I know the question is pretty specific, but this is really good general advice. Prectice slowly to develop every element of our technique and sound. Basically, practice slowly to build the foundation for playing fast.
I look at a page full of 16th+ notes or a fast tempo and immediately try to play at that tempo. This always ends in frustration and discouragement. Especially when I am practicing in anticipation of an upcoming lesson. Instructor tells me how to practice but I get anxious and try to play like an accomplished professional. My focus is always on the result never the process. I listened to (on Audible) The Practicing Mind by Thomas M. Sterner and learned about focusing on the process rather than the goal. So, I'm working on making that switch. I'm listening to The Talent Code: Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown. Here's How. By: Daniel Coyle (thanks Cally!) to help reinforce the process-oriented mindset. I am training myself to focus on the process of learning to focus on the process rather than focusing on the goal of focusing on the process. Good times!
Great points. I am all for fundamentals before speed. My exception is for overall performance practice checkups/ checks like general run throughs and sight reading practice, as both have other lessons to take and examine for the day. I also like adding speed with bursts and note groups, you said “chunks”, then adding to the bigger chunks to get endurance and experience doing it over larger sections. I do believe in the “SAID” principal. I learned that one many years ago with physical fitness. It was “specific adaptation to intense demands”. Both your body and mind have to learn to grow with, adapt, and handle the basic demands that you are expecting. You just can’t walk on stage and expect “continued success” doing something that you have not prepared. Anything is possible and you could get “one time success” on a first attempt at anything. However, the likelihood of you replicating what you just did may be very small. I also apply this “SAID” principle to being a musician as it is very physical so you do eventually have to practice like you perform, so I do get that side of the speed. I believe you cover this best with how you( Cally) approached it with fundamentals first and then SMART planning to reach your overall goal(s).
Sorry after doing all that, how should you press the reed, raise the teeth together with the lip or press the reed horizontally or vertically, how should the lip touch the reed, that's the whole problem
I have two related problems learning fast passages. I do break the passage into chunks, but I have trouble combining all the chunks. Take for example the 10 bars of rapid tongued sixteenth notes at the end of "The Shepherd on the Rock". I can consistently play any four consecutive bars of the passage, sometimes play five consecutive bars, but hardly ever six consecutive bars. A related problem I have is playing passages "in context". I'll have a passage that I can consistently play by itself, but I mess up when I play the preceding passage first. This is particularly frustrating because frequently I'll only have the problem after playing a fairly long preceding passage. The straight forward approach is to practice both the lead in and the difficult passage slowly. This takes a very long time, because I only have trouble when the preceding passage is long, and it involves multiple repetitions at a slow tempo of music I can consistently play at tempo.
Oh I really feel this. Such a struggle sometimes 😭 Usually if I can't play a passage exactly as it's supposed to be by the performance I make changes so I can at least "fake it" ... Like adding little slurs into fast articulation, stuff like that.
My advice is to add the first section into the second section gradually. Let's say the first section is 40 measures and the second section is 10 meaures. So measures 1-50. I would figure out how much of the first 40 measures I can add in without any errors. Let's say that I find I can do measures 20-50 at speed with no errors. I would then practice measures 19-50 until I can play at speed with no errors, then move on to practicing measures 18-50 until I can get it at speed with no errors, and continue, until I can get all 50 measures at speed with no errors. If I could not get all 50 measures error free at spped in one practice session, I would repeat some or all of the process in subsequent practice sessions.
I play bass clarinet and am fearful of pieces that have several measures of 16th notes. Is it harder to play fast on the bigger bass clarinet or is it that I’m just not practiced in playing long stretches of 16th notes.
Oh yeah I totally get this. If I haven't played bass in awhile and I have to do a lot of fast technique, I have to build up my muscle control again. I find repetitive scale practice a great way to keep fingers in shape! 💪
What happens when you're in a situation where new music is passed out, not only are you sight reading, but you have all these difficult passages? and to make matters even more uncomfortable the person playing next to you is having no problem at all...then you get ..."The look of death" from the conductor.
Lol just try my best and then practice when I get home! But staying in shape with scales (especially the DeRoche version of Albert scales) and other fundamentals has improved my sight reading tremendously over the years
I know the question is pretty specific, but this is really good general advice. Prectice slowly to develop every element of our technique and sound. Basically, practice slowly to build the foundation for playing fast.
Spot on!
I'll try it thanks for the advice,😊 btw you looking beautiful and presentable 🤩
I look at a page full of 16th+ notes or a fast tempo and immediately try to play at that tempo. This always ends in frustration and discouragement. Especially when I am practicing in anticipation of an upcoming lesson. Instructor tells me how to practice but I get anxious and try to play like an accomplished professional. My focus is always on the result never the process. I listened to (on Audible) The Practicing Mind by Thomas M. Sterner and learned about focusing on the process rather than the goal. So, I'm working on making that switch. I'm listening to The Talent Code: Greatness Isn't Born. It's Grown. Here's How. By: Daniel Coyle (thanks Cally!) to help reinforce the process-oriented mindset. I am training myself to focus on the process of learning to focus on the process rather than focusing on the goal of focusing on the process. Good times!
Great points. I am all for fundamentals before speed. My exception is for overall performance practice checkups/ checks like general run throughs and sight reading practice, as both have other lessons to take and examine for the day.
I also like adding speed with bursts and note groups, you said “chunks”, then adding to the bigger chunks to get endurance and experience doing it over larger sections.
I do believe in the “SAID” principal. I learned that one many years ago with physical fitness. It was “specific adaptation to intense demands”. Both your body and mind have to learn to grow with, adapt, and handle the basic demands that you are expecting. You just can’t walk on stage and expect “continued success” doing something that you have not prepared. Anything is possible and you could get “one time success” on a first attempt at anything. However, the likelihood of you replicating what you just did may be very small.
I also apply this “SAID” principle to being a musician as it is very physical so you do eventually have to practice like you perform, so I do get that side of the speed. I believe you cover this best with how you( Cally) approached it with fundamentals first and then SMART planning to reach your overall goal(s).
Sorry after doing all that, how should you press the reed, raise the teeth together with the lip or press the reed horizontally or vertically, how should the lip touch the reed, that's the whole problem
I have two related problems learning fast passages. I do break the passage into chunks, but I have trouble combining all the chunks. Take for example the 10 bars of rapid tongued sixteenth notes at the end of "The Shepherd on the Rock". I can consistently play any four consecutive bars of the passage, sometimes play five consecutive bars, but hardly ever six consecutive bars.
A related problem I have is playing passages "in context". I'll have a passage that I can consistently play by itself, but I mess up when I play the preceding passage first. This is particularly frustrating because frequently I'll only have the problem after playing a fairly long preceding passage. The straight forward approach is to practice both the lead in and the difficult passage slowly. This takes a very long time, because I only have trouble when the preceding passage is long, and it involves multiple repetitions at a slow tempo of music I can consistently play at tempo.
Oh I really feel this. Such a struggle sometimes 😭 Usually if I can't play a passage exactly as it's supposed to be by the performance I make changes so I can at least "fake it" ... Like adding little slurs into fast articulation, stuff like that.
Practice playing from the last measure of one chunk to the first measure of the next chunk. That should help you "sew" the two pieces together.
My advice is to add the first section into the second section gradually.
Let's say the first section is 40 measures and the second section is 10 meaures. So measures 1-50. I would figure out how much of the first 40 measures I can add in without any errors. Let's say that I find I can do measures 20-50 at speed with no errors. I would then practice measures 19-50 until I can play at speed with no errors, then move on to practicing measures 18-50 until I can get it at speed with no errors, and continue, until I can get all 50 measures at speed with no errors.
If I could not get all 50 measures error free at spped in one practice session, I would repeat some or all of the process in subsequent practice sessions.
great advice!
I play bass clarinet and am fearful of pieces that have several measures of 16th notes. Is it harder to play fast on the bigger bass clarinet or is it that I’m just not practiced in playing long stretches of 16th notes.
Oh yeah I totally get this. If I haven't played bass in awhile and I have to do a lot of fast technique, I have to build up my muscle control again. I find repetitive scale practice a great way to keep fingers in shape! 💪
What happens when you're in a situation where new music is passed out, not only are you sight reading, but you have all these difficult passages? and to make matters even more uncomfortable the person playing next to you is having no problem at all...then you get ..."The look of death" from the conductor.
Lol just try my best and then practice when I get home! But staying in shape with scales (especially the DeRoche version of Albert scales) and other fundamentals has improved my sight reading tremendously over the years
@@callyclarinet Thank you, I shall have a look into those.
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