Hello Victoria,

You caught me here in New Zealand (normally I am in Japan, of all places)!
Your suggestions sound pretty difficult at first. I have read them
carefully, though, and believe to have understood them, too. Thank you very
much, I can never get enough of good tips. It is always quite a different
thing and it will probably take time to get beyond the mere 'understanding'
on to a state where one can make 'techniques' one's own, 'possessions', sort
of. I'll keep trying!

Regards

Karl



From: "Victoria Achim" <vicachim@...>
Reply-To: musicalfossils@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tue, 14 Nov 2006 13:16:29 +0300
To: <musicalfossils@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: Re: [musicalfossils] Practice


Hi Karl,

I am afraid I know the feeling of zero progress while a lot of efforts have
been done. I've always thought that the way I practiced was just wrong. For
many years I had nothing to do but follow this way - I did not know any
better.
I think I eventually came to a better understanding of how to play piano.
1.. I make sure that every single note/sound is produced by THE PIANO STRIKE
- the way your finger attacks the key is very similar to the way dolphins go
into the water - top down, no hesitation, no pressure; energy goes down
through the key, your finger remains on its surface....and is listening to
the result.
2.. I train my fingers to be able to listen and hear - it is a very
individual feeling and I can hardly say how to do it - I just do it. To
facilitate this training it is good to imagine that you are breathing
through your finger tips. In fact this is about body awareness.
3.. I try to translate the music into motions. What the music does look like
in terms of motions? What a pause looks like? How do I feel that in my body?
That is also a way to avoid extra motions.
4.. Synchronization. I discovered that it was not an easy task to play cords
or both hands so that it would sound good. "Together" or "at the same time"
- is a challenge on the piano. So, I do my best to synchronize as many
things as possible. By the way synchronization is our body's responsibility,
not our brains'.
I can say that it really helps me.

In addition to that I try to imagine what the color or the scent of any
sound could be. It is also useful to analyze the development of the harmony
in the piece. If you clearly understand and feel it you can improvise using
some ideas from the piece.

Practice is infinite and it could be fun, I believe.

My best to you,

Vica

----- Original Message -----
From: klavierneuling
To: musicalfossils@yahoogroups.com <mailto:musicalfossils%40yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, November 10, 2006 3:20 AM
Subject: [musicalfossils] Practice

Hello fellow fossils!

What are the magic tricks when the piece you're practicing becomes
stale, because you've played it a million times, progress is close to
zero, and you don't want to hear it anymore? Please!

Karl

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