How I Practice the Piano

What is your musical background?
I’ve been playing the piano since age 7. My dad is a piano tuner and technician, so we always had pianos of all different sizes in the house. My grandmother on my dad’s side was a professional pianist, and learning piano was just another part of our education. I took private lessons through high school, started my piano teaching business at age eighteen and then took another four years of private lessons with a concert pianist.My first teacher focused on my reading skills by moving me quickly through countless pieces of music and helping me build an extensive repertoire. At the end of my time with her, I could read almost anything and my repertoire was so large I could barely write it down!My second teacher focused more on solid technique, efficient practicing, and most importantly, effortless playing.Since then, I have made sure to continue my musical education by taking part in musical activities, such as joining a chorus, taking voice and organ lessons, going to concerts, and listening to great music regularly.

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What is your practice schedule?

Now that I have a career in music, not a day goes by where I am not playing the piano in some way- whether it’s teaching, streaming, or practicing for a recording.Since I have to prepare music for professional recordings, I do make sure I get in some real practice sessions. When I do sit down to practice, even for just ten or twenty minutes, I am extremely focused and don’t leave the piano unless I’ve made some kind of progress.I like to practice more difficult pieces over a longer period of time – small practice sessions over the course of several weeks to a few months. The longer you work on something, the more solidly your brain will remember it!

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‍How do you tell your students to practice?

Number one, be consistent. If they are not consistent, they won’t make progress, period. That means playing every day. It doesn’t even matter what they play, they just need to play every day!The second thing I focus on with my students is efficient practicing – getting as much done in as little time as possible. There are all kinds of lessons on this topic, such as being 100% accurate with notes and fingering, playing deliberately with each finger (not floppy or weak) to develop solid muscle memory, and not stuttering or backtracking (i.e. hitting a wrong note and fixing it on the spot).I also tell them to have fun when they play – play music they know and love at every practice session. Never bog yourself down with lesson material only. One technique is to start a new piece at the beginning, practice it until your brain starts to get tired, stop, go back to the beginning and play the part you’ve already played again, gradually adding a measure or two. Make sure you don’t stop and rest during this process, since the brain is trying to retain important information! Try a good solid 15–20 minutes of continuous playing. Then, reward yourself with your favorite song.

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‍How has your opinion of practice changed over your life?

It has changed in how much knowledge about practicing I’ve accumulated over the years- to the point where I can spend just 10 minutes in a practice session and get as much done as I used to in an hour. I’m also much better at explaining these techniques to my students. I have learned that much of piano playing is in the brain, and if you can just get to the right spot in the brain, something snaps and you can do it!But I have never changed on one thing- consistency. It is key.

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‍Have you ever dealt with a physical injury or pain?

Thankfully no, I have not. Logically speaking I should have developed an injury at some point, due to my small hands and wrists.My first teacher moved me very quickly through repertoire, and so I was never working on extremely difficult passages of one piece for long. We would jump from Haydn to Chopin to Schubert to Mozart by the week, so I think it prevented injuries.After I started with my second teacher, one of the biggest things we worked on was injury preventive technique. We spent many many hours on this topic alone, sometimes going twice over my lesson time to finish! He recommended a video called Freeing the Caged Bird- Developing Well-Coordinated, Injury-Preventive Piano Technique. I can’t recommend this enough! It changed my life.Now I have been able to figure out my bodily limitations, and I purposely stay away from music with large stretches and big chords, especially composers like Rachmaninov and Liszt. Very similar to an athlete, you’ll discover you can excel in certain genres of music based on your physique, but may need to stay away from others.

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‍How many things are you working on at one time?

My goals for recordings are miles long, so it’s tough to pick which ones I’ll be starting next. But I have found I do best when I narrow the goal down. Usually I try to pick two or three pieces that I’ll be recording in the near future, and cycle through them during practice. But I also don’t limit myself to just these three pieces. I think it’s okay to hop around and play other music casually. Just be sure to give your most focused practice to the pieces you’re preparing.

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‍How do you decide what to practice next?

I try to only practice and prepare music that I know I will enjoy for a more extended amount of time. I’ve gotten good at being able to tell what I’m going to enjoy and what I’m going to get sick of. I don’t have very strong will power or determination, so if I get sick of something, I am most likely going to drop it and move to something else. I remember I got extremely excited to learn the last movement to Beethoven's Appassionata Sonata for a performance one year, but after a few weeks of practice, I realized it wasn't as cool as I thought it was, and I just didn't want to waste all my hard work. I ended up picking something else, and I don't regret it!

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‍What words of encouragement would you like to give everyone?

Music is a lifelong journey. My best advice is to be happy with where you’re at. Lots of musicians have large goals, and that’s a good thing, but sometimes those goals cause them to be dissatisfied with the level of skill they’re at in the moment, and so they don’t continue. My motto is ‘play something easy and play it well’. Music doesn't have to be hard or fast or complex to be great. Sometimes the simplest songs are the most beautiful. Enjoy the journey and you'll never give up!