September 2018 Plog

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September 7th, 2018

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I can now play the first two pages of Suggestion Diabolique without looking at the music too much. I got stuck on the first couple lines of the second page, but after thirty minutes of work, I was able to get through them without the music. My progress continued until I finally finished the first page, but even then, if I went back I would still have to review it a couple of times before I could take the music away. I spent an hour and a half on Suggestion Diabolique today, and was proud of being able to accomplish my memorization goal.

I spent the next hour and a half focusing on Brahms. I could write about the work I did with his 2nd Rhapsody, but what was really fun was the work I did with his Ballade 1. I was surprised I remembered it without too much review, so the time I spent on it today was just about focusing on certain measures rather than struggling with the whole piece. I also forgot how much I liked it, since it doesn't sound like much other Romantic Era music I have heard. I have played it at retirement homes before, and even though it is not very popular, it puts me in a trance. The second page is tremendous, which is showcased at the 2:15 minute mark in the following Youtube video:

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September 10th, 2018

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I knew I was not going to get in my usual four hours of practice time in today due to my performing and teaching jobs, so I made sure to plan out my practice schedule before I started. I knew I wanted to sightread for at least forty five minutes, so that only left me an hour and a half of regular practice time. I continued with my memorization practice of Suggestion Diabolique, starting at page 2. It can be frustrating, because sometimes what I learn only stays in my short term memory, so everyday I have to spend at least twenty minutes reviewing what I played the previous day. It was difficult today memorizing Suggestion Diabolique, unfortunately. I figured it was because it was a Monday and I was not completely ready to jump back into a 100% focused practice session yet. My better practice sessions will probably come later, but today, I was a little distracted. I had three piano jobs today, and I was not sure I was ready for any of them. Now at night when I am typing this, I can say all my piano jobs went well, and the only effect it had on me was that it drained me in a regular, work-related way.

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September 11th, 2018

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I had more time to practice today since I did not have any performing or teaching jobs. I started with Suggestion Diabolique like always, however this time I knew what sections to focus on performance wise, since I played it for Alexander Gardens yesterday. I got a little flustered right before the section with the opposing scales, so I practiced the transition into that. It is strange, because I can play it fine when I am by myself, but in front of others I lose my concentration. I think it is because at that point the piece is nearing it's end, so I am exhausted. It may have more to do with stamina than anything else. In addition to practicing that transitional section, I resumed memorization of page 2. At this point my memorization is steadily improving, and I am confident I will be able to play this piece by myself, without music, within the next 2 weeks.

I decided to have more fun today, so I practiced Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum from Debussy's collection, "Children's Corner." It came back to me quickly, so I felt good about my muscle memory. I also feel confident about being able to perform it in front of people again, so I think I will do that the next time I am in front of an audience.

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September 12th, 2018

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I am starting to get more excited about practicing because I am currently reviewing older pieces which I enjoyed greatly. These pieces are Brahm's Ballade 1, his 2nd Rhapsody, and Debussy's Doctor Gradus ad Parnassum from his collection called "Children's Corner." Brahm's Ballade seems to be coming back to me quicker than I thought. I notice chords stay in my muscle memory much longer than melody sequences. I am not sure why this is, but it is an advantage that I like to focus on. Rachmaninoff's Prelude in C# minor is applicable to this in the way that it has a lot of big chords. Even if I do not practice the piece for months, I can still come back to it and remember the chords. I think Rachmaninoff is known for this in his music, since he has a large finger span. It was said he could reach a twelfth, meaning he could rest his pinky on a C and reach up to play the 2nd G with his thumb. Personally, I can only reach a 9th comfortably to be able to play it during a piece accurately.

I spent a couple hours total reviewing Debussy and Brahms. With Debussy, I focused on little details, such as staccatos, to make sure the piece sounded precise. I also played around with the speed, since it can change the feeling a piece has immensely. To review the Ballade, I spent time on the second page most, repeating what was giving me trouble the most. It was not too difficult to get back into, and I was happy with the progress I made.

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September 13th, 2018

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Nothing new was practiced today, and that is how I prefer it considering I am just starting to remember the Debussy and Brahms piece. Maybe I will review Reverie by Debussy, but currently, I am going to stick with these two. I might start playing some Beethoven Sonatas which I once played, or maybe "Harp" by Prokofiev, but those do not interest me as much as the Brahms or Debussy. I might have reached a point where I am not that interested in my older repertoire. Mozart might be a good composer to review. I learned his variations on "Twinkle Twinkle" a while ago, and that was fun, but I am not sure I am interested in playing that again. Bach is a composer I am interested in playing, so I think I will relearn his Partita 2, Sinfonia piece I know. It is an impressive piece and requires a lot of finger dexterity, which I may have improved upon during the years. I was able to remember Bach's Partita 2 without much difficulty, however it's speed always intimidates me. I know I need to perform it more, and that is when it will get further ingrained in my muscle memory. Music can only get memorized so much by solo practice. I feel that the rest of the memorization process comes from playing in front of others, since it puts the pianist in many different frames of mind while learning the muscle memory.

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September 17th, 2018

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I had an excellent time practicing today. It was incredibly fun playing Brahms' Ballade 1 and Bach's Partita 2. I spent about an hour and a half on Brahms' Ballade 1, starting with the first page, making my way towards the end. I was proud of all the progress I made with Ballade 1, and I will be ready to perform it at the next retirement home I go to. Bach's Partita 2 felt great to play, for the reason that I was able to remember it without much effort. That meant I could spend time on other aspects of the piece other than memorization. When it gets quick is a joy to play, especially if you are able to play it accurately. I will be ready to perform this piece at the next retirement home performance as well.

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September 18th, 2018

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I tried something different today and started practicing Mozart's K545 again. It is one of Mozart's most popular pieces, introducing aspects such as a lot of different scales and several interesting trills. It is a piece most beginners learn within the first two to three years of playing piano, since it is a good introduction to increased levels of dexterity. I was happy to be able to play through almost all of it without many problems. All it took was a little repetition of the trouble sections to get my muscle memory back.

The second piece I practiced today was a surprise to me, since I just decided this morning I would be spending time on it. It was a piece I have not yet mentioned yet in my practice logs, called Capriccio 1 by Brahms. I was able to remember the first page of it without much difficulty, but I stopped there. I tried working on the second page, but I was too exhausting from relearning Mozart and the first page of Brahms to be able to continue. This Tuesday was an entertaining, productive day of practicing that I hope to continue throughout the week.

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September 19th, 2018

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I was able to remember more of Brahms' Capriccio 1 today, including the fingering. It is tricky because sometimes I need to take the bass clef with the right hand and it is not written in the music to do so. The only way to understand the need to do this is by instruction and previous encounters with similar passages. I did not pick up the 2nd page of Capriccio 1 as fast as Mozart's K545, but I made good progress in stimulating my muscle memory.

In addition to Brahms, I continued working with Mozart and finished the first movement of K545. I was surprised that I already knew most of it by memory, and all I had to do was a refresher in order to be able to play it again. One thing I was thinking during my practice session was how excited I was to be able to play it for people again, given how well received it usually is.

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September 20th, 2018

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I went through my new practice routine which involves Mozart and Brahms. I started with K545 and drilled the portions that were giving me slight troubles, for 101 minutes. After that I took a break, and after my break I went through the second page of Brahms' Capriccio 1. After that I continued with Un Sospiro since I knew I was going to the Californian later in the day. I wanted to review Un Sospiro to make sure I could play it all the way through. So far I have difficulty doing so, and cannot wait for the day I can play Un Sospiro well during a performance.

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September 21st, 2018

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Tomorrow I am going to Heritage House, so I spent today practicing my older repertoire. I am still a little nervous about playing there because of the larger crowd. To combat this I only choose my easier pieces to perform. I have gone to retirement homes in the past and tried to perform harder pieces, and it usually goes well, but sometimes when those homes do not call me back I cannot help but think maybe it is because I did not play well enough.

I continued with my usual practice session pieces today such as Mozart's K545, and Brahms' Capriccio 1 and Ballade 1. I think today is going to be the last time I will practice Mozart since it is not too difficult for me. I will review it before performances, but not for everyday practicing. Next week I will resume practicing Suggestion Diabolique again. This week was a nice change playing my older pieces though.

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September 25th, 2018

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Today marked my return to Suggestion Diabolique, and I was impressed with how much I remembered after taking a 10 day break. The reason I took my break is because I had reached a plateau, and I noticed this with all the boredom I was encountering praciticing Suggestion Diabolique. I found I was getting bored even writing about Suggestion Diabolique, which also told me that I needed to refresh my mind with something new, even if it was something I played in my past. What I am referring to is all the Brahms I started to review again, including the Capriccio, the Ballade, and the Rhapsody. I am having the most difficulty remembering the Capriccio, and I am thinking that maybe it is because I did not perform it enough. I remembered Brahms' 2nd Rhapsody without much difficulty, but the Capriccio is taking me several practice sessions to get in my fingers again. After I sat down with Suggestion Diabolique, I brought out Brahms' Capriccio 1 and was able to remember the 3rd page, however I barely was able to make it to the bottom.

It is a pleasant feeling though, remembering a piece you used to love. Brahms' Capriccio 1 was a piece that I played during a frustrating moment in my life where I was uncertain how I was going to move my piano studio in a positive direction. I was learning it right before I bought my baby grand, and I was having the most difficult time trying to figure out how I was going to adjust my life so it would be an easy transition. I am talking about how I was going to explain to my neighbors how I suddenly bought a piano, since I was so used to practicing on weighted keyboards at home. The advantage of weighted keyboards is that you can plug in headphones to silence them, and I was not going to be able to practice 4 hours of piano a day on a baby grand without anybody noticing. After talking with my landlord and understanding that he needed to nap intermittently for health reasons, I was able to invent something that would silence my baby grand enough so that I could practice anytime I want without anybody noticing. Somebody I hope to patent and sell it, but for the time being it is my personal invention. While all this was happening I was going through emotional highs and lows because I did not know if I had to move, since to progress my career I needed a piano. The piece I was practicing through all of this was Capriccio 1, so when I think of it I think of that time.

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September 26th, 2018

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I was proud of myself today because I was able to finish remembering Capriccio 1. The last page to me came quicker than I thought, and my muscle memory completely took over after I read the notes a couple of times. I was almost able to play the last page at full speed, which surprised me since I had a difficult time with the previous page yesterday. I have learned that I am able to remember pieces within the first week of taking them up again, and Capriccio 1 is proving no different. This confidence is making me think I can start playing some of Beethoven's Sonatas I put down long ago, such as his Op. 49. No. 1 Sonata. I performed that piece at my first adult recital at Santa Barbara City College 7 years ago, however it did not go well. When I was playing it, my left hand was a full beat behind my right hand and it felt overall disjointed. I was a mess during that first music salon at SBCC, and I remember spending a lot of the following weekend in bed as a result. I was able to get my confidence back at the 2nd music salon of 2011, since I had started playing at retirement homes to get experience. SBCC had 4 music salons total that year, and it took the embarrassment of the 1st to get me playing as well as I did in the following 3.