Twenty Five

Ok. So more of the Barber 3rd movement is being conquered. The first two pages are feeling pretty comfortable at a fast tempo and the bow stroke is going well. Now I have to kick the last almost 3 pages into gear. I practiced with long slurs today just to see how fast I could get my fingers to go. There are lots of patterns and easy-to-memorize passages in the last 3 pages, so hopefully I can finish memorizing ALL OF IT by Friday--that's the goal!

I also played through the Bach today. I tried to keep a more consistent tempo without a metronome. It took me almost 18 minutes to play the piece. Pretty Awesome. I just need to perform this more and learn what the audience sees/hears when I play it. Will Harvey and/or Amy be able to decipher my "big picture" musical ideas? We shall see.

Also...just got done working on the Brahms 2nd and 4th movements. The 2nd movement is sounding more cohesive and I'm really trying to relax my left hand, play on with flat finger pads in the left hand, and think about shifts before they happen so the musical line is more flowing and not out of tune. The 4th movement is going well, I just need to get it together with Aaron, and up to tempo!

Back from round 2, a.k.a. playing for Harvey in Souers!! I played through the 2nd movement of Barber. He said I need to drag out the beginning more because the piano has such a long introduction that culminates with my entrance. He also suggested that I use my right arm more and basically fling it in circular motion when following through with up-bows. Harvey said I should be more dramatic in my upbows and follow through with the phrases. He also said I should go for the big shifts without care because I am the one with the melodic line. When I finally get to play the tune, I should use more bow (or just practice with separate bows?) to get an idea of how long and drawn out I can make the phrases. I should do the same thing (separate bows) on the super high passage work. Harvey said I had a beautiful sound and that I should make sure my vibrato is always turned on and that I should just make the entire movement slow and passionate and drawn out.

Then I played the 3rd movement of Brahms. Harvey showed me a light, more free bow stroke to start the beginning of the movement. He told me to use my right arm more on the down bow octaves and to pluck up and vibrate on the pizzicatos. Harvey also suggested I stretch out the pleading double-stop melodies and slow down the end section of the movement. This was a great night-thanks Harvey!!