Skip to main content

Yielding to Temptation

Ever since I learned the notes of the Bach Prelude (BWV 866), I've been playing it at a snail's pace. In this recording (click), I've sped it up to the furious pace of ♪=50. The suggested tempo is ♩=72, which is about three times faster. Here's András Schiff playing it a more typical tempo:



So you can see that I have a long way to go.

A couple of days ago, one day into my "staycation," I began inching up the tempo. I have been determined not to rush the tempo increase. I want my fingers to be strong and my mind confident by the time I get to the goal tempo.

So I inched up to ♪=52. And then ♪=54. And then ♪=56. And on and on, playing it several times at each tempo. It sounded good! I wasn't just focusing on hitting the right notes; I was intent on making it sound smooth, not plodding or "punching," keeping my fingers light.

♪=58. ♪=60. ♪=63. ♪=66.

It was easy. I wasn't sure if I should speed up so many notches in one practice session, but ... oh goodness, I was having so much fun!

♪=69. ♪=72. ♪=76. ♪=80.

♪=80. Do you know what that means? Yes, that means ...

♩=40!


I stopped there. It was too good to be true. I'd reached the point where a quarter note was equal to the lowest number on the metronome. Progress! A kind of victory, even!

Everything was sounding good. I had a few places where my fingers stumbled a bit, but I would stop and work on them, drill them little, and then play them through again. It sounded fine. To me, at least.

The next day (yesterday), I started at ♪=56 and worked my way back up to ♪=80.

And then today ... I couldn't help myself. I yielded to temptation. I turned the metronome off and blistered through that prelude as fast as I could.

It wasn't perfect ... but it was a lot better than I thought it would be. I've played that darn thing so many times by now that my fingers just know what to do. I felt like I was listening to someone else play. I wasn't even thinking about my hands. I was just enjoying the moment.

The piece at ♩=72 (or whatever tempo I was using ... probably more like ♩=60) has an entirely different effect than at ♪=58. It's electric at that faster tempo. It feels and sounds like another piece entirely.

And it is so much fun.

So now I feel like a energetic dog on a leash when I play it at ♪=72. I want out of that leash. I want to run free! I want to fly through it the way Glenn Gould does ... even though I don't even like it that fast!!



I haven't played this for my piano teacher in a while, so I imagine she'll have some constructive criticism next week when I play it at, oh, maybe ♪=60. But I definitely feel like I'm turning a corner with this one.

And what has come into view as I turn that corner?

That's right. The fugue. I don't want to start it until my teacher gives me the go-ahead, but I have a feeling I'll be starting it soon.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

The Rusty Lock and Key

I'm in a room. There's a door in front of me. On the other side of that door is a whole world of adventure and imagination and joy and delight, but for the moment, I'm locked in this gray little room. The door itself has a lock that is all rusted. I've tried to open it in the past, but I've never gotten very far. Sometimes I try to scrape the rust off the lock. I also have a rusty old key that I occasionally try to polish. Each time, after I've made a little progress, I'll put it into the keyhole in hopes of opening the door. It turns a half a millimeter or so, but the brief excitement at my progress dies quickly when I realize, once again, the lock isn't opening. I set the old key aside, and from there I can forget about the door, the lock, and the world outside, for months—years, even. But then something happens—I hear birdsong, or I catch a glimpse of color—and I pick up the key and start picking away at the stubborn rust. That dark little room is my ...

The Amazing Practice Tracker 2.0: Leveling Up My Piano Game

(Apologies for the cheesy clip art. I needed to come up with something, or the Blogger template would show a fuzzy, overly-enlarged snippet of the first chart below.) When I showed my husband my piano practice tracker, he said I should market and sell it. Ha. It’s not for sale, but I’m excited to share how this tool has transformed my practice—and why it might inspire all three of my readers. Since my last post about the Amazing Practice Tracker, I’ve made it even better. Here’s a peek at how it works, using my June data. All The Pretty Colors, All the Pretty Winners My tracker now sparkles with color: darker shades for active pieces, lighter ones for maintenance, technique, and sight-reading. Each day, the piece I practice most gets a bright yellow highlight—a little “gold medal,” if you will. (Click image for a slightly larger view.) A leaderboard automatically shows the day’s top piece and time. And if that isn't enough, I keep track of the month's leaders--specifically, ho...

March Goals Recap/Looking Ahead to April

It's April 1, and time to revisit the goals I set for last month. I practiced a total of 50.45 hours in March, averaging 1.62 hours (or just over an hour and a half) per day. Realistically, I practice about 45 minutes to an hour a day on weekdays, and I usually get at least one longer practice (or multiple shorter practices) in on one or both days of the weekend to bring the average up. CLASSICAL GOALS Chopin, F Minor Nocturne March Goal: Have entire piece by memory and performance-ready. I have about 90% of the piece by memory, but I still have some work to do before it's performance-ready. The only two sections that I don't quite have are "The Agitation" and the "stretto" section with the seventh chords. I'll work on both this week and will have them both memorized before the weekend. April Goal: Finish memorizing, and polish, polish, polish! My focus now is really on phrasing and dynamics. I have the notes down, even in the difficult passages. Fro...