What is a “bad” practice day?

Yes, I do think “bad” practice days exist. Take today, for example. For reasons I won’t discuss here, today found me “off my game.” Has that happened to you? Why? Even while warming up with finger exercises I am completely used to, I couldn’t feel my hands or fingers in the usual way. That may [...]

Ideas that define me

Thoughts such as these need our attention from time to time. Integrity Being clear about the reasons I accept each gig Preparedness Learning the music before the first rehearsal Engagement Interest in the rehearsal, listening throughout Current knowledge Listening to what’s out there, reading articles and reviews Current skills Practicing to maintain an edge Life [...]

Concert countdown on mostly unfamiliar music

Purchase information available here. It’s concert countdown time!  The program below will remain the same for 2 performances in MA, on October 29th (Williamsburg) and November 6th (Amherst).  My November 9th concert in New York is part of a 1/2-hour lunchtime series, so the program will be shorter. This program feels particularly demanding because I [...]

What Irene can teach us about learning music

How prepared were you for Hurricane Irene? How do you prepare for the unexpected when you practice?

Working with an opposite personality

There is an occasional performance situation in which I feel consistently thrown off my game.  Does the same thing happen to you? It’s about major changes in tempo or interpretation at the last minute. Background I was trained never to sightread in public.  And I never do in a concert situation.  Sight-reading is often required in rehearsals, though. [...]

Which mode are you in?

OK, I shall now attempt to be a tennis expert.  Stay with me ~ I’ll get to the point. Once again, an event during a professional tennis tournament can teach us something about performing.  In this case, I am referring to the quarter-final match in the 2011 Miami  Sony Ericsson Open between Rafael Nadal and Tomas [...]

Do you practice with self-compassion?

An article in last week’s health section of the New York Times cites research suggesting that people who practice self-compassion have more positive outcomes with losing weight and exercising than those who are more self-critical. While reading the article, I wondered whether we could look at practicing in the same way. The researchers found that people do better [...]

Reader Q & A: stiff neck when practicing piano

Image via Wikipedia A stiff neck could be caused by any of several factors. Some things that come to mind: Vision ~ have you had yours checked recently?  Make an appointment if the answer is “no,” even if you don’t think it’s necessary. Do your glasses need to be adjusted?  If the frames are out [...]

7 Stretches to beat “Piano Back”

Image via Wikipedia This post is for computer users, too. On days when I practice for a long time and/or use a computer, I stretch when I’m done. (OK, I stretch every day.  It’s easy, it works, and it doesn’t take long.) We have all seen people’s necks set forward, head in front of their [...]

Upside Down and Backwards

Image via Wikipedia Twice this week things  turned my day upside down due to scheduling changes.  That got me thinking. What if we did other things upside down? Like practicing, for instance. What would that look like? We could: vary the time of day start at the end learn the left hand first learn difficult [...]