In the last two piano sessions, I simply worked on Mozart piano sonata as a whole. In fact, there were lots of things to work on! I particularly wanted to work on the evenness of eighth notes in the left hand, adding dimension to the trills before the cadences of sections and capture that Mozart elegance.
Meanwhile, I wonder about my own practice philosophy. Not unlike to other players, I often find myself in a loop playing the piece from front to back. Furthermore, this habit seems almost ingrained in me. Thus, I do it without thinking.
Front to Back
Similarly to other students, I wonder what am I trying to achieve with this method. To be honest, I believe that it’s just simply fun to be able to hear the whole piece, even when there are sections that are rocky to get through.
On further thought, I think this feeling is natural. It’s a piece of music I’m interested in and find beautiful, so naturally I would want to listen to the whole thing. Even when aware of effective practice methods, I find myself engaging in block practicing.
I believe that approaching practice without a plan can be very abstract. To illustrate, I think: Where do I start? Where do I end? Consequently, I start at the beginning and finish at the end. Moreover, practicing without a plan encourages playing the piece front to back.
In order to test out this theory, I am coming up with a plan!
Mozart Sonata Piano Practice Plan
Excerpt 1:
Goal: to play rhythm evenly to add consistency
Excerpt 2:
Goal: practice fingering on third bar to create small transition into F major, specifically, to get this passage very smooth.
Excerpt 3:
Goal: smoother and more elegant execution of trill, especially the ending of the trill
Whole Piece x 1
Excerpt 1 x 3
Excerpt 2 x 3
Excerpt 3 x 3
Excerpt 2 x 3
Excerpt 3 x 3
Whole Piece x 1
Excerpt 1 x 3
Excerpt 3 x 3
Excerpt 1 x 3
Excerpt 2 x3
Whole Piece x 1
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Eric Ng (B.Mus, A.R.C.T , ECE ) is a piano teacher based in Richmond, B.C. Mr. Eric has taught in a variety of early childhood education styles, including Reggio-inspired, Montessori, Play-based, and Outdoor-based settings. Along with his formal classical music training from the RCM curriculum and the University of Victoria, Mr. Eric brings a unique perspective to teaching music to young children today.