I know that the fall brings a lot of auditions for many of you. Chair tests, orchestra placements, Regions and All-States! Preparing well for all of these can feel like a daunting task. Hopefully some of the efficient practicing tips we discussed last week have been helpful as you continue your work on these projects. Today, I'd like to discuss the difference between practicing, and practicing performing, and why it's important to work on both.
When you are first starting out on a new project, you should only be practicing. The goal of practicing is that you're becoming familiar with the notes and the rhythms. You're working to perfect each movement in your left hand and your bow arm. Maybe you're figuring out fingerings and bowings, or bow distribution. You should be using your metronome and your tuner. Basically, you're learning a new piece and you're using all of your good practicing techniques! But at some point, as you learn the piece better and better, you'll want to start incorporating performance practice into your routine as well.
In order to do this, let's think about some of the ways a performance or an audition is different from a regular old practice session. The biggest difference is that in a performance, you'll have only one chance to play your piece and get it right, and you'll have to do it in front of people. You might have multiple pieces, and you'll have to go from one to the next easily. You might not know exactly when you'll be playing. You won't be in your comfortable practice room with familiar acoustics. You likely won't have time to noodle through that difficult passage one last time before you have to play it for real. There are definitely a lot of unknowns, but it's totally possible to practice some of this before you have to stand up and do it for real!
First, you'll want to start adding run-throughs of your pieces to your practice session. Designate a time where you plan to run through from beginning to the end without stopping no matter what. It can be helpful to record these run-throughs so you can go back and evaluate them later. Try not to always do this at the same time of day, or even at the same point of your practice. It can be really helpful to know how you play without having had the chance to practice those difficult parts first. After you get comfortable doing this by yourself, then you'll want to start playing for people! Ask your friends, parents, and teachers to listen to you in spaces that are different from your practice room. Have them choose the order of the pieces you play, so you don't get comfortable always playing them in the same order. Performing in front of people is always different then when you are alone, and creating the opportunity to do it in a safe space will always pay off. You'll have the chance to experience what your nerves may feel like when you have to do the real thing. You'll want to consider recording these as well, and write down what your nerves felt like. Finally, you'll want to practice finding the balance of how much you have to warm up and what you need to look at before you play, in order to nail it without being tired.
To practice performing, you need to be clear with yourself about when you are giving a performance in your practice sessions. Find what makes you nervous about the actual audition or performance and isolate it as best you can. If you practice diligently, and practice performing, you will have earned all the confidence you need as you go into your performance!