up about your recordings. There's lots of potential and you obviously love the music. Your teacher sees it, too, I think. Just clarify what he meant about Czerny (and switch to Cramer, if he'll go for it; technically similar to Czerny but much more interesting musically.)

Actually, I listened to it multiple times before posting it, and I was like "What the heck anyway! It's not like they actually know me IRL."
My teacher doesn't answer my text/calls, what the heck is wrong with him. Letting me blindly study these exercises. What specific cramer books? I'll try to suggest it to him when I meet him again this weekend.

For the advanced pieces I had played before I've only gone back to a few of them, and that after more than a year. After I came back to it it was so much easier.

So, should I do the same and drop my current piece(s)? Won't that make me an empty pianist?

 I think speed walls come from gradually increasing the speed step by step. I don't do that, I just work on the piece until it feels comfortable and then speed up all at once [but, I can do that because my teacher has shown me motions to use that are capable of being played at tempo]. And there are limits, of course. I'm not rattling off the Chopin Etudes at the given metronome markings, not by a long shot.

Yes I, believe the metronome speed trick is a quick wall to a speed wall, at least that's what I've read from bernhard's posts about practicing.

About the etudes, the metronome markings are insanely fast, playing two consecutive 11th octaves at 182mm is freaking insane! But when I watch other performers, they seem to handle difficult sections with ease. Maybe its all in the motions or the largeness of the hand span?
And yes, I agree with you regarding comfort and speed. The speed seems to come to me automatically if I am able to master a passage when I get lucky and discover the correct fingerings and movements.

It's really a comprehensive work, and almost have to completely buy into her approach for all the individual parts to really work at their best. 

So it's like a part 1 part 2 book. You have to grasp the knowledge of the first book for the second to be discernible? Man, sounds like tough work, but still, both might come in handy. thanks.

Sight-singing and self-conducting are actually very basic music skills that get ignored in the US in the basic training of most early aspiring musicians when it's actually needed the most. 

In actuality, my grandfather TRIED to teach me sight singing, and failed miserably in making me do it, I was so young and was very shy of my voice so I was sick of the idea of sight singing notes. But now, after my new teacher gave me the danhauser, I was thinking "The f**k, I think there's no escaping this singing part of learning". I'll do it this time for the sake of my growth and development.

The cantabile in this piece is best brought out only after you have a masterful control of the background ostinato.  The background needs to be treated just like the trills/tremolo I mentioned earlier.  There's a rhythm in the upper arm that balances on the keys almost like a tight rope, and it should feel self-sustaining like a pendulum.  The dynamic level of the background should be controlled by this rhythm. 

The important notes in the melody are than coordinated to that rhythm without ever disturbing it if you want to be able to consistently bring it out.  It's only after you've mastered the background rhythm, can you make the melody interact with it and make it sing.

Sounds tedious, so master the background first then add the voice? Even if i did master the background, I have no idea on how to voice the melody out, It sounds all the same, be it soft or loud. But I have a recording of maurizio pollini, and I was thinking how did he voice out that top notes while keeping the background soft or dim. Is there a magic finger trick to it?

Except and specific to me, if you decide to contact me by PM, I offer the same consulting contract that I always have.

This is not a solicitation. Your talent is substantial, and you can accordingly be given a common sense path to substantial piano technique.

I respectfully decline sir louispodesta, I may have resorted to you had my teacher rejected me. Since there was a handful of teachers in my area, I was thinking of through the net as a last resort. But now I am under the supervision of a teacher, I'll consider your advices if you post them here if you're kind enough. Thank you.

[dcstudio]

Whatever he is charging, his conduct these days is somewhat suspicious... Those of us who have been here longer have already been exposed to his ideas of pianism. He is a preacher with a mission, but at some point he stopped preaching on the forum and instead started asking for students to contact him by PM. No doubt because of the criticism he received on his ramblings that he was never really able to respond to and rather chose to ignore. I am not saying he was all wrong in his advice, but clearly he does not want it to be exposed to peer review anymore and that can be dangerous for those students who are eager to blindly follow advice from self proclaimed authorities. Self learners might benefit from any reasonable advice, but to try to interfere with a student-teacher relationship this way is thougthless and irresponsible IMO.

definitely on a mission..     lol.. yes I am well aware of his ideas on pianism.  I don't understand them but I am aware of them.  I don't know if they worked for him because I have never heard him play.  I have little trust for self-proclaimed authorities who offer no sample of their own abilities.  I personally, don't understand how you can hope to teach someone else to do something you are unable to do yourself...  how you can hope to offer advice in an area in which you have no experience.   Somehow people really believe that you don't have to know how to play the piano to teach it.   Personally I think that's ridiculous... but what do I know? lol

[brogers70]

Actually, I listened to it multiple times before posting it, and I was like "What the heck anyway! It's not like they actually know me IRL."
My teacher doesn't answer my text/calls, what the heck is wrong with him. Letting me blindly study these exercises. What specific cramer books? I'll try to suggest it to him when I meet him again this weekend.

So, should I do the same and drop my current piece(s)? Won't that make me an empty pianist?

Yes I, believe the metronome speed trick is a quick wall to a speed wall, at least that's what I've read from bernhard's posts about practicing.

About the etudes, the metronome markings are insanely fast, playing two consecutive 11th octaves at 182mm is freaking insane! But when I watch other performers, they seem to handle difficult sections with ease. Maybe its all in the motions or the largeness of the hand span?
And yes, I agree with you regarding comfort and speed. The speed seems to come to me automatically if I am able to master a passage when I get lucky and discover the correct fingerings and movements.

Don't worry about your teacher not getting back to you. You're in a hurry to get everything right; he's not. That's OK, on both sides. Just ask him at the next lesson.

I don't know if you should drop your more difficult pieces. I found it important to do so, for a time, as I said. I ha learned them with a bad, tense technique, and I was afraid that going back to them while I was working on rebuilding technique from the ground up would re-institute bad habits. Once the better habits were laid down, it was fine to go back to the old pieces. The piano literature is so big that there's doubtless plenty of great music you have not even looked at yet. So I doubt just staying away from things you might have learned with an overly tense technique will make you an empty pianist. And remember, there's plenty of time. You have decades to work on this. So spending even six months doing exercises and simple pieces (on the order of the two part inventions) could be fine.

[outin]

When my teacher started teaching me better technique she insisted on starting completely  new pieces. And I think it's the best way. It's difficult to forget your old ways and learn better ways at the same time. Easier to build something from the scratch. After you have developed, you can go back to those old pieces and relearn them.

[indianajo]

Two hours practice per day? With a job?  I never practiced more than an hour a day when I was taking lessons, 1958-1966. Too much homework, which led to a decent paying job. Piano, leads to  sub minimum wage job, no thanks.
I've never had a voice lesson from a keyboard teacher, either. 
I can't sit still more than 90 minutes to practice these days,the rear goes numb and the back muscles sore.  I do calesthentics 5x per week to keep the back in shape for even that much.  Fortunately, I can get through my favorite piece in that time. 
Advice without recordiings?  You techno-geeks. 
One more good mike has gone in price from $350 to $580 in the last 4 months.  Maybe when everybody is cooking at the barbeque and swimming in the pool I'll be able to afford a mike to record something. No cellphone tracks for me, those things are vile and scurulous IMHO. Cellphones Make U-tube a huge waste of time, except maybe cat jokes.   And I don't even have a source of interface for video-capture to a PC DVD using linux ubuntu studio.   Microsoft only tuner for sale so far.  $200 a year habit, microsoft, they've got everybody by the ****s.  Plus a new PC every 4 years. Of a new cellphone every two, Apple competes for your kilobuck.  My pension isn't that good.

[reiyza]

Clarified everything with my teacher today.

-Apparently I was practicing Hanon the wrong way, he said, hanon is not about speed, but is for the dexterity and weight distribution of each finger. Then he showed me variations of each exercise(Surprised as hell).
-Told me never to backtrack completed exercises since were going to study fast. What does he mean by this? And does this work?

And here is his plan for me, To teachers here, specially dcstudio, please take a look at what he planned:

"Your playing ability is good, though there are a lot of flaws in your technique, I can prepare you for conservatory level if you'd like, it'll take you about 3-5 years depending on your discipline. In the first 2 years, you'll be under my guidance where I'll be fixing your bad habits, then after that I'll refer you to a pianist(concert?) in the main city. For now, we'll be focusing on your hanon and czerny, and maybe in 2 or 3 weeks, we'll reach school of velocity(299), and In the meanwhile I'll give you a piece to compensate for the dropped pieces, Bach Inventions No. 8.
After bach, we'll move to mozart, and I'll teach you how to interpret both. One from classical era and one from baroque."



What do you guys think? Teachers, please do leave your opinions.

Thanks.


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@brogers and OUTIN - Interestingly enough, He was sad to tell me to drop all my previously learned pieces. Although he said, I played them quite well without a teacher, He didn't like the technique I was using, too many uneveness he said but he promised me that he'll help me return to it after what he taught me has been layered out.


@indianajo - Actually, 2 hours doesn't cut it for me. If I practiced only for 2 hours, I feel unsatisfied. And yes, I have a job where I take different shifts every 15 days. And it sucks but, I prioritize the piano more than my social life. And about the recordings, It was done straight from the clavinova, It sounded good, when I uploaded it here, it sounded trash, I think it's the media player in the browser that sucks.

[reiyza]

Scratch that invention no. 8, I just now heard it! How in the world am I going to play a fast movement like that! And It's bach! the problem with bach, I don't understand what I'm playing!

My teacher told me not to speed run it, but it's very tempting, It's just two pages!

This indeed is quite a predicament. please help?

[brogers70]

It definitely sounds like your teacher knows what he is doing. Please relax and follow his directions. Learn that invention slowly, just like Hanon or Czerny, focusing on dexterity and weight distribution of the fingers. One nice thing about Bach is that even his fast pieces sound interesting at much slower speeds. So don't be impatient. Learn the Bach slowly; pay attention to how everything feels, the weight passing through your fingers, the position of your wrist, the movements of your arms. When you are rebuilding a flawed technique the whole point (at the beginning) is not so much to focus on the music itself, but on learning the sensations you produce by making the technically correct motions. When you play the first bit of the invention, and end up on the F an octave above where you started, how does it feel to land correctly on your fifth finger? Is your wrist lined up properly, how did your elbow move through that initial phrase. You have to get into the Zen of really paying attention to exactly how everything feels in all your joints, as well as how it sounds. Enjoy this; you are lucky to have such a teacher.

[indianajo]

You're learning the right things now it seems.
In my first year I did Schmitt exercises instead of hanon.  Legato, stacatto, in between.  The in between repetition is something like your exercise to lift one finger at a time. Gaining individual finger control that is what that is about. Speed was not the goal though at the end I was playing some about 150.
JSB Invention #8.  One of my favorites, I play it frequently.  I don't play it fast, about quarter = 108.
If you've been listening to some u-tube hero rip it off, he missed the point.  You can't even listen to the interesting bits that fast.  
 In the Busoni edition, some notes are detached, some are legato.  The different articulation is the art. This when played on harpsichord, the only expression possible was the detachment and connection.  Now we can change volume, which I do, but the detachment and connection make an interesting other dimension.  I was pretty slavish to Busoni's indications, but there are a million other ways to do it not even allowing volume changes.  Maybe your teacher will give you more than one plan to perform it.  
One other  version I do not reccommend is Glenn Gould. I wasted 3 hours pay on that LP Two Part inventions in 1968 and was disappointed that the 2 part inventions I did were better than his: IMHO.  One more reason to hand craft your music.    
Great course of study.  
You know, I didn't listen to the pieces I was studying on internet or record. It wasn't possible or economic in 1960, but there is a benefit to not listening before you are done.   In many cases I developed an individual style that doesn't sound like anybody else  Try it. Learn some pieces without listening to them, even though U-tube is free.     Music is an art where if you are an exact clone of your teacher or the record, you are boring.  

[reiyza]

@indianajo - a quote from bernhard.

Likewise, playing Bach’s Prelude in C in the manner of Glenn Gould, Jacques Loussier, Rosalyn Tureck and Edwin Fisher (to name just four very distinct interpretations) will teach and inform you. Of  course, you should go on and find out your own way.

It's too late, I already listened to a recording of the piece earlier, the glenn gould edition. I actually liked it. Is it actually wrong to listen to a piece before learning it?



@brogers - yes, apparently he told me, with my retained abilities when I was younger, He'll said he'll fix me and is willing to take me as a student teacher for, I dunno, maybe complete beginners(which I'll refuse). Anyway about the invention, I'm currently listening to a recording of glenn gould with a piece in hand, and noticed the shifting of melodies from left hand to right hand, should't this be called a
Fugue rather than an invention? And I'm working on how to divide the sections in manageable segments. Maybe I'll try to fish out the fast alberti bass. Maybe I can complete this invention in 1 week. Haha.

[brogers70]

Fugue vs invention? There is a two-part fugue in the WTC, the fugue in E minor in Book I, so having only two parts does not rule out it's being a fugue. And it is certainly in imitative counterpoint, like a fugue. However, in a standard fugue the second entrance of the subject (called an answer) is in the dominant key, rather than the tonic. But in the invention you are talking about, the initial statements of the subject are both in the tonic (F major), so it fails at least one simple test for being a fugue.

Don't think you have to finish in a week. Not at all. The point is not to learn the piece. The point is to learn the motions that the piece requires. When I was rebuilding my technique, I spent a couple of weeks on the Invention #2 in c minor just playing the subject in one hand, making sure all the articulations were as I wanted them, making sure my arm and wrist positions were correct, especially for higher notes played with 4 or 5 in the RH. Take plenty of time to learn it. It may be that the problems in your technique are not as serious as mine were and that you have less basic revamping and rebuilding that you need to do, but maybe not. The key to this process is patience and enjoying the physical aspects rather than the process of learning lots of great music. A lot of what you post suggests that you are very anxious to "get on with it," knock things off, get them under your belt, keep going. That's excellent most of the time. In this process though, being very slow and patient will, I think, get you farther and faster, in the long run.

[keypeg]

reiyza - short and sweet - Your teacher has offered to give you the skills that you don't have, and the knowledge that you don't have.  You can let go of the reins.  Stop trying to figure out the things that he figured out years before, and teaching yourself, when he is trying to guide you.  Ask questions of your teacher after listening - truly listening and trying to understand to what he has to say.  In music study, listening also entails "doing".  In the manner he says, so that what you discover and learn will come through that activity.  If you have problems or questions, ask your teacher.  Express genuine interest in what he has to say.  If he suggests you look up certain things, do so - immediately.

[keypeg]

In terms of the Invention, perhaps your teacher will explain the structure to you, if he hasn't already.  Yes, there is an interplay of countermelodies.  There are also other tricks which fugues also contained.  Bach wrote these as a means to teach his students and also his children.  You should be able to find out what the structure of a fugue entails by doing some research.  The site Teoria usually has excellent material.  It has a section on musical form.  Here is the subsection on fugues:
https://www.teoria.com/en/tutorials/forms/contrapuntal/04-fugue.php
Here - the Invention
https://www.teoria.com/en/tutorials/forms/contrapuntal/03-invention.php
and the index on forms (all)
https://www.teoria.com/en/tutorials/forms/index.php

[reiyza]

I am now suffering from very slow and painful 60mm hanon exercises.

@brogers - While it's so tempting to quickly finish the invention, it's my first bach, hand independence is a new concept for me, having a hard time deliver the passage fluently(I'm on bars 1-4). Yes, the hand is 

you're asking about the positioning of my arm in playing first two bars?. I believe that it's the intro the 1-3-1-5-1(F1) then 4(F2)-3-2-1, 4-3-2-1, 4-3-2. Apparently my whole forearm moved when reaching from E1 to E2. Although my elbow is slightly inclined outside(why do I feel like what I'm doing is wrong). I now see your point about focusing on the movements instead of finishing it. Thank for the advices and related experiences, you were a big help. Though, I'm a full time closet pianist for now, since I just started to learn the technique instructed to me by my teacher.


@keypeg - yes, I am currently follwing his instructions from the letter, every time I practice, I imagine him beside me and correcting my rhythm(with the help of a metronome) and to strictly follow the fingerings, and yes, I am not looking to self teach anymore since he guided me on how to practice, but due to his very busy schedule(he also teaches in colleges and has piano students in between his lectures), his phone is kinda, "unreachable" most of the time. So I'm just asking here in the forums for some opinions/related experiences, as they say, "try to learn experiences from others".

By the way, thank you for the link you gave, it was extremely helpful in analyzing the piece.

Sorry if you think my posts is reflecting my doubt against my teacher. In fact It's completely the opposite, I consider him as a master now and diligently follwing his advice.(well, except for the solfegios, hate singing, I'd rather play mindless hanon than sing horribly, but I'm studying it.)

[dcstudio]

one of the most talented pianists on this forum has only been playing for 3-4 years--none of us could believe it when he told us.   He told us that he spent 2-3 hours a day doing hanon in the beginning.   He is not just good... he is Chopin Competition good...  as he put it, the exercises "supercharged" his technique.

  maybe he will see this and chime in--but it sure worked for him.

[reiyza]

@dcstudio - wow, 3-4 years, maybe he's a prodigy to be able to develop that fast. On hanon exercises, maybe it really depends on how a teacher uses it. 2-3 hours of hanon? My teacher stated that hanon should not be used excessively and said that I should only practice it for 15 mins(which I don't follow, but don't tell him, ). In all honesty, I really don't think 15 minutes would do the job, I extend it to 1/hr per session(since it's only 60mm; no harm done ). my teacher also said, his goal(as for now) is not speed development, and is rather for technique development. I think he's goind to use school of velocity for my speed development.

My teacher doesn't regard hanon as the key to everything, he said that teaching has now been based on what technique the student is having problems with or lacking, and not scurrying through an entire book fast.

I'm really curious about the member you stated, I wonder how his teacher let him use hanon.?



--------------------------------------------

Oh and to correct my post about the invention, the hand jump was from F, and not from E. sorry i'm having hard time using letters, since I was taught in solmization.

[tenk]

I'll add a few cents regarding the Hanon, specifically the part about "raised fingers", that I haven't seen discussed yet here.

There are two parts to this. The first is that while you may raise the finger high, you must not use tension to bring the finger down onto the key. Your finger should fall onto the key in this manner -- hold your hand out in front of you, fingers straight with your palm facing your face. Now close your hand by allowing your fingertips to fall to the base of your palm. Slowly add a bit more of your own intent to that motion i.e. work with gravity. That's the motion you want. It is a far more natural motion that treating your fingers like mini-hammers or pistons to be pumped up and down on the keys.

The second part is what this motion allows you to do, which is fill a concert hall with a sound that is not harsh. In many cases you will see people at all levels try to "push" forte through their fingertips, and not allow it to fall with the weight of their arms, resulting in tension and a harsh tone. If you're going to publicly perform in a hall of any size, you need to be able to generate the volume needed to reach the entire audience while not sacrificing your tone quality or increasing tension to do it.

So, where does Hanon fit in? When you play an exercise, you'll do it three times. Once, hands together somewhere between forte and fortissimo at a comfortable pace (65-75 bpm). Focus on generating a full tone with no tension, let your fingers fall with your arm weight to fill the room. Don't think of it as playing "loud" as this will just lead to tension and harsh tone, but focus on a full tone. The second time, do the same thing but left hand only. The third time, play hands together at mf-to-f, and near the limit of your tempo that allows you to play evenly and in time.

Many times we focus on trying to get just the right pianissimo, but we never learned how to generate a proper full fortissimo, resulting in a lack of dynamic range at best, and tension and performance mistakes at worst.

[keypeg]

@Reiyza, I went through several years of lessons as an adult student on another instrument, before I discovered things about effective teaching and effective practising.  They are quite powerful principles, which cut the time you need to reach things skill-wise by a fraction - in terms of how many weeks, months, or years you need to see the change.  But it is a different way of doing, thinking, and being at the piano, which we don't necessarily grasp right away.  We will have the mentality and ways we have always had, and see it through those eyes.  My impression is that your teacher is teaching you along those ways, as one would a serious student.  Ok, about 15 min. vs. 1 hour.

When you work on these things, you focus on whatever you should be focusing on - it could be a loose wrist, a way of putting the finger down and releasing - and you keep that focus the whole time being in the moment.  One thing I learned back then is that we spent 90% of the time not being in the moment with our playing.  If you truly work this way, then 15 minutes can be exhausting.  But if you are more scattered and less attentive, then 1 - 2 hours straight is doable but also much less productive.

The effects of these things are incremental.  You might not notice much the day you do the work, but after a few days or weeks, you do notice a difference.  1 - 2 hours are doable if you spread them out, always being focused completely for 15 minutes or so - then step away or do something else.  However, realize that your nervous system has to create the networks, usually while you sleep, so this cannot be forced.  It is a process.

Maybe somebody else can explain it better.

[dcstudio]

@dcstudio - wow, 3-4 years, maybe he's a prodigy to be able to develop that fast.

yes, his results are not typical of course...  but the hanon was a part of his development. 

[anamnesis]

I'll add a few cents regarding the Hanon, specifically the part about "raised fingers", that I haven't seen discussed yet here.

There are two parts to this. The first is that while you may raise the finger high, you must not use tension to bring the finger down onto the key. Your finger should fall onto the key in this manner -- hold your hand out in front of you, fingers straight with your palm facing your face. Now close your hand by allowing your fingertips to fall to the base of your palm. Slowly add a bit more of your own intent to that motion i.e. work with gravity. That's the motion you want. It is a far more natural motion that treating your fingers like mini-hammers or pistons to be pumped up and down on the keys.

The second part is what this motion allows you to do, which is fill a concert hall with a sound that is not harsh. In many cases you will see people at all levels try to "push" forte through their fingertips, and not allow it to fall with the weight of their arms, resulting in tension and a harsh tone. If you're going to publicly perform in a hall of any size, you need to be able to generate the volume needed to reach the entire audience while not sacrificing your tone quality or increasing tension to do it.

So, where does Hanon fit in? When you play an exercise, you'll do it three times. Once, hands together somewhere between forte and fortissimo at a comfortable pace (65-75 bpm). Focus on generating a full tone with no tension, let your fingers fall with your arm weight to fill the room. Don't think of it as playing "loud" as this will just lead to tension and harsh tone, but focus on a full tone. The second time, do the same thing but left hand only. The third time, play hands together at mf-to-f, and near the limit of your tempo that allows you to play evenly and in time.

Many times we focus on trying to get just the right pianissimo, but we never learned how to generate a proper full fortissimo, resulting in a lack of dynamic range at best, and tension and performance mistakes at worst.

One issue is that, this specific action of the fingers needs to work in the context of the rhythm of the upper arm, which is much harder to experience for most starting out because articulation only plays a portion (but not unimportant) of this action and rhythm.

Moreover, to accomplish not using excessive tension, one takes advantage of tenodesis grasp for some of the finger action, which is actively controlled from the muscles upstream. 

[reiyza]

@dcstudio - well that's one way to dispell the disbelief regarding hanon is useless. Since almost 80%(I think) of pianists have used or have had a history with hanon.

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@tenk - yes, my teacher quite emphasized on striking the keys at full weight, always forte, that's why even though I'm practicing exercises very slowly, I get hand tension halfway through. (Though I do, blame myself for overpracticing hanon, instead of following the 15 mins warm up advice by my teacher. )

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

@keypeg - yes, my teacher recommended that I practice my assignments for 1 hour each day, well, since I don't have any social life and no responsibilities except from the 9 hour work, I have the whole day to do literally nothing, so I put all of my free time in the piano, the problem is, I have 3-4/day practice, 7-8 hours on days off, with the assignments that I was given, I really don't know how to divide the time between subjects.
And My Usual Practice routine seems like this, I am very consistent everyday:

Note: 1 session = 20 mins + 5 mins break = 25 mins:

1. 1st hour - I go for 2 sessions of hanon and the remainder of the 10 mins for applying variations.
2. Next 1 hour and 30 mins - Can go up to 4 sessions of czerny 599 - since my teacher is like a hawk, noticing everything, from fingering, wrist height, finger height, eveness, rhythm, phrasing which drives me nuts each lesson, I discovered, I can't just plow through each exercise, It sometimes takes me 2-3 sessions in a single czerny etude, which is so frustrating at times.
3. Next 1 hour or may extend - The bach invention #8. I allot 2 sessions for practicing new bars(LH,RH, Both hands) then I allot the remainder of the sessions in joining the bars that I practiced, though It'll sound like trash today, Interestingly, it gets cleaner the next day but not perfect


--------------------------------------------------------------------------

@anamnesis - is that also from the book from of abby whiteside? or from thomas mark's "the pianist's body".

It is quite condescending.

[poj_fangirl]

Personally, I don't like teachers who boost their students' hopes too much by exaggerating on their skill, but I don't know how good you are, so he may be actually truthful. Keep in mind that your teacher may be talking about your overall ability (sight reading, theory exercises, technique and stuff) and not just your playing skill. I'd say that you should give him another few weeks, and judge more on his experience and how well you're progressing with him.

[keypeg]

Personally, I don't like teachers who boost their students' hopes too much by exaggerating on their skill....

The OP had told the teacher he was a beginner, and he was told that he was not a beginner.  I imagine that you read the discussion and listened to the OP's samples before posting.  The repertoire in his recording is not beginner material, and his manner of playing is also not that of a beginner.  So to me the teacher was stating something factual - that he is not a beginner.  I don't see this as "boosting hopes" (and there is something fatalistic and negative about that term.  His teacher also told him that he had weaknesses in technique and reading.

Keep in mind that your teacher may be talking about your overall ability (sight reading, theory exercises, technique and stuff) and not just your playing skill.

We have that in the opening post - weakness in reading and technique - which the teacher immediately aimed to address.

I guess what makes me ill at ease is the "boosting hopes" opening, because usually that is told to somebody who is in a bad state and is doomed, and you don't want anyone "boosting his hope" when things are in fact quite grim.  When I started as an adult I heard that kind of language too often, and it can do things to your confidence and what you think you can achieve.

To my ears, the OP sounded pretty good, and his new teacher seemed to be giving solid guidance based on what he observed.

[reiyza]

To be honest, I really didn't know how to react to fangirl's post, It was a mixed feeling of uneasiness and sadness. Since I am a very negative thinker in nature, statements like that actually affects me In a way that I keep thinking about it alot.

@keypeg - thank you for your sincerity, I really appreciated it, and it boosted my self esteem a and teacher-student relationship trust.

[keypeg]

Reiyza, I missed this response to me:

.... the problem is, I have 3-4/day practice, 7-8 hours on days off, with the assignments that I was given, I really don't know how to divide the time between subjects.
And My Usual Practice routine seems like this, I am very consistent everyday:

Note: 1 session = 20 mins + 5 mins break = 25 mins:

1. 1st hour - I go for 2 sessions of hanon and the remainder of the 10 mins for applying variations.
2. Next 1 hour and 30 mins - Can go up to 4 sessions of czerny 599 - since my teacher is like a hawk, noticing everything, from fingering, wrist height, finger height, eveness, rhythm, phrasing which drives me nuts each lesson, I discovered, I can't just plow through each exercise, It sometimes takes me 2-3 sessions in a single czerny etude, which is so frustrating at times.
3. Next 1 hour or may extend - The bach invention #8. I allot 2 sessions for practicing new bars(LH,RH, Both hands) then I allot the remainder of the sessions in joining the bars that I practiced, though It'll sound like trash today, Interestingly, it gets cleaner the next day but not perfect.

Here is a paradigm shift to this - an extra dimension - which I only discovered after several years of music study. 

When you practice any of these things, you can aim to practice things within them.  Shift your focus.  For example, taking the list of what your teacher watches for, when you practice new bars - say 3 or 4 maximum, maybe less if they're tricky:
- a focus on the correct notes, with good movement going there, fingering
- a focus on evenness - and if something promotes or prohibits evenness, then on that thing
- a focus on phrasing
- a focus on wrist
- a focus on.....
Each "focus" might be 10 min. maximum because it is quickly tiring.  I find that when I focus on one thing, I started noticing things, and maybe it brings about other things I'll want to focus on.  It also becomes discovery, self-knowledge, greater understanding of the piece, of theory etc. 

I don't know if I can bring this across / make it make sense.

[quantum]

Reiyza, I missed this response to me:Here is a paradigm shift to this - an extra dimension - which I only discovered after several years of music study.  

When you practice any of these things, you can aim to practice things within them.  Shift your focus.  For example, taking the list of what your teacher watches for, when you practice new bars - say 3 or 4 maximum, maybe less if they're tricky:
- a focus on the correct notes, with good movement going there, fingering
- a focus on evenness - and if something promotes or prohibits evenness, then on that thing
- a focus on phrasing
- a focus on wrist
- a focus on.....
Each "focus" might be 10 min. maximum because it is quickly tiring.  I find that when I focus on one thing, I started noticing things, and maybe it brings about other things I'll want to focus on.  It also becomes discovery, self-knowledge, greater understanding of the piece, of theory etc.  

I don't know if I can bring this across / make it make sense.

Excellent advice.  

Focusing on specific goals to practice is far more rewarding and less time consuming than clocking in 10 mins on hanon, 10 mins on Invention 8, 10 mins on xyz.  

since my teacher is like a hawk, noticing everything, from fingering, wrist height, finger height, eveness, rhythm, phrasing which drives me nuts each lesson, I discovered, I can't just plow through each exercise, It sometimes takes me 2-3 sessions in a single czerny etude, which is so frustrating at times.

reiyza, it is more than that.  Your teacher is training you how to think, how to evaluate your own playing.  What to take away from this is that you need to develop an awareness of what you are doing, and whether what you did met the goals you set for yourself.  Learn from how your teacher observes your playing. 

[reiyza]

@keypeg - I will apply your advice in my practice session in the next few days and monitor my progress. To summarize what you've said, always establish specific goals when practicing. Correct? So if i focus on getting the right notes, rhythm an dynamics are excluded in the session? Correct? Or is it cumulative, get the notes, get the notes then the rhythm, and get the notes, rhythm and dynamics?


@quantum - it certainly sucks, the way my teacher made me repeat problem areas of a specific etude numerous times. It feels like the whole session is focused on that and my teacher won't move on until ab etude is played satisfactory. Everytime I practice, I imagine my teacher nagging at me when making mistakes, forcing me to polish the etudes very diligently. My problem is, the deeper the etudes go, the more dynamics I encounter, how do you crescendo and maintain constant tempo.? Or applying dim. Properly. The bad thing is, I was going to ask my teacher today for dynamcs. But he he went AWOL on me.!


Damn that teacher, went awol on me today!(full story in this link, you may find it long, but please do take a look.)
https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php?topic=60858.0




I'll take the other student's challenge(as said in the above link) and will try to finish the no. 8 this week. I'll post a recording when I'm done, I'll use chang's practice method for the invention.

[dcstudio]

Excellent advice.  

Keypeg knows her stuff... 

[keypeg]

@keypeg - I will apply your advice in my practice session in the next few days and monitor my progress. To summarize what you've said, always establish specific goals when practicing. Correct? So if i focus on getting the right notes, rhythm an dynamics are excluded in the session? Correct? Or is it cumulative, get the notes, get the notes then the rhythm, and get the notes, rhythm and dynamics?

I'll respond privately in a PM as well so that I can share some things more fully.

My first ever lessons were on a different instrument, and as an adult.  For the first few years I did the usual thing: practise the piece trying to make it sound right, fix mistakes and weaknesses, maybe go after a section that wasn't as good.  I perceived the music as a whole, as music.  The second view that I'm trying to impart was something I first "invented" partially because of problems, and later learned that musicians actually do this, and that some few teachers teach it.  It is a paradigm shift, because your view of what music is and how it is practised changes completely.

You can take apart the elements of music, and put them together again.  One example is when something is practised in a different rhythm, or notes are left out and then put back in, to get a better handle on the structure.  Another is for example if you practice the last beat of a measure, then the beat before it and moving into that last beat, then the beat before that, merging into those you have practised (for a specific purpose).  It's a totally different world from "getting these measures to sound right".

Suppose for example that you start off wanting to get a phrase to come out, but it's not working.  Then you see that you want to swell the notes from louder to softer again, but in one section one note bursts out louder than the others and spoils it.  Then you discover it's because of something tricky in how your hand has to move between two beats.  You might then work on how to make the hand move smoothly - what is stopping the smooth movement - what to do about it.  You might work with those two beats and that movement.  You work on those two beats and that movement for a few minutes each day.  Then you add the notes before that and merge into the practiced movement.  Then you add the notes afterward and patch it all together into a smooth thing.  When you finally play the whole thing, that section will be smooth, and maybe the best part of what you did.  But in the process you have moved far away from "creating a lovely phrase".  You turned it into "moving the hand smoothly between two measures" - a purely physical thing coupled with ear.  That is the paradigm shift.

I have something bookmarked which I am using with my teacher's blessings.  I am learning to play a Chopin etude with the ultimate aim for half speed, to develop a more flexible technique.  "Barton" has created a video for an approach to one tricky section.  At full speed and in the real way it sounds like this:

=294
Barton has developed a series of exercises which he is sharing with people who asked for help.  What follows are versions of the piece which are no longer like the original.  He groups two fingers together, then two different fingers. He changes rhythms.

Meanwhile -- what he has here is a kind of "summary".  You might practice any of these rhythms and groupings slowly, for only 1 or 2 measures at a time, observing and adjusting.  This video is a good example of paradigm shifts in practising.  We can come up with our own.

[keypeg]

I was concerned about the awol story which I read.  However this develops, one part at least rings through and you can use it - namely that he saw strengths in your playing, its advanced nature, as well as specific weaknesses which can be strengthened by addressing them - thus bringing your playing to a new level, and greater ease.  This you can use and hold on to regardless of what happens.  You need to communicate regarding that incident.

[quantum]

it certainly sucks, the way my teacher made me repeat problem areas of a specific etude numerous times. It feels like the whole session is focused on that and my teacher won't move on until ab etude is played satisfactory. Everytime I practice, I imagine my teacher nagging at me when making mistakes, forcing me to polish the etudes very diligently. My problem is, the deeper the etudes go, the more dynamics I encounter, how do you crescendo and maintain constant tempo.? Or applying dim. Properly. The bad thing is, I was going to ask my teacher today for dynamcs. But he he went AWOL on me.!

I think you need to communicate with your teacher to establish what the goals are - for that particular lesson.  Knowing when you have achieved a goal will boost your morale.  There needs to be a point where you can say: I have achieved what I set out for today's lesson, it is not perfect, but more work can continue tomorrow to build on what I have achieved today. 

You also need to take into perspective how you are thinking about the instructions you are getting.  Is your impetus to stop your teacher from nagging, or are you driven by the possibility of learning new stuff and getting better at piano?  Imagine using your new knowledge, if your teacher was not present in the room with you, how would you apply it?  Would you just let stuff slide, even though you know of better techniques to get the work done?

[reiyza]

Sorry for the late reply, I have previously learned contemporary pieces but now it's forgotten(they're simple and not as hard as the classical counterparts), and I want to relearn them using the new technique and practice methods? Can I ask here if I can learn other pieces side by side with the invention no 8 or should I stick to the assignments given to me? 

I recently printed out a book 1 of mikrokosmos and am using it for sight reading practice for just 10-15 mins each day. Is this good.?


@keypeg - I'm currently at a level where in each practice, I'm always striving to reach perfect note accuracy, rhythm and fingering. Then when that is established, I fix the dynamics. The practice methods you've shared seems good to me, I'll try to apply it to trouble segments. I'll try to PM you a video of me playing. Please do evaluate it when you have the time. I have yet to try to evaluate my own movements. But I am trying to maintain the strict hands raised and using the fingers as hammers concept that my teacher imparted with me(he stated that all finger drop weight should be equal).


@quantum - yes, I communicated it with my teacher, but he has yet to reply, he have left me hanging on hanon 4-8 and czerny 10-45. I really liked the way my teacher is nagging me through each etude. Previously, I was just plowing through the exercises/etudes without proper use of fingering, and the sound that I was making was quite sloppy or, jerky. Now I am forced to follow the teacher's slow tempo where I can comfortable read the notes and maintain proper rhythm and hit proper fingerings.

[quantum]

I don't see anything wrong with taking up some material for sight reading for your daily practice.  Just make sure the material is not overwhelming to you.  

For sight reading, I would recommend getting a hymn book with traditional SATB 4 part hymns.  If you haven't played hymns before, they will feel a bit different than written piano music, but there is a lot to learn from them.  Things like harmonic progressions, phrases, modulations, etc.  It will help you in sight reading music written for piano, in that you will be able to recognize patterns in more complex music and enable you to break down the problem into more digestible parts.  Old hymn books can be had for very little at used book stores or yard sales.  

Start off by reading/playing one part at a time: soprano by itself, alto by itself, an so on.  Stay with single line parts for now, and see how that goes.  Don't worry about playing it as written at the moment.  A lot of learning can be extracted by a single page hymn.  You might want to ask your teacher to guide you through other ideas of using hymns to practice your sight reading.

The good thing about hymns is that they are a good warm up to the Bach chorales. In the future you may be interested in playing some.  

When you are sight reading, make whatever material you are working on musical.  Don't just plop out notes without regard to touch or phrasing.  For example, if you are sight reading a beautiful melody - make it sound beautiful. 

[reiyza]

@quantum - Musically speaking, the mikrokosmos is no good? I get the feeling it's worse than the sound of bach when played choppy, though, I've been just using it as a sight reading exercise, so no big deal. Some recommendations by you? Relatively easy pieces.? Just for sight reading. I have the danhauser but no bass clefs, since I'm very weak at reading bass cleff notes.

[quantum]

How are you finding the mikrokosmos book 1 in terms of challenges?  

Take the suggestions on hymns I made in the previous post and look here:
https://openhymnal.org

You could try these for starters, but do explore the selections on the site:
https://openhymnal.org/Pdf/Of_The_Fathers_Love_Begotten-Divinum_Mysterium-Corde_Natus.pdf
https://openhymnal.org/Pdf/On_Jordans_Bank_The_Baptists_Cry-Puer_Nobis_Nascitur.pdf

Start with single line only, don't play as written yet.  Melody (the soprano) is the stems up voice on the top staff.  Since you mention challenges in bass clef, practice the bass line - stems down on bottom staff.  

[reiyza]

@quantum - I'd say, since most of the exercises are 4/4 time signature. At 50bpm is my comfort zone, as i progress, I am encoutering diffuclties with tied notes. The RH notes seems to be doing pretty well. On the LH, it's manageable but it could be better. So that's the trick to sight reading? By reading 1 cleff at a time?

I'll try this out later, since I've just finished my routine.

[quantum]

So that's the trick to sight reading? By reading 1 cleff at a time?

Actually no, it isn't.  It's just a step to get you acquainted with sight reading hymns.  Small steps, with reasonable goals.

When you gain more facility at sight reading, you will actually be doing many things at the same time.  Instead of reading one item at a time, you will read groups of items at a time. 

[reiyza]

I'm going to revive this thread since it's mine. To avoid spam. Please take time to read.

It's my second session today, done the usual, hanon with variations, czerny, and the bach.
I'm beginning to hate hanon, since it's hard to keep the forearm relaxed while raising the fingers high. Then he said never to sight read czerny again, he told me to study each etude perfectly.

Then there's that d*mn bach, the substitute teacher totally destroyed it by forcing me to learn the whole piece in 1 week. I formed hand memory, and it sucked, I couldn't play the first 2 bars very slowly, about 40mm or less. Unfortunately guys, I will not be able to post a recording of the invention anytime soon. Sorry.

He corrected my practice routine. He said Never do hanon for more than 15 minutes, and allot remaining time to 2 czerny etudes and/or bach.. Since I practice 3 hours a day, practicing bach slowly and czerny only will be painful as h*ll.

How can I play bach slowly, I couldn't even feel the music or rhythm?







-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


@quantum - unfortunately, I got a peek of your hymns, and It was not my type. Thank you for the suggestion anyway, I think i'll stick to mikrokosmos for the meantime.

[brogers70]

My suggestion is that you definitely not practice three hours per day. You are learning a new technique. The most important thing is that your brain consistently get the experience of playing correctly - relaxed, good position, good sound production, and that it *not* get the experience of playing using your old habits. It's almost impossible to be vigilant for three hours to be sure you are not falling into old habits. So I'd say practice no more than an hour and then let your brain process the experience of playing correctly while you do something else. Once the good habits are established and the bad ones gone, you can go back to practicing more. In the meanwhile, you can use the extra time not devoted to sitting at the piano to listening carefully to music, working on music theory, doing ear training; there are all sorts of productive things to do.

As for slow Bach and Czerny, for both of them you can try to get interest and pleasure out of concentrating on the physical sensation of playing them correctly and slowly. And, at least for Bach, you can concentrate on the lines, imagine you are a vocalist or an oboist or a violinist making a beautiful sound from the lines. In any case, don't think about them as pieces to learn but as experiences to feed your brain.

[reiyza]

I think It'll be hard to adjust to 1hr/day. I've tried the new practice routine, I honestly have a hard time following the teachers advice, instead of 15 mins hanon, I was doing 30. I believe that 15 mins hanon is ineffective. As for bach, with the help of a metronome @ 35mm, I was able to play the first few bars fluently and slowly, problem is, It felt like I'm focusing on rhythm too much, I really didn't notice my movements/technique.

Have a look brogers 1 hour(max 2 hours) - devoted to piano
Then the remaining 1 hour, for sight reading theories/drills by howard richmann(super sight reading secrets) with the help of danhauser.

[quantum]

Agree with brogers70.  Somehow I get the impression that you are not under sufficient workload that warrants 3 hours of daily practice.  Three hours is similar to what a university music student would need to do.  IMO, you need to work at improving the efficiency of your practice sessions.  I somewhat recall you saying you have a day job.  How do you fit your job, plus 3 hours daily practice, plus everything non music related, without being exhausted. 

I believe that 15 mins hanon is ineffective.

Can you elaborate.  What are you not able to accomplish in 15 mins. 

How can I play bach slowly, I couldn't even feel the music or rhythm?

In order to feel rhythm  when playing slowly you subdivide. 

If you were assigning quarter = 1 beat, you might subdivide to eighth, sixteenth, or even thirtysecond to one beat. 

[briansaddleback]

You barely finished op 25-5 meaning you're saying you can play this piece which you stated in January 1 month ago you didn't even start it? What is your definition of finishing? I started 25-5 one year ago and I have not finished or even barely finished.

[reiyza]

@quantum - my teacher is quite impressed with the  3 hr practice routine. He mentioned doing 3hrs is a good thing for me. Yes I have a job. And it's both physically and mentally exhausting. After 9 hour work, I take a 2-3 hours rest then I play the piano(and I'm really glad I got a digital, which allows me to play anytime of the day.).
i have an Idea, what if I divide the 3 hour session into 1hr session at different times of the day, would that work?
And yes I did mention entering a university to my teacher, thought he stated "I won't rush you, please do your studies as your time allows, do not think that I am pressuring you to study".
the statement above is quite contradicting with the teacher agreeing with the 3 hour practice routine, is it not?
subdivide?Please do explain more, should that mean that I increase the MM and modify the time signature?
hanon? it so strange, my hands dont feel worked out after just 15 mins of hanon. Previously I have been doing it for an hour and it feels like my hands are stretched, I don't get that feeling with just 15 mins of hanon, so i try to extend it by 30. Though in that 15 min study, I can manage to do the exercise at the correct slow tempo, but having a hard time raising fingers high without forming stress at the arms.(my teacher wanted finger-weight used)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
@riansaddleback[b/] - the etude 25 no 5. I am only able to play it shortly as 20 seconds at the indicated tempo no expressions added. Finishing a piece meant to me as playing a piece with 95% accuracy and no stuttering with dynamics and correct tempo. Maybe I'm assuming too much the accuracy, since I'm a loser when it comes to piece memorization.
Oh and by the way, i dropped the 25-5 at the request of mt teacher.

[quantum]

i have an Idea, what if I divide the 3 hour session into 1hr session at different times of the day, would that work?

That is a much more reasonable proposition if you insist on practicing 3 hours a day. 

On a related note, there is another recent thread on here that you may wish to read:
https://www.pianostreet.com/smf/index.php?topic=60893.0

And yes I did mention entering a university to my teacher, thought he stated "I won't rush you, please do your studies as your time allows, do not think that I am pressuring you to study".
the statement above is quite contradicting with the teacher agreeing with the 3 hour practice routine, is it not?

IMO, such a statement is not contradictory.  It sounds as if your teacher has the bigger picture in mind.  The key words seem to be "as your time allows."  Three hours is impressive for your given commitments, however you also need to consider how much it impacts other elements in your life.  You also need to consider if you can do the same amount of work with less practice time. 

subdivide?Please do explain more, should that mean that I increase the MM and modify the time signature?

Subdivision is about using smaller note values to feel beats, as opposed to larger values such as that indicated in the time signature.  Subdividing is not about changing the time signature.  When you play at a slower tempo and it is too slow to feel the main beat with accuracy, subdivision allows you to use faster beats while maintaining the same tempo. 

For example in 4/4 time, quarter = 30.  You could subdivide into eighth note = 60, or sixteenth note = 120.

As a math analogy think of these fractions: 1/2, 2/4, 4/8, 8/16, 16/32.  They are all the same value using different combinations of numbers. 

hanon? it so strange, my hands dont feel worked out after just 15 mins of hanon. Previously I have been doing it for an hour and it feels like my hands are stretched, I don't get that feeling with just 15 mins of hanon, so i try to extend it by 30. Though in that 15 min study, I can manage to do the exercise at the correct slow tempo, but having a hard time raising fingers high without forming stress at the arms.(my teacher wanted finger-weight used)

You should aim to feel right about playing the instant you sit down at the piano to play.  If you are somehow waiting 30 mins for your playing mechanism to feel correct, there is something else going on that needs to be addressed.  Bring this topic up with your teacher.   If you are using good technique, you should immediately feel like you are playing with correct motions the moment you start to play. 

This may be your body reverting to muscle memory and bad habits, somewhat fighting with your new knowledge of technique.  If it is, breaking your practice into shorter, more frequent sessions could be of benefit.  You should aim to apply proper technique and resist fallback on bad habits at the onset of every session.

[reiyza]

The thread you provided was quite useful. So that's why some pieces that seemed like garbage today, sounds more clear the next day. Still, I feel quite constricted with the new practice method I devised(as per request by my teacher)

So 3 hours a day, divided into 3 sessions (maybe 2 on working days), it would look like this:
On working days: Approx 1 and a Half Hour each.
1st session - immediately after waking up = 15 minutes hanon followed by 2 czerny etudes
in an hour. (yes only 2 etudes, that was the instruction given to me. But it feels, somewhat short )
2nd session - after work and a short 2 hour sleep(varies) = 15 minutes hanon followed by 35mm bach(focusing on pure forte, and stable rhythm.)

On days of or long free time, I'm at a loss here, I usually practice 5-7 hours(5-10 min. breaks included) on days off, but now with the limited assignments. I don't know how to structure it.

IMO, such a statement is not contradictory.  It sounds as if your teacher has the bigger picture in mind.  The key words seem to be "as your time allows."  Three hours is impressive for your given commitments, however you also need to consider how much it impacts other elements in your life.  You also need to consider if you can do the same amount of work with less practice time. 

Err.. social life suffers considerably, if I have any that is. I really suck at my social life since I'm more like an introverted kind of person. And work related assignments are usually light and can be finished in just 2-3 hours. I'm actually shortening my night's sleep(about 3-5 hours) to accommodate my practice routine, I really need to be consistent here.

About subdividing - Now it's clear to me. Thanks for the effort to elaborate it for me.

About Hanon's Ineffectiveness - I will bring this up to my teacher since I'm adjusting to shortened hanon practice times. Since I previously go for the usual 1 hr hanon. About the bad habit, I really can't tell whether I am reverting to it. Every hanon practice, I always recall what my teacher said to me.
"Forearms must be free of tension, playing should be done using full finger weight to produce full tone even for the 4-5 fingers, please do not focus on dexterity, as your finger dexterity is good."
-With this in mind, whenever I play hanon and feel like my forearm is tensing up, I consciously make an effort to relax it while lifting fingers high as to obtain full tone(it is only lifted as high as my hand allows.), but in doing so, I am missing notes and the rhythm, It's kind of frustrating. Is this good or bad?

[indianajo]

This "lift fingers high for full tone" recommendation is news to me.  My teacher never said that, and I keep my fingers in contact with the keys at all times I am not jumping around to a new place.  
I understand some people pound down on the piano, but my piano is loud enough as is where is, in fact I have a lot of books and furniture in the room to damp down the brightness some. Good pianos have thin soundboards and pass all the frequencies right out. I bought the 1982 Sohmer because of the bright enough tone.   The 1941 Steinway 40 has fabric covered holes in the front to let the sound out at the player.  
I'm also of the opinion that impact causes joint damage, at least it pounded the cartledge out of my knees due to the impact of USAR required running in combat boots.  Fortunately due to my teacher's conservative methods, causing no impact,  I have no arthritis or pain in the joints of the hands age 65.  When I do jump around quickly, I try to land softly and then push the key down.  Evenness of tone from all fingers is my goal, except finger 5 RH gets pushed down harder a lot because usually that is where the melody is.  The melody usually should be emphasized, IMHO.  Finger 5 emphasis is not a natural movement, it is a movement learned through 58 years of practice. 

[brogers70]

This "lift fingers high for full tone" recommendation is news to me.  My teacher never said that, and I keep my fingers in contact with the keys at all times I am not jumping around to a new place.  
I understand some people pound down on the piano, but my piano is loud enough as is where is, in fact I have a lot of books and furniture in the room to damp down the brightness some. Good pianos have thin soundboards and pass all the frequencies right out. I bought the 1982 Sohmer because of the bright enough tone.   The 1941 Steinway 40 has fabric covered holes in the front to let the sound out at the player.  
I'm also of the opinion that impact causes joint damage, at least it pounded the cartledge out of my knees due to the impact of USAR required running in combat boots.  Fortunately due to my teacher's conservative methods, causing no impact,  I have no arthritis or pain in the joints of the hands age 65.  When I do jump around quickly, I try to land softly and then push the key down.  Evenness of tone from all fingers is my goal, except finger 5 RH gets pushed down harder a lot because usually that is where the melody is.  The melody usually should be emphasized, IMHO.  Finger 5 emphasis is not a natural movement, it is a movement learned through 58 years of practice. 

The "lift fingers high for full tone" business is not intended to be the way you play the piano. It's a stepping stone to (1) teaching the brain to  control each finger as independently as the anatomy will allow (2) learning to use *as little* force as possible in producing the sound. When the teacher says that thing about full tone with the "full weight of the finger" that means, as much as possible to avoid using active muscle contraction to strike the key and to just let the finger fall on to the key with its own weight, as relaxed as possible. It has nothing to do with smashing the fingers down from a great height, damaging joints and cartilage in the process. My teacher put me through the same thing when I was revising my technique, but it's just a transition to help you learn how it feels ton control the fingers separately and to produce a good sound with as little muscular force as possible. Once you've done that for a while, you end up going back to playing with the fingers closer to the keys, and with adding back a certain amount of muscle contraction in striking the keys. It seems to me that there are many things teachers tell you to do which are not meant to be the final way in which you play, but are exercises to isolate one sensation or one particular movement or skill that will not be used in isolation once your technique is in good shape.

[reiyza]

Guys.. Please, I think the lifting of fingers high is intended for hanon only as my teacher said, well, It's in  the instruction at the start of the book.

@indianajo - Unfortunately, there are no available grands to play with as of the moment. But the yamaha upright where I'm being taught at, has very nice action, a little out of tune, but very nice.

@brogers - You sound like how my teacher is telling me how to do exercises. He really emphasized on how important it is to produce full tone evenly. Do you also live in the PH?

@quantum - I was mistaken, apparently, my teacher noticed me using the correct technique from the get-go(hanon exercises), and he stated that I was already using the correct technique. It was just a symptom of paranoia. And about Structuring Practice Times he told me that it varies among people and I can use what I think is best for me, he remarked that Dividing practice sessions throughout the day is far more effective than 3 hours straight

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Attached a recording of Invention no 8. with my teacher guiding me(played on the yamaha upright but practiced on a clavinova).

The recording could be cleaner but, as you all know, my nervousness kills the accuracy of the notes.

Please, do enjoy criticizing the recording. But have mercy on me.

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After that, my teacher was happy that I was able to learn the piece in 3 weeks, but in all honesty, I think it took too long to learn, my teacher is acting psychotic again.

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Got assigned 2 new pieces to learn.

Mozart's Piano Sonata K.545
Bach Invention No. 1

[quantum]

The "lift fingers high for full tone" business is not intended to be the way you play the piano. It's a stepping stone to (1) teaching the brain to  control each finger as independently as the anatomy will allow (2) learning to use *as little* force as possible in producing the sound. When the teacher says that thing about full tone with the "full weight of the finger" that means, as much as possible to avoid using active muscle contraction to strike the key and to just let the finger fall on to the key with its own weight, as relaxed as possible. It has nothing to do with smashing the fingers down from a great height, damaging joints and cartilage in the process. My teacher put me through the same thing when I was revising my technique, but it's just a transition to help you learn how it feels ton control the fingers separately and to produce a good sound with as little muscular force as possible. Once you've done that for a while, you end up going back to playing with the fingers closer to the keys, and with adding back a certain amount of muscle contraction in striking the keys. It seems to me that there are many things teachers tell you to do which are not meant to be the final way in which you play, but are exercises to isolate one sensation or one particular movement or skill that will not be used in isolation once your technique is in good shape.

Absolutely, yes! 

In addition, lifting fingers has the benefit of naturally forming the optimal skeletal alignment of the hand and arm.  It may not be obvious at first, but over time one will come to realize that positioning the hand in a certain way both facilitates the lifting of fingers but also leads to ease and efficiency of the playing mechanism.  One of my teachers presented this technique to me, and I assure you from personal experience, it works!

I think the lifting of fingers high is intended for hanon only as my teacher said, well, It's in  the instruction at the start of the book.

Exercises are not things that are studied in isolation.  They are studied in order to help with some aspect of playing real music.  You don't leave the knowledge learned from exercises behind when you go to play real music.  Eventually, when you are ready and when the technique is applicable, your teacher will ask you to apply the techniques learned in these exercises to real music.  Don't presume that lifting fingers is just for Hanon, this is only a small step.

Attached a recording of Invention no 8. with my teacher guiding me(played on the yamaha upright but practiced on a clavinova).

It sounds like you are making good progress.  I like your consistent tempo and the sense of articulation you bring to the piece.  Accuracy is important, but it isn't everything.  You made a few note slips but you kept going on, which is excellent. 

I'm actually shortening my night's sleep(about 3-5 hours) to accommodate my practice routine, I really need to be consistent here.

This is not good.  You won't gain much by shortening your sleep.  There is more to practicing piano then spending time at the instrument.  You need to give your brain rest and time to absorb the things you are learning.  A balance of time spent resting is important.