-
Hi Noa,
Yea implementing deliberate practice into not just solving a passage but planning specifically what and how I’ll practice something has helped tremendously. Specially when I write how I’ll try to practice a passage, it becomes much easier to keep in mind during the session. For example if I apply deliberate practice on a passage and the problem is that it’s not at tempo, the possible solutions would be the many ways to get it up to tempo (chaining, rhythms, etc). Then I can experiment with two of those strategies (such as slow rhythms- then speeding it up vs chaining at tempo rhythms) to see which one yields the best after recording. So far that 5 rep max when doing deliberate practice on a passage seems to work really well when I couple it with writing down the possible solutions; it helps to keep things moving and start fresh when I eventually come back to it. I was wondering if a good way of testing a possible solution would be to imagine how that solution would look like? Like if I’m trying “anticipate the thumb” would it work well to imagine the physical feeling of anticipating it, or would it be better to just think “anticipate the thumb” and then focus on staying relaxed?
I’d have to experiment with it more, but when I find a working solution; in addition to what you said earlier about moving on and then recalling the solution, would there be drawbacks to implementing that solution by practicing it slowly but mindfully, interleaving it, and then slowly increasing the tempo? Because from what I understood from fast practice, the main drawback of practicing slowly is that you can learn things that won’t work at the goal tempo. The “things” that come to mind are tension, moving the fingers slowly and having to use more air (for wind players, which actually might not be totally a bad thing). I’ve heard teachers say to think fast and move the fingers fast; and as I write that I realize that that’s why it’s helpful to do chaining first, so you can get a feel for how fast the fingers will have to move. I’d have to experiment with doing deliberate practice and fixing an interval at tempo (which so far I’ve found to be harder) vs implementing the solution slowly. What are your thoughts on the two? If I’m sure that the problem is that the thumb is moving too slow would you recommend I practice that motion in slow motion or at tempo?
Most importantly, now I’m starting to feel like I’m really practicing and I can’t thank you enough,
Luca