No guarantees ?

[m1469]

I just came off the piano bench to post this topic, realizing that there are probably not any guarantees in piano performance of any kind (besides the fact that there are no guarantees).

I realized that I often practice and fret over preparation hoping to accomplish enough in my study to bring about some sort of guarantee that everything will come out fine when it comes time to perform what I have been working on.

It just dawned on me that perhaps this is not even possible !  And with this, I realized that finding a guarantee is not really (could/should not be) the purpose of my practice and preparation.  So what is the purpose then ?  Just to know music better I guess ?

Anyway, this is a huge thing to me right now, it makes a big shift in how I think on what I am doing.

Do people ever walk on stage feeling guaranteed not to fail?  And if not, and if it is still possible to feel confident, then I suppose confidence is based on something quite different than a guarantee of some sort.

A kissey and smiley emoticon for your thoughts?

m1469

[PianoStudentReady2Perform]

Thanks for your post, m1469.  The idea is that you are comfortable enough with your pieces that you will naturally feel confident with them.  You have played them enough times so that you no longer have to think AT ALL about what comes next, fingerings, or anything of that nature.  Your mind must be practically disengaged so that the whole piece is left up to your fingers.  When ALL your pieces are at this point, then you are ready for a performance of them.  (There was a study done that said it takes nine performances of a single piece to get it to this level!)  This is what confidence is to me.  Then, the possible mishaps are just related to musicality or how you communicate your music to the audience, and nothing technical.  Hope this helps.

PS why do you put spaces before your punctuation ?

[m1469]

You are welcome for the post !  Here is your guaranteed smiley and kissey emoticon  for your appreciated response and thoughts on confidence.  Yes, what you have said is helpful.  You are right, but my point is that it seems there are still no guarantees even at the point of knowing one's pieces as you describe.   Even the most prepared performers face some of the biggest embarrassments it seems. 

My mind and my feelings just need permission to not look for my confidence in a guarantee, and to focus my study-thoughts on something else (but a related something else I guess).

PS why do you put spaces before your punctuation ?

(Because I think it is really fun... and I like the way it looks... and it is a good conversation starter... and question marks are particularly cool imo...)

m1469

[tocca]

I think that part of the reason why many of us doesn't feel really confident with a piece is due to the fact that we often try to perform pieces that are too near to our  capabilities.

We don't have as big a "margin" as for example a world class pianist. Try learning a piece that is far below your capabilites, something you could play easily some years ago. Learn it until you know it inside out, and you'll probably feel very confident in performing it.

Easier said than done though, during my teen years i almost always performed pieces that were maybe a bit to close to my limit! 

[m1469]

Ok, thank you Tocca for your reply as well... here you go 

Now, I feel a little bit as though my main point is being completely lost here.  My point is that there is absolutely no formal guarantee for anyone that they will not walk out on stage and forget everything (or something like this).  The only thing one has to lean on is one's very own confidence and experience.  This was not as I was originally articulating it, but my thoughts are evolving as I am receiving your replies.

Even Horowitz (or whoever your piano hero may be) had no guarantee that he would not fail.  All he had was what was within him.

What I am trying to grasp is that I cannot base my confidence on some false hope that says 'after such and such a thing, I am guaranteed not to fail' ... Nothing like this in the world exists.  I am trying to grasp then, that inner confidence that does not need a formal guarantee.   I am talking something about the motives behind one's preparation.

To my thoughts and my feelings there is a very important distinction about what I am trying to better grasp but I can't figure out what that is right now because I am sleepy.   I will go to bed.

Muchas gracias,

m1469

[jlh]

I'm reminded of something a former teacher used to tell me.  She said, "you must know the piece 110%, because as soon as you step on the stage, you lose 10%". 

I guess then, that if you think you've prepared a piece 100%, you're still not guaranteed a perfect performance because if you lose 10%, then you're only playing 90% of what you should.  That's when errors and lapses of memory happen.

[alhimia]

Interesting topic!
A few years ago, I played some concerts and prepared very well in order to play almost perfect (or at least to have the guarantee that nothing would go wrong). I can say that there are absolutely no guarantees to play 'perfect', even your name is Zimerman, Michelangeli, Volodos etc. So I think the point is what you focus on. let's say very simple, the reason why I practise is to reduce the possibility of a disaster. But at the same time I realize that to be completely safe (as P. Anderzerwsky said) is often boring and you cannot be completely safe. Because music is something alive and live is never safe...
once I came to that realisation, I accepted that to have a certain guarantee is impossible, so I'm simply not striving for that. As I said before, when I am practising I am trying to reduce possibilities for a (musical or technical) disaster, when I am performing I don't think about it at all. I try to communicate music and simply see what happens.
about confidence, I think that grows by experience, I think it has not very much to do with any sort of guarantee. To give you one example, I performed the 4th ballade of Chopin many times. Of course the first time when I played it I was very very nervous and I struggled in the coda. Now I played it more then ten times (for public) and still struggle in the coda, but I am not nervous to play it any more. I just accepted that I could not play the coda perfectly. But I have the experience playing it for public and that makes me more confident, even if I don't play perfect.

[ehpianist]

I disagree.  I think with the propert mental and practice preparation you can guarantee your own best performance.  What you can't guarantee are the external circumstances surrounding the performance.  In fact the only thing you CAN be sure of is what you can control, which is what is in your head.

Read My lessons with Kumi by Michael Colgrass.  Insecurity during performance is caused exclusively by your own fears of performance.  IF you can learn to control these, and learn to prepare the music properly (not just by practicing at the piano) the fear of possibly forgetting something goes away completely.  There is still excitement but it can be channeled in positive ways.  The worst feeling in the world is thinking in every performace you may be floundering  about with complete amnesia in front of the audience.  There are ways to overcome this but they require patience, effort and dedication, although not as muchas you dedicate to your daily practice more than most people are willing to put in.

Elena
https://www.pianofourhands.com