Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner Thoughts that surface while practicing...dispel or keep?

I constantly feel conflicted between playing something as though I were performing it and practicing it. If I play it with a steady tempo that doesn't really feel like I'm doing justice to specific parts which I need to focus on getting the right touch to the key. But, if I practice it, with a steady tempo, it's suppose to sound as though I'm practicing like I'm performing it, but it really doesn't do justice to those parts which need delicate handling.

So is it right for me to prioritize getting the right touch over maintaining a steady tempo?

Surely that's a preferential thing? I mean...some (renowned) pianists maintain tempo, others fluctuate wildly...it all depends on what fits for you. Um...it doesn't necessarily follow that which you prefer hearing either; Gould is my favourite pianist but I focus on touch over tempo every time (not that he ignored either ). Xxx

I would think that these are two entirely separate but essential items in a practice routine; one doesn't exclude the other. I think that most of our time should be spent "practicing" works in progress, and that doesn't simply mean playing through at a designated tempo, although that, too, can be part of a practice routine. Areas of insecurity should be worked on independently and thoughtfully with the mind engaged in ways of solving technical problems.

You, yourself, seem to recognize that there are "specific parts which [you] need to focus on...." My question to you, then, is why not focus on them? I do get the impression from your post that your idea of practicing is to play through from beginning to end at a tempo other than what would eventually be a performance tempo. That is not intelligent nor productive practicing.

When a work approaches "performance" status, later perhaps than sooner, (which shouldn't preclude occasional early "play-throughs") one should play through a work as though performing it to see that it hangs together structurally and artistically.

Regards,

If Bruce and Kreisler wrote a book of their PW comments it would be the best book on piano ever written.

I've actually entertained the idea of editing a book called "Piano World's Guide to Piano Playing" or something like that.

There are a solid dozen or so people here whose thoughts and writings are every bit as good (if not better) than what's commercially available.

I also believe a regular reader of these forums would come away after a year or two more knowledgable about piano than most college piano majors. I know I've learned a tremendous amount. For as much as I've tried to contribute, I feel like I've received twice as much.

With the news as it is of late regarding classical music, the arts, and orchestras in the United States, PW is definitely one of the bright spots that keeps me optimistic about the future of the arts.

I agree with Bruce that these are "two entirely separate but essential items in a practice routine." But I love that you are sensitive to different kinds of touch. A lot of pianists these days have a boring palette of different touches that they use.

I agree! "Piano World University," I call it.

Here are my two cents for the OP:



I find that I get most frustrated when my head and ears want something to be "finished," but my hands and fingers aren't even near ready for that. But I don't like to be frustrated when I'm at the piano. That's counter-productive. So, I remind myself that today is today, not tomorrow, and it will all work out given enough time. Then, I take a deep breath and make a decision. How much drilling do I do on this today? How much playing, then? Some days, I decide to drill a part only, and don't "play" it at all. Slow, deliberate drilling. Sometimes with the metronome. The next day when I come back to it, "playing" it actually works! Somedays, I do "expression" practice, and don't even try to play cleanly. I'm looking at phrasing and tempo and articulation, mood and character and meaning, no matter how many wrong notes I might hit. That tells me many things, including which places need more drilling. It's all good, and it all gets you where you want to go, eventually.

Take the long view.

--Andy

Remember that rubato is a stylistic trait and is to be used judiciously.

The "right touch" for any passage, phrase etc comes after the technical issues have been resolved, although ideally we have in our minds the touch we are looking for. (A complication here is that as we progress in our understanding of a work our aims might change. Irritating when that could mean a change in fingering. Back to the drawing board, again!)

I know I am fond of quoting Tovey on this forum, but his advice on interpreting the Beethoven sonatas is very wise. One of the things he tends to identify is the passage in a movement which will need a lot of work and might set the tempo. Now, different people might find different passages the most tricky, but we can do this for ourselves. That's the bit which really taxes me: practice that to the speed I'm looking for (not to the exclusion of everything else - too boring) and then the rest will fall into shape.

Yes, I get frustrated when I could play a movement, except for "those one or two passages", but those passages are the key to moving from practice to performance.

As I've come to understand it, the former precludes the latter in a pianist's order of operations, not that, as mentioned above, either should be excluded - rather, a certain balance should be striven for.

I posted this what I think was maybe about a week or two ago on another thread, but you may enjoy reading it: Post Practice Improvement (PPI)