Tip number 4 for practicing the piano: Be self aware and realistic.
Know when something isn’t working, and work on something else! Save that frustrating, just-can’t-figure-it-out section for your next lesson. That’s why you have a piano teacher like me! I’ll help you through that difficult section when we have a lesson. We all have our days.
Chances are, that if a certain piece or section isn’t working one day, you could come back to it the next day and everything falls into place. Or maybe it’s time to work on something else entirely… do some sight reading, improv, figure out a melody by ear, or do theory work! All of these things contribute to a well-rounded musical education and give you a break from the pieces you’ve been practicing for months.
You want to practice when you’re fresh. This is another reason why it’s a great idea to do it in smaller sessions. Often in practice, we hit a wall. No matter how hard we try, we just can’t seem to get that part exactly the way we want it. Or we keep making the same mistake, on the same note- so frustrating! If you walk away and take a few deep breaths, have a little snack or cup of tea, go outside for a walk, even watch a few minutes of television or play a game, and then come back to that same part- often we find we’ve got it! All the hard work we put into it really did pay off. It’s just that we needed to take a step back in order to see that. The music needs time to settle. This is part of the reason why students (and parents) can get discouraged- we want instant results! But music (and come to think of it, almost anything worthwhile in life) doesn’t work like this.
I can’t resist sharing this little story… I have one student who has a particularly hard time with practicing on their own. Even in class, if they don’t get it right the first time they are immediately discouraged. So I had to ask if they thought I got everything right on the first try at the piano. She said ‘yes, of course you do.’ I couldn’t help but laugh. I only wish!! If that were the case, why would I spend such a huge part of my life practicing? 🤔😂
Here’s my first Chopin Mazurka, op.63, no.3. I kind of dove into the deep end with this one, but I just couldn’t resist! Preparing this for Jarred Dunn’s Mazurka Workshop last weekend definitely helped speed up the learning process for me. Deadlines can be a very good thing sometimes! 😆