Bob ponders literature "I think I hurt my brain..."

[Bob]

What should I do now?

I practiced two pieces.  One is well over my head -- for physical technique and too much for my mind.  I can get my mind around it and probably won't be able to play it up to tempo, but I like the piece.

The other is easy.  A fast quick moving line type of piece.  I'm pretty sure I got the technique, but my mind slips up sometimes.


So I poke around at the two pieces.  I work a little on the easier one.  I notice my goal get specific -- play the correct notes in time.  I notice I don't always get the notes, maybe it's my attention going after reading the music.  I notice I am trying to ingrain the notes into my fingers so my mind doesn't have to concentrate that hard (and I know that can't  actually read the music up to tempo, so I must have to ingrain it right?  Maybe not.  I'm not sure.)

I worked through that easier piece like I wanted to.  There's more to it now.  It's interesting how more details appear after awhile and these become the difficulties.

I pushed through with my plan of working through the piece, but by the end I noticed I was a little zoned out, just trying to play the notes and rhythms in time.  I would do a few repetitions and then notch the tempo up.  Time flew, but it was probably at least an hour sitting there doing this.

What I'm wondering is if this is good, to have your mind do that?  My mind feels a little numb, even now.  I think it may have been too much concentration.

[pianonut]

maybe you need a drink.  a little orange juice and grenadine.

how's the lair?

[Bob]

The liar is coming along.  Slowly but surely.  One of the snails says hello.

[pianonut]

what about something in-between.  i mean inbetween very hard and very easy.  sort of medium length (say 4-5 pages) and something you can learn easily over the summer (giving advice while sipping tea).  maybe something that sparks interest in you.

scarlatti sonatas are doing this for me.  not exactly easy, not really that hard, but it takes time to memorize and they are usually done in pairs (so would equal @ 6 pages altogether).

back to the rest and relaxation idea.  you know, i've been hearing a lot of really great music lately on the radio.  like music put to motion pictures.  then i daydreamed that i was a composer of this type of music and just practiced whenever i felt like it because my main job was composing.  it was such a good daydream! 

[Bob]

One of my concerns...

Should my goal be to "program" my hands?  I know I can sit down and work out these mistakes, but I'm missing them at sight.  I can controll all the dynamics and articulation eventually, but working this way is pounding the piece into my fingers through repetition. 

I wonder if I should be training my mind to be able to read the piece better instead of the reps.  Eventually, I'm not really "aware" of those areas once I've worked that spot out.  My hands play the piece and I just need my eyes on the page, but not really reading the music.  I also find I memorize those little unique details about the piece over time through this repetition -- I engrain the things I need so my hands won't make those mistakes again. 

I'm not sure if all this is the correct way though.  I speed the tempo up.  The piece moves along fast then my eyes or mind can follow, and my hands make those same mistakes again.  Then I correct them again.  I don't know what to think.  My mind is getting mushy by then.



It's interesting what fades away when I work on lit.  I notice I tend to lose sight of the overall goal.  Habits develop. things that I can see I make progress on, but maybe at the expense of the piece overall.  I don't whether it's good or not.

[pianonut]

slow down, bob...your mind has to keep up with your fingers.  this is exactly my problem in certain pieces.  i don't quite agree with people who say practice fast.  i say, as you do, to work sections, put it together, play it all the way through, and then relax and (sowhat) if you make a mistake or two today...  they'll be eliminated tommorrow.  just make sure you see less and less mistakes.  don't let it stop you from the 'whole' of the piece.

i like to think of my pieces now like a motion picture.  you have the intro, the theme, and the development - and you can watch it in your 'mind's eye' and add to it more excitement each time (without sacrificing evennes, closeness to the keys with fingers, and too much or little dynamics).  if i haven't practiced in a few days, what is really hard for me is control over what i hear in my head and what comes out.  it helps to actually have in your head what you want to hear ahead of time.  then you can say "yes! that's what i wanted."  or," that didn't quite come out."  (blurry, uneven, etc.)

i think pianists can learn A LOT from conductors.  the more you watch how they #1 study the score  #2  highlight what they want to focus on each practice (and when they get to performance it's ingrained - as you said)  #3 learn to go with the flow (not stopping)  #4 keep refining especially dynamics (even within dynamics)

one of the best pieces of advice i've gotten is 'remember the context.' 

[lostinidlewonder]

I notice I am trying to ingrain the notes into my fingers so my mind doesn't have to concentrate that hard (and I know that can't  actually read the music up to tempo, so I must have to ingrain it right?  Maybe not.  I'm not sure.)

I worked through that easier piece like I wanted to.  There's more to it now.  It's interesting how more details appear after awhile and these become the difficulties.

I pushed through with my plan of working through the piece, but by the end I noticed I was a little zoned out, just trying to play the notes and rhythms in time.  I would do a few repetitions and then notch the tempo up.  Time flew, but it was probably at least an hour sitting there doing this.

What I'm wondering is if this is good, to have your mind do that?  My mind feels a little numb, even now.  I think it may have been too much concentration.

It feel to me like you are looking at your music really really close. Looking at the leaves instead of the forest. A lot can be achieved by listening to yourself and not paying attention to the physical. Too much physical attention can give someone lots of anguish

[jazzyprof]

Some random thoughts that may or may not be helpful.  Others have said pretty much the same things:

1. The most important body part for playing the piano are the ears…

2. You should listen to a piece several times before going to the piano to learn it.  It gives you a better sense of the architecture of the piece as a whole.  It enables you to feel the music.

3.  Unless you are playing chamber music with others, your goal should be to memorize   your pieces.  That is what the many repetitions will do for you.  You are trying to make certain motions become automatic.   
 
4. Try closing the score and  playing the segment you have just learnt.  Wean yourself  from the printed page and engage your ears more.

5.  You only need your brain in the early part to figure out such things as “what is this cadence?”  or “what is this scale fragment?”  When you are actually practicing a passage or playing the piece, you really don’t need your brain that much.  You certainly shouldn’t be at risk of “hurting your brain”.  Let your ears and fingers make music.

6.  Slow practice does wonders.  Let your snails be your guide. 

7.  Think of yourself as making music and not playing “literature”.