I suck at practicing (Chaminade)

etgohomeok · Post by **etgohomeok** » Tue Dec 23, 2008 8:32 pm

Help

Like seriously, guys. How do you practice?

pied_piper · Post by **pied_piper** » Tue Dec 23, 2008 10:05 pm

Slowly, verrrrrry sloooooowly...

At least start at a tempo that you can comfortably play all the notes correctly. Break it into small segments where you have difficulty and work each section slowly, repeating until you can play it at least three times in a row correctly at that speed. Then increase the speed by one metronome marking and repeat the process until you get it up to the desired tempo. This may take days, weeks, or even months depending on your skill level and the difficulty of the work.

If you have sections that you can't play correctly even at a slow tempo, break that into groups of 2-3 notes and repeatedly play each group. Then, add one more note to each group and repeat until you can play the section.

Another technique that some teachers recommend for working through problem sections is to practice playing it backward. That helps to get the notes "under the fingers".

Something that also helps is to practice the scale(s) corresponding to the key(s) of the work.

Perhaps others will chime in with some of their favorite techniques, too...

etgohomeok · Post by **etgohomeok** » Wed Dec 24, 2008 6:51 am

Let's say I have one hour to practice per day. How should it be broken up, assuming that I have an audition coming up for the Chaminade.

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Wed Dec 24, 2008 2:24 pm

I would attack the parts that are the hardest. There is no point for practicing the easy parts relentlessly and avoiding the hard parts. If you do that, then you are enforcing the good, and the bad doesn't ever get better.

So, start with the hard stuff first, then work to the easy stuff. Don't neccessarily feel that you have to start at the beginning of the piece either. Sometimes it works better to work the piece backwards.

And give the "playing it backwards" thing a try. That helps sometimes. Try different articulations [tongue slurred passages, and slur tongued passages, slur two tongue two etc. etc.]

ALWAYS USE A METRONOME!!!!!!!
LISTEN TO AS MANY RECORDINGS AS YOU CAN!!!!!

[If you send me a private message with your email address, I would be happy to send you a recording of me playing it with my University Orchestra last year. It's not perfect by any means, but it's not too shabby. I'm definitely a lot better now.] Or... I think it might be on my myspace..... http://www.myspace.com/fluteguy18

check there first. If it isn't there, then message me.

Other tips..... Just be innovative! Be a creative practicer. Try playing the passage smoothly once, then aggressively the next. Try playing it waaaaaaaayyyyy too slow, then work it up until it is way too fast. And don't be afraid to write on your music.

OH! Memorize it too! I did when I worked on it. Memorizing it is what helped me win the Concerto Competition [and then I got to perform it with orchestra -see above ^ ].
Yeah... I think it's on there.

c_otter · Post by **c_otter** » Wed Dec 31, 2008 1:50 pm

I think fluteguys advice is good. For me, one difference is that when learning pieces that are only moderately hard I will turn up the metronome 3 clicks at a time. However, I always start slow enough that the passage is quite easy. Also, for difficult passages, I may do the following: play, increase speed by 3 clicks, play, decrease speed by 2 click, play, increase speed by 3 clicks, etc... Also, I always try to get to the point where I can play the piece 2 clicks faster than I expect to perform it.

I copied the following info on how I practice from another thread:
For learning a piece with limited time:

1. Go through the piece and mark the difficult spots.

2. Don't waste time trying to play it faster than you can play it correctly. At best you are wasting time, but you may be learning incorrect notes too.

3. Focus on the difficult sections. Take these sections in small chunks. Use a metronome set a speed that you can play the section note perfect. This may be VERY slow. Gradually increase the speed of the metronome. Also, use alternative rhythms, such as dotted-eighth sixteenth, or sixteenth dotted-eighth. Take a break when your fingers start to get tangled.

4. Minimize time spent on run-thrus. Do just enough run thrus to retain the work you've done, but focus on the parts that are difficult, not the parts that are easy.

Phineas · Post by **Phineas** » Thu Jan 01, 2009 8:45 am

Its called memorization!

It seems this statement is frowned on in the classical world. however, this is exactly what you are doing. Any piece or passage that you know from memory, you can play fast. Also, if you can play the piece perfectly from memory at half speed, you can usually play it full speed with out any issues.

The next key, as Fluteguy18 says, is to know what you want the piece to sound like. Listening to recordings will help quite a bit. Most good musicians are fanatic listeners!

Lastly, do not let yourself get burnt out. Be consistent, but do not beat it to death. I have found when I have to perfom a dificult piece, I will work on it for a couple of days, rest a day. It seems when I com back to it, it is easier to play. I think a healthy rest period gives the piece time to sink in. If I had only an hour a day for practice, I would work on it for 15-20 minutes, and put it aside!

Lastly, try playing with the recording. Better yet, try playing it without looking at the sheet. In other words, try playing portions of the piece strictly by ear. This is another good way to memorize a piece.

Phineas

PS. Fluteguy18, go to your myspace page and put me on your friend list

Mandera3 · Post by **Mandera3** » Thu Jan 01, 2009 3:34 pm

WHat works best for me is play through it once all teh way through as if you were performing. Even if it sounds liek crap, play through the entire thing. THen if you have a time constraint, pick out one part that gave to some trouble and just work on that part. Break it up as much as you have to. Then when you are done, play through the entire song again. You can see some of yoru process ven if it is only small, plus you have played through the entire piece once. If you have seven trouble spots, hit one a day and only focus on that spot, plus, by playing throughj it once before and after, after a week you will have fixed 7 problem spots and will have played through it 14 times. It adds up. trust me

etgohomeok · Post by **etgohomeok** » Fri Jan 09, 2009 6:46 am

Alright, thanks, I think I'm getting little bit better at stuff. Only one problem. That part two measures after H (I know you all have the music for it sitting around handy), the part with the triplets run for the first two beats and rest for the second two beats. Here, I'll get a screenshot for you...

Yeah, that part doesn't work for me. I can get through the rest of the song and play through it real slowly, but whenever I get to that part no matter what my fingers go )(^%E%^&&^BY.

fluttiegurl · Post by **fluttiegurl** » Fri Jan 09, 2009 7:37 am

Part of it is probably mental. It looks pretty frightening, but is actually quite easy on the fingers. There is actually a broken chord here (though like with my students, I am not going to tell you what it is so you can figure it out

) in octaves. Pick out this chord and play it in separate octaves, backward and forward, using various rhythms and articulations. Sounds funny, but once you have the chord under your fingers, the section of the piece should flow. It is a matter of taking something unfamiliar and making it into something you already know. Here is an instance where a little theory knowledge could help a lot.

As Phineas stated, it is a matter of memorizing the section, or at least allowing your fingers to memorize it.

fluteguy18 · Post by **fluteguy18** » Fri Jan 09, 2009 9:39 am

That two beat run is something that a lot of people have trouble with. True, it isn't that hard fingering-wise, but making sure you are open and supporting is the trick.

Just do it slowly. It takes practice.

Phineas · Post by **Phineas** » Sat Jan 10, 2009 10:07 am

etgohomeok wrote:Alright, thanks, I think I'm getting little bit better at stuff. Only one problem. That part two measures after H (I know you all have the music for it sitting around handy), the part with the triplets run for the first two beats and rest for the second two beats. Here, I'll get a screenshot for you...

Yeah, that part doesn't work for me. I can get through the rest of the song and play through it real slowly, but whenever I get to that part no matter what my fingers go )(^%E%^&&^BY.

Yeah, it is nothing more that a B7b5 arpeggio starting on the 3rd.

B D# F A

This is a very common jazz chord. This passage

D# F A B D# F A B D# F A D# F

This how I practice my arpeggios. from the bottom of the instrument to the top.

You could master this just practicing the arpeggio.

Phineas

c_otter · Post by **c_otter** » Sat Jan 10, 2009 3:13 pm

Slow the run down even more until it is easy. Ex. Set the metronome to 60, play one click per note. If your fingers still tangle, try 2 clicks per note. Then gradually increase the speed of the metronome.

In addition try varying rhythm and groupings.
Ex:
Slow (S) Fast (F) S F S F S F S F;
F S F S F S F S F S;
F F S F F S F F S F F S;
S F F S F F S F F;
F S F F S F F S F;
F F F S F F F S F F F S; etc

practive the notes, in groups of 3,4,6 etc

Practicing this way may not be the most fun thing to do, but it is fairly efficient.

Brooke · Post by **Brooke** » Sat Jan 31, 2009 1:55 pm

This is an old thread, but I thought I would share something that I do when I run into problems with a short passage like that. I practice it backwards! I will start with the last two notes, then play them (forwards) until my fingers feel good, then I will add on the 3rd to last note, and play the last three over and over. I will keep adding on a new note every time I have played the previous perfectly several times. If I make a mistake, I start the count over. I find that this works better for me than doing it from left to right, as when I do it that way the run (or whatever it is I am working on) doesn't flow as well.