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Prepare for a Great Performance – January 17, 2019My students are preparing to perform at NFMC Festival in solo and concerto categories in March. Memory is required and each year my students receive the highest rating of Superior (5) in large part due to my preparation timeline for them. Here is my formula:
When students begin school in the fall, I select the correct level of pieces for their next category with their participation in choosing the music they really enjoy. Depending on each student’s ability to memorize music, we decide how ambitious they are and pair that with the level of difficulty and length of each piece.
Before Christmas break, I suggest “soft” memorization and returning from Christmas break, the goal is for students to have their pieces memorized. If they are not completely prepared, at least they are well on their way. I create a Memorization Winner’s Circle on my whiteboard for them to sign when they are fully memorized. This little act to signify their achievement is meaningful, even for my more advanced students. And sometimes, it promotes a healthy competition within my studio for students to see how early they can sign their name.
Two to three weeks before Festival, I host a studio recital. At this recital, memory is strongly encouraged. However, I work with each student individually to decide beforehand if they will play all pieces from memory, some from memory and some not, or all pieces using music. The basis for deciding whether to perform from memory is mainly determined by the student’s comfort level with the piece and their personal viewpoint of how stressful or not live performance is at that moment in time. It is of great importance to me to ensure as much as possible that each student has a positive experience that builds their confidence.
Working with a piano accompanist is also a wonderful educational experience for students. Students who are natural chamber musicians typically have one rehearsal, the recital, and then Festival with their pianist. For the students who find collaborating with a pianist more challenging at first, I suggest that they video their first rehearsal so that they can practice with the recording and see how they look when they are collaborating. Sometimes adding one or two more rehearsals due to the level of difficulty is needed.
For Festival, memorization is required. Even if a student performed with music at the recital, each student is prepared to play from memory with confidence at Festival because there is only one person (the judge) in the room, making Festival a more relaxing performance for the student than playing for a large audience of peers and parents.
As an aside, I ask each student to plan their attire ahead of time so that they feel completely put together mentally and physically for each performance. My rule of thumb is that they wear an outfit that is at least one level more dressed up than their audience as this projects confidence. Also, I frequently ask students to consider the style of their pieces and if they are so inclined, to match their wardrobe choices to suit the artistic intent of their performance. Most students enjoy contemplating what this means for them personally and when they put on their wardrobe for performance, they are already in character and convey the expressive/stylistic aspect of the music more deeply.
There are many more individual details that add up to great student experiences and performances, but these are the big picture structure goals that I set for each student.
