Another good practice day

I wanted to go on and on and on tonight, but the clock struck 12 and I needed to stop, so I did. I had a really great practice session tonight. One a forum I frequent (but don't post at often), there was a thread about biggest mistakes a person can make while practicing. I took the advice given there to heart. So my method of practicing I used tonight was to start playing the songs through and as soon as I hit a wrong note, I drilled that particular section 40, 50 times or more. I have no idea how many times. I didn't count. Some sections that I drilled were only a measure long, or sometimes even shorter. I played my Schubert Impromptu through once and it took me 40 minutes with all the drills I did. This piece normally takes 10 minutes to play, and I'm fairly proficient at it. I believe this may have been one of the pieces I auditioned with for my piano scholarship, but it's been 13 years so don't quote me on that. Since it was so perfected at one point, my fingers still "know" the piece pretty well, but there's always improvements to be made.

Then I went to my Chopin Nocturne and I used the same technique. I got through 3 measures before the clock struck 12. I think this piece will take me a full hour or, more likely, longer to practice in this manner. I'd like to continue practicing this way, though. I feel like I accomplished a lot more today. Perhaps I'll work on one page at a time in this way until I can practice it this way with it only taking me a half hour. Hm.

So I got in a full hour of practicing today. But I did do some improve earlier in the day. My husband stayed up at a coworker's this evening because he was so tired and traffic was so bad, so I intended to practice from about 9 or 10 until midnight, and I put the kids to bed at 7 to plan for that. Alas, they didn't fall asleep until about 10, 10:15, and I didn't want to risk waking them up by practicing right away! So I made crackers until 11 and then got in my hour. Maybe someday I'll be able to get in the 2-3 hours a day that I really need.

Amazing

I'm feeling so good after today's session. I only got in 55 minutes before midnight tonight, but the minutes I got really counted today. I made some amazing progress in all the pieces I worked on today, specifically my nocturne. There are three sections where I just can't get up to speed, as they are lightning fast. But I know I can play fast because my fingers move very quickly with my Schubert piece, so fast that if I look down, they look blurry to me. I know I can do it. It's just getting my fingers to move that way that is the tricky part. I learned the Schubert 13 or 14 years ago and my fingers still remember it, so I have a lot of years with that one, and the Chopin is new as of November. I've been thinking about how to make my fingers move, and it dawned on me as I was drilling one of the super-fast sections. Movement. Limited movement. I noticed on my way up, I wasn't crossing my thumb under the rest of my fingers to get up the scale, but I was on the descent, and I am much faster ascending. So I started working on lifting my thumb and moving my whole hand down, not just the fourth finger, in order to work on getting up to speed.

It's working. And I'm thrilled. I played through the whole piece today after I was done with my drills. I had the *sigh* feeling when I finished like I get when I play Clair de Lune. I cannot even begin to tell you how happy that makes me feel. I seriously felt like I was floating on air. I could have played piano for hours after that, but I have to get up for 9 am church in the morning, so I couldn't. Not tonight.

I also worked on my Schubert number, which is so beautiful. I really only played it through, but it is sounding so much better. I'll probably have it memorized again within a week or two, and the trouble spots are really starting to disappear, though there are a couple more places I need to drill through before I will feel like I'm really there again. I am so close to allowing myself to pass this piece off.

I also worked on the Bach Fugue today. That is also coming along nicely. I didn't have an epiphany on this piece like I did the Chopin, but it is coming together so nicely. This piece will likely be ready in a few more weeks to where I am confident, and memorization will follow soon afterward. I don't really feel like I understand a piece of music until it is memorized. Once that happens, more good things follow, and soon it is so imprinted in my mind that it is hard to leave, unless I happen to have a 10 year hiatus on the piano (which won't happen again!).

Unfortunately, I had to kiss my piano good night and blog about my wonderful session instead of playing the whole night through like I wanted. I'm really hoping for more sessions like this in the coming week. I feel so good now.