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Joined: Jan 2010
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CB: Be honest. You're just being stubborn now.  Did you even notice what she said about the "90%"? It seems like you didn't, because assuming you're taking her situation seriously and don't want to mislead her, you would need to factor it into your thinking, and you haven't. O.K., Mark. I admit you are right. But have you fasted for 4 weeks? There is a different kind of calculus at play, here. And we still don't know if she's from Texas, or not. It makes a difference, I assure you.
I may not be fast,
but at least I'm slow.
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O.K., Mark. I admit you are right. Now for sure I know you're joking. But have you fasted for 4 weeks? I haven't fasted for 4 seconds. In fact, just now I took a 15 minute break for crackers with peanut butter. ....And we still don't know if she's from Texas, or not. It makes a difference, I assure you. Does it matter north or south Texas?  East or west Texas?
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[...] Does it matter north or south Texas? East or west Texas? Not in this context. But if east Texas, then watch out!!! West Texas, then watch out some more!
I may not be fast,
but at least I'm slow.
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[...] In fact, just now I took a 15 minute break for crackers with peanut butter. [...] btw, LOL! Time runs slowly when you fast, most of the time, and can even run backwards when you don't expect it to. Seriously. 
I may not be fast,
but at least I'm slow.
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....Time runs slowly when you fast, most of the time, and can even run backwards when you don't expect it to. Seriously. Now I get it. This guy experiences time on a different plane.
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 298
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How realistic is it if you have a piece that is at the stage where you can play the notes ( at a slow speed in order to play them properly ) and you have a few bits and pieces memorized, to be able to perfect ( note - wise and musically ) and memorize to play for an event in 4 1/2 weeks?
This piece has been VERY difficult for me to learn even though I have been consistently practicing it 3 - 4 hours on the days I practice. I have been making some progress but I am not sure it is enough.
Some people have been encouraging you to go for it, but that sounds like bad advice. This sonata is obviously giving you trouble, and it would take a miracle to pull it all together in a month's time based on where you say you are and how difficult you're finding it. If you have any sort of viable Plan B - and it sounds like you do - you really need to talk to your teacher about it and make the switch. Good luck!
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I capitulate. One final word about fasting. It is a way to find time when previously you thought you had none. It does not always mean giving up food, though it can mean that. It does mean giving up something, and trust me, the time is there if you want to find it. This is the phrase that got me: "I have been consistently practicing it 3 - 4 hours on the days that I practice." (Emphasis added.) I maintain that it could be done. However, as BDB said, people are different in their abilities, and I would add also in their methods, what they believe about themselves, walking their tightropes of competing interests, and in exercising their force of will. But, I know what it is like to want out of a piece, too, and if that is the case, my heart goes out to you, TPG. Best wishes, txpianogirl! Please let us know how it turns out! --Andy
I may not be fast,
but at least I'm slow.
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Joined: Aug 2010
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To start with Kreisler: THANK YOU for your offer to help! Where to begin... just about everything after page 4 is difficult!  But to be a bit more specific some really difficult passages are: ms (I am using Schirmers btw)204 - 240 and a little bit of trouble in the recap but I think I can work it out (however I spent almost 3 hours on this section yesterday and it hasn't improved) and then ms 296 - 339. Would you have any suggestions on how to practice this (any helpful fingering would help too!  )? I hope that makes sense - thanks again for your offer! Thank you all for replying with so much helpful advice! I appreciate your taking the time to do that very much! I was supposed to play the piece for professor at SMU on Oct. 15th - that will not happen. Next time to play is recital on Oct. 29th (that is the event I mentioned, then the main event which I am preparing it for, the Dallas Piano Solo Competition on Nov. 5th. I feel since I changed teachers that I am swimming upstream with some other extremely talented fish...
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Happily, pianogirl, I disagree with MarkC! 4 1/2 weeks is a TON of time. Do not disregard the amount of work your brain can do when it is asleep. Every time you sleep, your brain re-wires. Practice. Sleep. Practice. Sleep. 4 1/2 weeks? That's more than 28 sleep/wake cycles. If you can play it slowly, then play it slowly every few days to drill the fingering. Don't play it fast on those days... Play it slowly! On the other days, play it up to speed, or close to speed(s). On the other, other days, play it any way you want! This is VERY helpful. You could not have said it any better. I LOVE the 'rewire, rewire' analogy! :P
Ravel - Une Barque Sur l'Ocean
Kapustin - Etude No. 7
Bach/Busoni - Chaconne
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I guess you didn't see, he took it back.  True, he said it well but it's awful advice.
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No, Mark. I didn't take it back. I said, "I give up." I truly believe in the power of the sleep/wake cycle, and have seen it work.
I may not be fast,
but at least I'm slow.
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[...] This guy experiences time on a different plane. So true, Marc_C; planes fly so fast, yet it takes so long to get from point A to point B by plane. Maybe he should try a different airline!
BruceD
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Estonia 190
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Thanks for the replies - a lot of interesting thoughts! Sorry I left out the piece, it's Kabalevsky's Piano Sonata no.3 and I have been working on it exclusively for two months now.
My teacher seems to think it's possible but I am a little worried.
I have heard that it is best to secure a piece at least a month in advance -
and I have to admit it is very nice to already have a piece learned and memorized ahead
of time as it gives you a lot of time to work on it musically.
Here is some more information to go by:
Basically the way I have been working on the piece is I have started at the end and am working backwards. I am trying to tackle the most difficult parts of the piece ( which is probably a good 90% ) - I will take sections (sometimes I will practice by sections and sometimes I will practice it a measure at a time) and break them apart. For example, working hands separately, working on separate voices, blocking notes into chords, different rhythm patterns or simply going through a passage slowly.
It is just a little confusing as to why these sections are still difficult. I could be giving up a little soon but I would almost rather be on the cautious side then be without a piece...
Only time will tell - I'm just trying to be safe!
The deadline idea is good, I might try that.
Thank you all again for your help!
Hey, TPG! You posted while I was writing! You see? I am right! You have plenty of time. You are already at 90%, and more than a month out. Jeeze Louise! And it's Kabalevsky to boot! Jeeze LOUISE! Keep doing what you're doing and you'll be FINE! BTW, you still did not tell us what EVENT this is. CB: As I read txpianogirl's post, she didn't say that she has 90% of it learned but that 90% of the piece has difficulties for her. That's a lot different, I think, than your take on her post. Moreover, she said that she has been working on this piece "exclusively" for two months, 3 to 4 hours each day that she practices, and that she is still far from secure with it. It seems to me that the remaining 4-1/2 weeks - or are we down to four weeks, now? - is not a whole lot of time to not only master the piece and all its 90% difficult sections but also have it ready for public performance. I think we all, myself included, are speculating widely and wildly about whether or not txpianogirl can perform this per her original post. I think she and her teacher are the only ones who can reasonably answer the question. Regards,
BruceD
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Estonia 190
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You are right, Bruce! I did mis-read that. And now that I read TPG's most current post in the thread, that she is preparing it for a competition, my eyes are wide open in WOW. That's guts! So, I stand by my encouragement, tempered with WOW, even as I have capitulated! I imagine that I would bring to a competition only pieces that I have known for years. But with Texans, all things are possible!
I may not be fast,
but at least I'm slow.
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I have heard that it is best to secure a piece at least a month in advance -
and I have to admit it is very nice to already have a piece learned and memorized ahead
of time as it gives you a lot of time to work on it musically. Exactly my thoughts. I would not try performing in 4 weeks if it is not yet in your fingers at least.
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Hmm, in that case, I shall do the same!
Ravel - Une Barque Sur l'Ocean
Kapustin - Etude No. 7
Bach/Busoni - Chaconne
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