Ode to Joy, Day 9: Timers, Left Hand Work, and The Reddest of the Red

In my journey through the Learn New Repertoire Faster Challenge at Piano with Rebecca B, I’ve reached Day 9 of Jonny May’s stride arrangement of Ode to Joy. Each day of the challenge has a particular topic, and today’s topic was interval timers, so I integrated that into my work on Batches 1 and 3 today.

Interval Timers

There is a wealth of options (apps) for anyone wanting to use an interval timer, but I just use the timer in my phone clock. Which I guess is another app. Anyway, sometimes I use the timer for interleaving (spending just a few minutes on one section before switching), and other times it’s just to avoid losing track of time. I also track how many minutes I spend on each piece/project, so the timer is essential.

Left Hand Work and Interleaving

Today I isolated the left hand in both batches. I’ve been practicing mostly hands together, but this is stride. The left hand has to be smooth and steady, with little room for error. It needs to feel automatic at any tempo. I used the timer to make sure I spent some focused time on the left hand for each passage.

I also did some interleaving: five minutes on the left hand for Passages 2 and 3 of Batch 1, then five minutes on the tricky right-hand section of Passage 1 of Batch 2. Back and forth a few times. It makes a difference. Each return felt a little more solid.

Where I Am Now

Today I say goodbye to Batch 1. I won’t revisit it for a week. Tomorrow I’ll continue Batch 3 and reintroduce Batch 2, similar to what I did with Batch 1 this weekend. The next day I set Batch 3 aside and begin the very red Batch 4. Everything overlaps. There’s a rhythm and a logic to it, even if it doesn't feel intuitive.

In this video, I walk through the reddest of the red Batch 3 passages so far: measures 48–51. Yesterday I couldn’t play this at all. I threw all my practice tools at it, including mental practice last night and again this morning before getting out of bed. I probably even dreamed about it. Something worked, because it was much smoother today. Not perfect, but good enough to demonstrate. I also talk through why this section is so challenging.

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