1,000 Days of Piano - Day 74: Ego

I had the opportunity to play for a group, which for me is a giant exercise in humility. I walk a tightrope of perfectionism, chasing the flawless performance. I love to play, and I love playing well,   but it when it comes to performing, I’m just hoping I don’t mess up too badly. Worst of all it shows...in the concentration etched on my brow and the determined set of my jaw. And it doesn’t help that I’m still learning the music.
When I’m alone and practicing, I sometimes manage a decent performance. When I have an audience, I am seeking their praise. It is vainglory, I am ashamed to say, that drives my perfectionism.

Making music is supposed joyous and creative. I don’t know about other musicians, but for me, I can only find inspiration in the letting go of my quest for the impeccable performance. Mistakes are irrelevant. The only thing that matters is my focus, my inspiration, and my joy. It is the ability to release my vanity and ego rather than my ability to play that counts.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 73: Working Ahead

I am working ahead. For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been creating two blog posts a day (mostly). I’m gearing up for my annual end of summer cleaning bender, I’ll be traveling to places that will not likely have pianos available to practice on, and I have a super woman complex that prohibits practically any relaxation ever. So, I’m working ahead.
I was inspired to record the first four pieces of Book 2, just to get in the habit of playing them consecutively. I went on to record the fifth piece, which had a number of mistakes in it. In the spirit of accepting the first take, I know I should use it. In life you can’t undo all the conversations you had before some kind soul told you that you had spinach stuck between your teeth. All you can do is rush to the bathroom, fix yourself, and move forward. But this is my creation, and I get to decide whether to reveal myself in all my imperfection or to put my best foot forward. In any case, I am still working ahead.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 72: Ignoring Mistakes

Playing through and ignoring mistakes is a good way to prepare for a performance. When the music has been thoroughly learned and any stumbles are random, the pianist needs to be comfortable letting go of mistakes instead of correcting them. Even when correcting mistakes during practice, the student can go back four to eight measures and try again to get it right. This helps train the brain and fingers in muscle memory. It’s also a good way to practice staying focused.

When I’m teaching, I like to describe playing music as being like riding a train. When the train pulls out of the station and builds up speed, the engineer doesn’t pull the breaks and stop the train for a small mistakes. The train just keeps chugging along down the track and never mind any mistakes.
In this clip, I have a few “lost” measures, but taking the repeat gives me a second chance to get it right. I love this minuet, but I’ll be happy when I get a new focus piece on the next page.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 71: Metronome

Any piano teacher will encourage practice with the dreaded metronome. The infernal tick-tick-tick inspires countless pianists to quoth, “Nevermore,” even if they have never read any Poe. Yet the metronome is an invaluable tool for practice. The big black box I’ve had since the last quarter of the last century has been my faithful companion through preparations for recitals and competitions, and it stands by me even now through innumerable lessons and practice sessions. Even as a complementary technique to STOP-PREPARE, it is effective, whether set to a slow tempo or concert tempo.
My latest idea for the metronome is to use the app on my phone. It has the ability to give a different tone for the first beat of the measure. I can use this to practice playing through pieces—staying with the beat without stopping to correct mistakes. Practicing this way helps smooth out the wrinkles in a piece. I can’t wait to use this practice technique on other pieces I’m polishing!

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 70: First Take

I’ve started a trend of posting my first take for my mini performances. First and foremost, I’m practicing giving my best performance right out of the gate. This takes great concentration and superior mind powers. I’m asking myself to calm my jitters and focus on the music, staying joyfully in the moment knowing that this is my only chance to get it right. I’m raising the stakes. It is also a practice. I am adjusting to a higher stakes practice. This is good for me. Some days I’ll play better than others, just as some days I’ll have a good hair day.
The other reason I’m posting my first take is a practical one. I’m on a summer cleaning bender, and I’m simply choosing not to take the time to make several recordings until I get it right. Life goes on, even though I have my challenge goal. It’s a delicate balancing act to give my work the attention it deserves. And so, welcome to a higher stakes, sharper focus, more tedious game. It’s just where I am on the journey.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 69: A Little Practice

One way to practice certain pieces is to play the chords as blocked or harmonic chords instead of broken or melodic chords. I’m doing it with the Bach Gigue, and I’m doing it with the Schumann Melody. It doesn’t usually affect the quality of the accompaniment, but in the Melody you can hear some unusual harmonies in the blocked chords. Not only does it help me learn the music, but it gives me insight into the structure of the piece. A little practice can go a long way.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 68: The Slow Road to Mastery

The only way I’m going to attain any mastery with these pieces is to slow down and learn them properly. I don’t want to do it, but I’m probably going to end up recording the same pieces over and over again. In order to learn thoroughly enough pieces to offer any kind of variety, I’d have to spend hours a day at the piano. I have a real time goal, and I’m keeping a journal of my progress. There’s no movie montage to show the boring passage of time. There’s only Minuet after Minuet. That’s the slow road to mastery.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 67: Impatient

My pieces are still half baked because I’m impatient. I can play through all of Book 2, but I lack the confidence I need because I’m not taking the time to let the pieces soak in. I’m getting the minuets mixed up. Melody is a tangle of fingers. The left hand of the Beethoven Sonatina feels like a clash of checks and stripes. It’s time to slow down and focus on the first few pieces before charging ahead. I can pave my path with patience.

1,000 Days of Music - Day 64: Still Half Baked

The Beethoven Sonatina in Book 2 is considered one piece with two parts. I wanted to put them together, though they are still half baked. For me, it is an exercise in reading, performance, and nerve. The worst feeling while playing is the endless background loop in my head pleading with me not to mess up. The best feeling is simply enjoying the music and staying in the moment. I had a little of both in this performance. I can keep practicing until the joy overpowers the fear. That is success.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 63: European Style

The Suzuki piano repertoire consists almost entirely of European classical music and folk songs. Some people have the idea that European classical music is the gold standard by which all other music is measured, implying that it is somehow superior. Other believe it to be stuffy and boring, the province of snobs who join the country club and send their children to private school. Neither are correct. European classical music happens to be one tool to teach musical ability, literacy, theory, and appreciation. Mastery opens the door to learning the complexities of jazz, as well as blues, rock, country, and any other genre of music imaginable.

The Suzuki piano repertoire is one of the finest teaching tools available. Each piece is carefully chosen to introduce specific abilities. The learning concepts are cumulative, and the student’s repertoire increases, so does mastery. The pianist who learns these pieces—from the German folk tunes in Book 1 to Bartok’s Romanian Dance in Book 7 can learn to play anything, from Scott Joplin’s ragtime music, the soundtracks to Hamilton and Godspell, and Bohemian Rhapsody to anything by Fats Waller, George Gershwin, and Ray Charles. A true appreciation for variety music is one of the finest gifts a teacher can give.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 62: Gooey in the Middle

Here is the entire Beethoven Sonatina, First Movement (without the repeats). Yes, I’m serving it up, even though it’s still a little gooey in the middle. Most of Book 2 should to go back in the oven, and those pieces that are “done” needs to stay in the warmer. None of it is fully baked. Still just as food begins to make the house smell good when it’s almost done, I hope I’m making music that sounds good.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 61: Coordination

Pianists must develop coordination in order to play. It takes a great deal of ability to play with two or more voices between both hands. Piano students develop this skill slowly, as with any other skill. This Beethoven Sonatina from Book 2 requires coordination to play two different patterns in the left hand. Some day soon I will develop the ability to play the entire first movement of this Sonatina, but that day is not today.
Note: I am posting these from vacation. I have gotten through the entire Sonatina since I recorded this, but it still needs lots of practice.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 60: Mechanical

Today I made seven recordings of the two Schumann pieces, The Happy Farmer and The Wild Rider (Books 2 and 3 respectively), before I was satisfied. Even now, my playing is mechanical. Still, that’s okay. It’s a learning process. If I look as though I’m hyper focused on the notes, rhythm, phrasing, and dynamics, well, that’s because I am. It takes time and repetition to learn the music thoroughly enough to focus on artistry. If I’m still in the mechanical stages of learning, I might as well enjoy it.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 55: Satisfaction

I am so pleased to have gotten through all of the Suzuki Book 2. I am not yet ready to record one continuous performance, but I can play the entire book. It is not difficult music for me, but it is fourteen pieces. (I count the Beethoven Sonatina as two pieces, since it is two movements—the Moderato and the Allegretto Romance. Moderato and Allegretto refer to the tempo or speed of the piece—moderato meaning moderately and allegretto meaning sort of but not quite fast.)

I have truly never learned (or reviewed)  so much music at one time in my life. If I’m to ask it if my students, I must be willing to do it myself. Tomorrow I may be discount, but today I am satisfied with my work so far.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 53: Under Pressure

This is an experiment in performing under pressure. I had thought about polishing the first part of the Mozart Minuet from Book 4, to bring some variety from the first three Suzuki books. However, we’re under a severe thunderstorm warning. Since I’ve been practicing daily from books two and three, I decided to try playing two pieces in a row in one take.

I managed to stay calm under pressure, and behold the result. It was a welcome change from the fall, when I was unable to get through my audition pieces without breaking down. The pieces are not difficult for me, it is true, but fear and anxiety are insidious, laying traps in the easiest pieces. I’ve been practicing and posting for over fifty days. That takes some of the sting out of the process. Such is the beauty of daily review and performance...even if no one is watching.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 52: Basics

I love it that Go Tell Aunt Rhody immediately follows Mary Had a Little Lamb in the first Suzuki book. Once students gain the ability to play a simple right hand melody with two basic left hand chords, they learn a third chord. Enter the subdominant. With the tonic and dominant chords, students can play many simple tunes, like Alouette. Adding the subdominant gives students many more tunes to play. On Top of Spaghetti and Jingle Bells both come to mind. I love introducing the subdominant so much I decided to speak on the recording instead of just playing. Learning and teaching the basics really is so much fun.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 51: Planner vs. Pantser

Are you a planner or a pantser? Do you like plan your experiences or fly by the seat of your pants? I am a planner to my very core. I love making detailed planned and imagining them unfolding exactly as I envision them.  Now, however, I’m learning to fly by the seat of my pants. I don’t plan my blog posts. Instead, I simply practice and see what comes up. I’ve discovered the power of combining strategies. I make plans, put them in my pocket, and then see what happens. Usually, it’s something magical.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 50: Milestones

I never appreciated Mary Had a Little Lamb until I started folding the Suzuki arrangement into my traditional teaching. It is such a milestone piece for students. Once they can play a simple right hand  melody with basic left hand chords, they can play many other simple tunes with similar accompaniments. It is so exciting to watch a student’s enthusiasm light up after playing unaccompanied melodies and solo left hand accompaniments.

So much of learning anything involves a gradual, daily increase in ability. Slowly trudging uphill, we focus on one foot in front of the other...until we realize we’ve reached a plateau overlooking a beautiful valley. Tomorrow begins the next climb, but today we can enjoy the view.

1,000 Days of Piano - Day 49: Belief

I never would have believed I could learn and memorize so much music so quickly one month ago. I was actually a little doubtful that I could learn and memorize the first sixteen measures of this Minuet in G Minor by Christian Petzold in a half an hour. I suppose it helps that I just learned the companion minuet yesterday. Still, I sat down and just focused...after forty-eight days of sitting down and focusing. Maybe learning music quickly becomes a habit over time. Maybe the music is easy enough for me to learn quickly. Maybe I’m overthinking the whole thing. Or maybe...I learned it because I believed I could.