Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site ut-sally.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!seismo!ut-sally!brian From: brian@ut-sally.UUCP (Brian Powell) Newsgroups: net.music.classical Subject: Re: how to practice? Message-ID: <192@ut-sally.UUCP> Date: Thu, 8-Nov-84 02:43:47 EST Article-I.D.: ut-sally.192 Posted: Thu Nov 8 02:43:47 1984 Date-Received: Sat, 10-Nov-84 05:24:56 EST References: <4094@decwrl.UUCP> Organization: U. Texas CS Dept., Austin, Texas Lines: 47 > For all you musicians out there; When you set yourself the >task of learning a difficult (for you) piece of music, how do you >go about it? > > From beginning to end? > > Concentrating on the difficult passages; repeating them >over and over? Yes and yes. Mostly the latter, but it still helps to go over the whole thing from time to time. > Slow and loud (for pianists)? so as to get the 'feel' of >the piece in your fingers? Slow, yes; loud, never. You have to practice dynamics from the start. You have to get the feel of playing soft in your fingers, too. > Do you study the score first? Looking for patterns, etc. This is always desirable, but not a must. If I am confused by some passage, (why did the composer write it this way? or even if something about the piece just doesn't feel right.) then I take a close look. Generally, though, I don't take the time. > Also, how do you keep your motivation up? Especially, if >the piece is difficult enough that your first efforts are very >unmusical/unsatisfying. Listen to a recording of it played well (if available). I strive first for musicality, even if only in a few passages. I start out practicing the prettiest parts of the piece. Then, as I enlarge the amount that I can play straight through, and as I increase tempo, etc., I try to carry the musicality through the difficult parts. Basically, I am trying to make the initial period of terrible music as short as possible. What about the rest of the musicians out there? Brian -- Brian H. Powell brian@ut-sally.{ARPA,UUCP} U.S. Mail: AT&T: P.O. Box 5899 (512) 451-0739 Austin, TX 78763