Sunday 12 December 2010

3 Important Ingredient's Technique To Practicing Piano

By Bobby Lee


Have you ever felt as if your piano playing has turn out to be stagnant and isn't improving regardless of just how much you practice? The answer may not be the amount of time you put in, but rather the technique you use to practice properly.

I still remember when I was learning piano in my early years and also the practice session seemed to be so boring & unproductive. I never went beyond what my piano teacher assigned. Every session would always be in the exact same order: scales, arpeggios, classical pieces, and and so on. It quickly became tedious and uninteresting.

When one practices piano, one requires to obtain a balanced practice (I liken this to a balanced food diet). You've most likely heard of the food pyramid should you live within the US or any other westernized nation. Basically, we are told by FDA that you will find a few groups of foods that we have to take in on a daily basis to be healthy, such as grains, fruits and veggies, protein, dairy, and so on.

Similarly, in the piano playing world, you will find 3 main "ingredients" that we all have to consume in our practice sessions to turn out to be "healthier" pianists.

Here are the Three Important Ingredients:

Ingredient 1. Technical skills (scales, arpeggios,etc) - This is what I call the carbohydrate or "grains" of piano practice. Often these techniques could be used as fillers or runs on melodies which have long hold measures as well as modulation, transposition & and so on. It can be uninteresting or even boring if you don't know how to practice & how you can apply them. The truth is that few piano players know how to make use of the techniques & how to practice them with out getting bored. A suggested session of 5 to ten minutes every day technical exercises is often useful.

Ingredient 2. Repertoire--This will be the collection of musical pieces one knows how to play well. I like to call this the fruits and veggies of piano practice. A great piano player can effortlessly play anyplace from 25 to 75 pieces comfortably. Repertoire can range from classical pieces to hymns, or popular songs along with other pieces. By the way, repertoire is frequently performed without the player reading from sheet music. A good sight reading skill is important to develop broad repertoire. Piano player is suggested to learn a brand new piece each 2-4 weeks in order to broaden the repertoire collection.

Ingredient 3. Improvisational abilities--This is what I generally refer to as the protein of piano practice. A player that possesses outstanding sight reading & technical skill but has restricted ability to improvise is lopsided. For a lot of years I was in a position to play piano well, but knew deep in my heart that if I didn't memorize the pieces there would be no way that I could play any song with out constantly referring to the sheet music. This is similar to a public speaker who should continuously refer to their notes throughout a speech.

One ought to spend a minimum of 15-30 on improvisational practice exercises on a daily basis.

In addition to the Three Vital Ingredients mentioned above, I also recommend a minimum of 60 minutes of active listening and 60 minutes of passive listening to recorded music on a weekly basis. This can effortlessly be carried out when one is driving in their car or exercising.

The main difference in between active listening and passive listening is that with active listening you are attempting to hear what is going on within the recording where as in passive listening you're relaxing & not paying much attention. I often check out recordings of well-known performers and composers from my local library. There are hundreds of great recordings you are able to borrow from your library for free.

Should you ever need assist with any of the Important Ingredients, you will find fantastic tools to assist you:

The Definitive Piano Improvisation Course (http://www.playpianotips.com/DVD), is one of them. This course helps you to master the fascinating skills of improvisation & helps you turn out to be a competent piano player.

Another fantastic course will be the Hands Coordination, Runs and Fillers Course, (http://www.pianoimprov2.com). This course assists you make up your runs & fillers utilizing various techniques.

Mastering The Art Of Piano Sight Reading, (http://www.sightreadingtips.com)- is perfect for the beginner who needs help with mastering sight reading.




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