A visit to the old stomping grounds leads to some thoughts on competition and motivation; some insights from playing an 1860s Broadwood piano; a danger of detail-oriented practice; the plan for next week. With bits of all of Op. 10.
Archives for posts with tag: Practice
Listening to the inner cheerleader and judge; walking the line between freedom/expression and control/accuracy; remembering an inspiring lady; getting ready for a lesson; a triage order for the places in the etudes that need the most help, including a desperately wounded 10/2; a nice surprise about 25/3 and 25/3.
Warning: this episode is more rambling than usual, and contains some fairly awful and geeky singing. The results of gardening; a pep talk to kids; trying to make the practice room feel like the stage, my lifelong quest to improve my focus; a strategy (from this book) to work on accuracy and rhythm in 25/4; a confession about scales; a plan about jazz involving a place and a book; some serious theory geekery, including how I teach sonata form (see above warning about the singing).
Putting play into practice; two silly things I did this week, including putting words to 25/4 (with different versions for different editions); a new approach to 10/1 and 10/2.
Thinking about the thumbs in most of the Chopin etudes; moments of mindfulness; the tricky bits of 25/7.
How to practice Op. 25 no. 1; tiny epiphanies in 25 no. 3; playing versus practicing in 25 no. 6; getting away with something by practicing jazz ii-V-is; an improv with scope for improvement.
Results of taking a break; putting my shoulders where they belong; progress in Chopin 25/5; run-throughs of 25/3 and 25/11, with some screaming; a vaguely contrapuntal improv.
Also, for those of you in DC thinking of coming to the show this Friday at 8, here’s info about my band, and here’s the venue, in Columbia Heights. I’d love to see you there!
Chopin etudes 25/3 and 25/5 in (probably excruciating) detail; seeking the right tempo for the winter wind etude; a start on the harp etude (25/1).
Play It Again Swig 