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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}

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