This week I’ve been staying in Edinburgh with a friend who is an excellent amateur pianist. She has attended many piano courses and masterclasses, both as a participant and observer. This led to some interesting discussions and observations about the differences between students and professional players. How can students learn to be more professional in their approach to performance?
Here are a few ideas:
1.
Those who are not accustomed to performing often shuffle on stage with not much more than a quick nod. It’s always a good idea to take time to bow. Smile at the audience. After all, they will hopefully praise and applaud your performance.
2.
Students can be glued to their scores. Aim to know the score well enough. This allows you to take your eyes off it during the concert. You can then focus entirely on the music. This will encourage a more convincing account. Alternatively find the confidence to perform from memory. It isn’t as frightening as you might imagine.
3.
Another common trait is to rush into the performance without giving much thought or ‘breathing space’ at the beginning. A few moments, probably around 30 seconds, should be enough, providing valuable time to concentrate on the opening bars.
4.
Try to spend crucial practice time ironing out tricky passages. A common trait is to master a piece beautifully except for one or two demanding sections. Find a strategy to cope with these areas. It will make all the difference to your overall performance.
5.
Play works that are well within your capabilities. Under pressure your technique may not meet the demands of a piece. Presenting a secure rendition of a less demanding piece will boost your confidence. You’ll feel better and more confident about future attempts.
6.
Convey the beauty within the music and learn to communicate. Focusing on the music will also take your mind off those pesky nerves, too.
7.
After you have finished playing, take your time and smile at your audience. Acknowledge their applause as opposed to running off stage.
8.
Take every opportunity to perform in as many settings as possible and enjoy it!
An excellent article here Mel, with some useful advice too. Thanks for this. I will be using some of the tinks here for my exam performance.
Thank you so much Steve – so pleased you found it useful. Hope you are very well 🙂
One thing I’ve observed as a problem with amateurs (especially pianists, because they are usually playing solo) is lack of a sense of pulse. Many people seem to build in miscounting because they don’t focus on it when they practice — they are trying to “just get the notes.” So long notes get short-changed, beats get compressed, rhythms and meters get distorted, and so on. It takes time, patience, and persistence, but I think it helps to practice with a metronome as well as practice counting out loud or at least mentally. (Counting while playing adds a tremendous dimension of difficulty! I can only keep it going for small sections, not entire pieces, but it’s very useful when I make myself do it even to that extent.)
I meant to make the point that this lack of pulse is one big thing that makes amateurs sound amateurish — sorry, didn’t mean to write so much about practicing. This is sort of an adjunct to your point #4.
Hi Harriet, Thank you for your comments. I totally agree with you about the apparent inability of some amateurs to keep time, but my post is really dealing with tips about performance practice not technique. If I was going to delve into the technical probelms of some amateurs then my blog post would last forever!! Technique is of course one area where many amateurs really do struggle.
Many thanks for including my links in your excellent blog site 🙂
In answer to #6:
Yes, professionals love the music, but don’t necessarily love performing. Probably the most notable examples would be the great Martha Argerich and, of course, Horowitz – both of whom are known to have suffered from terrible nerves.