Think about your pieces. You need to have them in your head. Imagine hearing it played in your mind! See if you can hear every note of the melody and every note of each chord, every dynamic change, every phrase ending- see how many details you can remember without having the music in front of you or hearing someone else play it. You could even try imagining what your piece would sound like if it were played by a string quartet, an orchestra, or even a rock band! Musical imagination is a very powerful tool.
You can try running through the piece on your lap. Follow the music this time, but have your fingers ‘play’ the piece away from the piano. (This can even be done while you’re lying in bed trying to go to sleep!)
This is scientifically proven to help. Dr. Pascual-Leone from Harvard has observed that ‘mental stimulation of movements activates the same central neural structures required for the performance of the actual movements.’ That is to say that thinking about doing something activates the same parts of your brain as actually doing it.
I met a student at an internationally acclaimed performance school in Poland, who started piano at age 7, like I did. Unlike me, though, she didn’t have a piano to practice on at home for the first 2 years she was taking lessons. Her parents drew out a piano on a long piece of paper, and that’s what she used to study her music! The only time she would get to play an actual piano was when she went for her weekly lessons. Her imagination would run wild through the week, thinking about all the sounds she couldn’t wait to make on her teacher’s piano when she got there for her lesson. I don’t recommend people try this, but it does go to show how much work can be done and progress can be made even if you’re not sitting at a piano.
I have solved many technical issues away from the piano. If I get stuck on a part, and can’t just seem to make it comfortable for my hand, I think about it later. Sometimes it can be easier to come up with a technical solution when you’re not limited by the keys in front of you, and you’re not distracted by the sounds you’re creating, trying to figure out the right movements. Your imagination has a little more freedom to come up with different physical approaches. It doesn’t always work, but even when I don’t come up with a physical solution I am still solidifying the music in my mind. So it’s always a win! Sometimes it’s a win-win. Definitely worth it!! 😁
You can check out the 2nd movement of Beethoven’s Pastorale Sonata (work in progress!)