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Absolutely. Otherwise the piece will be learned with the mistakes embedded.

At one level, we are all aware of this (or should be).

But at another level, it means "anybody who makes a mistake once is doomed to repeat it forever" - which isn't true.

I am most definitely one of the people who needs to take your advice at every opportunity, Sarah. But in some situations, and especially with a tiny number of people who are extremely cautious and very particular, this advice backfires; they don't get anywhere, because they are so conservative with their speeds at all times that the music can never get remotely close to a performance tempo.

All this to say, there's an acceptable level of "mistake risk", and an acceptable time to take that risk. The acceptable level and time happen to be a lot slower and a lot later in the process than the disordered way I learn music, but theoretically I know they exist.

I can agree with what sarahsays says in the context of an early learning stages type of beginning to intermediate piano student. I feel, like david a, that once a certain point is reached, mistakes become a necessary part of the learning process and contribute better to the growth of the music!!

I don't think making a mistake once makes it ingrained in their memory forever. However, if someone is choosing to play something at too fast of a speed too soon and do so consistently, then there will be many errors. Since we're talking about learning Bach Inventions, we're not talking about advanced pianists (although advanced pianists can learn them, but it would not be at that level :)).

Slow deliberate practice is key, and then as it gets easier to play, increase the tempo, but again only to the point where you can play it well. Sometimes to help you push the envelope you may need to work with a metronome, but is there value in playing something too fast with lots of errors?

Hi there,

Bach Inventions (and all of Bach) is only understood by playing HT and slow, otherwise you will miss the context of the composition. Only some parts you practise by one hand to see what's going up....

Best regards,
Johan B