Warm-up/Technique:
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with eight @ 75 bpm
Synchronization Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 65) with i,m sixteenth notes - much harder as I go down the page and the difficulty level increases -- @ 75 bpm. Definitely something I need to keep working on.
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 65 bpm
Thumb Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 41) @ 85 bpm
Arpeggio Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 38) Various drills @ 85 bpm
ythm Exercise
Played blues block chord progression (All Blues for Jazz Guitar pg. 18) @75 silent
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
Played at 75 bpm with the metronome on silent. Quite challenging.
Estrellita
Recorded Private Run-Through. My cellphone alarm went off as I was -playing.... Exercise in sticking to the music during distractions. Interesting, that I made a mistake as soon as the alarm stopped ringing.
Not perfect, but less glitches than yesterday.
Thoughts:
I'm starting to think about the next piece. It will be Penderblast Blues by Tom Penderblast, which I found in Fingerstyle Magazine. It should be noted that my last attempt at a full-fledged blues piece (Rick Foster's version of Swing Low, Sweet Chariot) was way over my head. I learned it, but bombed it at a concert last March.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Thoughts:
On Tuesday evening, I did a Private Run-Through of Pica-Pica for my grandmother. I made a recording, too. Too fast, too fast. I started off at around 90 bpm. I can easily imagine how such a tempo will lead to disaster at this point in a high-pressure performance setting. I did well in terms of imaging and feeling the meaning of the piece, however.
Warm-up/Technique:
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with eight @ 75 bpm
Synchronization Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 65) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Thumb Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 41) @ 85
Arpeggio Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 38) Various drills @ 85
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
Recorded myself and reviewed recording.
Great exercise in concentration. I noticed that as my mind wandered off from imagining the story that I described decided would go along with this piece, I was more prone to making mistakes.
Upon analysis, speed jumps out. I'm still both starting out too fast and speeding up even more during the piece. Played at 75 bpm with the metronome on. I have a feeling that if I don't get this down, the piece will jump around in rhythm and be inconsistent.
Estrellita
Recorded Private Run-Through. Couple of glitches here and there, but overall good work.
The pieces are shaping up! :)
On Tuesday evening, I did a Private Run-Through of Pica-Pica for my grandmother. I made a recording, too. Too fast, too fast. I started off at around 90 bpm. I can easily imagine how such a tempo will lead to disaster at this point in a high-pressure performance setting. I did well in terms of imaging and feeling the meaning of the piece, however.
Warm-up/Technique:
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with eight @ 75 bpm
Synchronization Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 65) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Thumb Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 41) @ 85
Arpeggio Exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 38) Various drills @ 85
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
Recorded myself and reviewed recording.
Great exercise in concentration. I noticed that as my mind wandered off from imagining the story that I described decided would go along with this piece, I was more prone to making mistakes.
Upon analysis, speed jumps out. I'm still both starting out too fast and speeding up even more during the piece. Played at 75 bpm with the metronome on. I have a feeling that if I don't get this down, the piece will jump around in rhythm and be inconsistent.
Estrellita
Recorded Private Run-Through. Couple of glitches here and there, but overall good work.
The pieces are shaping up! :)
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Thoughts:
Yesterday, I did a private run-through of Pica-Pica for my cousin. I went through the pre-performance actions Glickstein recommends in his book. Yet, I couldn't get my mind off of this being a performance. I'm not sure whether I started off counting too fast or I sped up as soon as I started playing, but I noticed that I was going too fast for my skill level.
Also, I knew that I should concentrate on imaging ahead and embodying the music, yet I was focused too much on not making any mistakes. My nails weren't plucking the string right and the whole performance felt a bit off.
This feedback is extremely important in improving my performance skills. I need to concentrate on two things. I should practice determining the correct tempo before I start and sticking to it. I should try to image ahead and prevent my mind from drifting.
Warm-up/Technique:
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with eight @ 75 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
Didn't record but played private run-through. In addition to tempo issue described above, also noticed a problem with breathing. My breaths are short and sporadic - I think I need to make a conscious effort to make them deep and regular.
Estrellita
Learned until the end. Also recorded Private Run-Through. Analyzed once. Good for the most part.
Yesterday, I did a private run-through of Pica-Pica for my cousin. I went through the pre-performance actions Glickstein recommends in his book. Yet, I couldn't get my mind off of this being a performance. I'm not sure whether I started off counting too fast or I sped up as soon as I started playing, but I noticed that I was going too fast for my skill level.
Also, I knew that I should concentrate on imaging ahead and embodying the music, yet I was focused too much on not making any mistakes. My nails weren't plucking the string right and the whole performance felt a bit off.
This feedback is extremely important in improving my performance skills. I need to concentrate on two things. I should practice determining the correct tempo before I start and sticking to it. I should try to image ahead and prevent my mind from drifting.
Warm-up/Technique:
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with eight @ 75 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
Didn't record but played private run-through. In addition to tempo issue described above, also noticed a problem with breathing. My breaths are short and sporadic - I think I need to make a conscious effort to make them deep and regular.
Estrellita
Learned until the end. Also recorded Private Run-Through. Analyzed once. Good for the most part.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Warm-up/Technique:
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with eight @ 75 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
Recorded Private Run-Through. Analyzed. Felt myself drifting off of the essence (meaning) of the composition, but really felt energized when I felt like I was expressing this meaning.
Played again once more without recording in performance mode. A couple of glitches, but overall good performance.
Estrellita
Learned up to first ending of Part C. Didn't do Private Run-Through, but sounds good nonetheless.
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with eight @ 75 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
Recorded Private Run-Through. Analyzed. Felt myself drifting off of the essence (meaning) of the composition, but really felt energized when I felt like I was expressing this meaning.
Played again once more without recording in performance mode. A couple of glitches, but overall good performance.
Estrellita
Learned up to first ending of Part C. Didn't do Private Run-Through, but sounds good nonetheless.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Warm-up/Technique:
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with sixteenth notes @ 65 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
I played the piece and waited for a story about the meaning to come to me. I think I was really affected by a Japanese movie that I watched today called Crying Out Love in the Center of the
World. Simply, it is about a guy whose soulmate died of leukemia while they were in high school. The guy is about to get engaged to another girl, and the memory of his sweetheart comes back and it's too much to bear. I took away the idea of the impermanence of life from this movie and how we shouldn't take things for granted.
So what does this have to do with Pica Pica? Well, Pica Pica is obviously about a relationship between a man and a woman. In the first part, the lovers are getting to find out more about each other and with time, they like each other more and more. It's as if the sentence said by the man in the line of the 1st two measures is completed in measure 3 and 4 by the woman. And so on.
Part B represents a time of extreme thrills - the apex their relationship. I imagine them in a park on a sunny day dancing, or establishing a deep connection through some activity (maybe hiking, maybe travelling). The driving rhythm of this part represents the momentum with which these activities take place and end.
Part C takes place after they part. One of them dies, or they break up. The look back on the time when they were just getting to know each other with fondness and nostalgia.
So to me, Pica Pica stands for the impermanence of relationships, and how we might as well treasure them, but try not to get too attached.
I think an elaborate story like this is bound to stay in my memory, even when I'm nervous up on the stage. :)
Recorded private-through of the whole piece. Sounds pretty good. Position switch between part A and B is hard to do blind. Also, it's hard to image ahead while keeping track of the story that I created.
Estrellita
Practice-run of 1st part sounded good. Did practice-run of part B. Pretty good, should record and analyze again tomorrow.
Reviewed section C up to measure 4.
Finger-stretching exercise @ 100 bpm
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 95 bpm
String Walking exercise with m, l with sixteenth notes @ 65 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 85 bpm
Repertoire:
Pica Pica
I played the piece and waited for a story about the meaning to come to me. I think I was really affected by a Japanese movie that I watched today called Crying Out Love in the Center of the
World. Simply, it is about a guy whose soulmate died of leukemia while they were in high school. The guy is about to get engaged to another girl, and the memory of his sweetheart comes back and it's too much to bear. I took away the idea of the impermanence of life from this movie and how we shouldn't take things for granted.
So what does this have to do with Pica Pica? Well, Pica Pica is obviously about a relationship between a man and a woman. In the first part, the lovers are getting to find out more about each other and with time, they like each other more and more. It's as if the sentence said by the man in the line of the 1st two measures is completed in measure 3 and 4 by the woman. And so on.
Part B represents a time of extreme thrills - the apex their relationship. I imagine them in a park on a sunny day dancing, or establishing a deep connection through some activity (maybe hiking, maybe travelling). The driving rhythm of this part represents the momentum with which these activities take place and end.
Part C takes place after they part. One of them dies, or they break up. The look back on the time when they were just getting to know each other with fondness and nostalgia.
So to me, Pica Pica stands for the impermanence of relationships, and how we might as well treasure them, but try not to get too attached.
I think an elaborate story like this is bound to stay in my memory, even when I'm nervous up on the stage. :)
Recorded private-through of the whole piece. Sounds pretty good. Position switch between part A and B is hard to do blind. Also, it's hard to image ahead while keeping track of the story that I created.
Estrellita
Practice-run of 1st part sounded good. Did practice-run of part B. Pretty good, should record and analyze again tomorrow.
Reviewed section C up to measure 4.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Warm-up/Technique:
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 90 bpm
String Walking exercise with l quarter notes @ 85 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 80 bpm
Repertoire:
Estrellita
Analyzed recording made yesterday. Worked on 1st eight measures. Identified problems in measure 1 (finger stretching problem) and dynamics problem in measure 3 (playing the high A too forcefully). Re-recorded as private run-through - which means the 1st 20 seconds of the recording is silence as I go through the center - connect - count - play steps. It sounded good.
By the way, going through all these steps, you can't help but think what an amazing amount of information the brain is processing.
Need to analyze the second part tomorrow.
Memorized section C up to measure 4.
Pica Pica
Tried to establish what the piece means to me, but no ideas yet.....Strange, heh!?
Thoughts:
I browsed the compilation I downloaded from the Classical Guitar Forum to find easier material with which I could practice performing. An etude by Carulli caught my eye, but I think I would get bored with it. I'll try to stick to the two pieces above for now. At least they're exciting for me.
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 90 bpm
String Walking exercise with l quarter notes @ 85 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 80 bpm
Repertoire:
Estrellita
Analyzed recording made yesterday. Worked on 1st eight measures. Identified problems in measure 1 (finger stretching problem) and dynamics problem in measure 3 (playing the high A too forcefully). Re-recorded as private run-through - which means the 1st 20 seconds of the recording is silence as I go through the center - connect - count - play steps. It sounded good.
By the way, going through all these steps, you can't help but think what an amazing amount of information the brain is processing.
Need to analyze the second part tomorrow.
Memorized section C up to measure 4.
Pica Pica
Tried to establish what the piece means to me, but no ideas yet.....Strange, heh!?
Thoughts:
I browsed the compilation I downloaded from the Classical Guitar Forum to find easier material with which I could practice performing. An etude by Carulli caught my eye, but I think I would get bored with it. I'll try to stick to the two pieces above for now. At least they're exciting for me.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
I'm changing up the order of the sections because what I read yesterday shall guide my practice session today.
Thoughts:
New insights from Glickstein....
There is a specific method to practicing for performance.
Before going into the first phrase, I need to practice the following:
1. Center
Lower gaze and exhale. Assume good posture.
2. Connect
Continue to breathe smoothly. Connect with the first piece music - hear the music, feel your fingers on the guitar playing it, conjure up the meaning of the piece. Also feel the mood and the tempo.
This step is SUPER IMPORTANT! It is this connection with the piece that allows for art to be made.
3. Count
4. Begin
As you begin, be aware of any potential problems and strive to focus on the music.
Also, a note about mistakes. Mistakes during practice should be dealt with promptly. On the other hand, mistakes during a performance should be ignored. Rhythm is king. So, if I'm practicing to perform alone, I need to practice maintaining a positive attitude when errors confront me.
Warm-up/Technique:
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 90 bpm
String Walking exercise with l quarter notes @ 85 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 80 bpm
Repertoire:
Estrellita
Recorded private run-through in which I tried the approach described above. Started to analyze. Many problems present - feel unprepared to judge it now.
Pica Pica
--on hold--
Thoughts:
New insights from Glickstein....
There is a specific method to practicing for performance.
Before going into the first phrase, I need to practice the following:
1. Center
Lower gaze and exhale. Assume good posture.
2. Connect
Continue to breathe smoothly. Connect with the first piece music - hear the music, feel your fingers on the guitar playing it, conjure up the meaning of the piece. Also feel the mood and the tempo.
This step is SUPER IMPORTANT! It is this connection with the piece that allows for art to be made.
3. Count
4. Begin
As you begin, be aware of any potential problems and strive to focus on the music.
Also, a note about mistakes. Mistakes during practice should be dealt with promptly. On the other hand, mistakes during a performance should be ignored. Rhythm is king. So, if I'm practicing to perform alone, I need to practice maintaining a positive attitude when errors confront me.
Warm-up/Technique:
String Walking exercise (Pumping Nylon pg. 37) with i,m eight notes @ 90 bpm
String Walking exercise with l quarter notes @ 85 bpm
Right-Hand Velocity (Pumping Nylon pg. 63) with i,m sixteenth notes @ 105 bpm
Same with l, m with sixteenths @ 80 bpm
Repertoire:
Estrellita
Recorded private run-through in which I tried the approach described above. Started to analyze. Many problems present - feel unprepared to judge it now.
Pica Pica
--on hold--
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