A couple of weeks ago I pulled out my metronome (ok, I finally replaced the battery) and started using it again. I've been doing bowing exercises from the Sevcik School of Bowing Technique (adapted for cello) and have started on No. 6. It is basically straight eighth notes with more bowing variations than any human could possibly get through.
I decided to run the metronome to make sure that I was on the recommended tempo (104). I discovered something that really pissed me off. My eighth notes were just a shade short on my up bows. It wasn't enough to be noticeable without the metronome, and I'm sure I had been compensating for it by playing slightly too long on the down bows.
Anyway, at my last lesson I told my teacher what I had discovered and we spent a good deal of this lesson on this topic. He gave me an awesome tool to help fix the problem. Most of us can adjust to the metronome beating steadily, so it doesn't help fix the underlying problem which is a rock solid sense of the underlying pulse of the beat. So, he gave me something that he had put together with a drummer friend. The drummer beats the tempo, but he only beats the drum for all of the beats in the measure during the first measure. On the next measure he doesn't play the last beat, then on the 3rd measure he drops the last 2 beats, and on and on until the only time he hits the drum is the first beat of the measure. It was a humbling experience to see how far off I was when the first beat of the next measure played - and this was playing straight notes!
It's not like my sense of timing and rhythm is bad - but it clearly is something that can get much more solid. I've also been practicing playing on the off beat (on the 'and'). The other humbling experience was having my teacher point out to me that I wasn't as relaxed playing on the off beat and what I needed to do physically was no different than playing on the beat. Another thing to work on!
Post note, though - these exercises have really helped how solidly I play with others. My reading chamber group decided to play the Mendelssohn D Minor piano trio (which we've read through a few times) while waiting for some of the other members to show up. I was on piano (this is one where I think the piano part is the hardest of the 3 parts - think Mendelssohn writing for himself! - gives me many moments of panic while playing), but our 1st violinist said after the 1st movement that my tempo was the steadiest that she'd heard me play. So definitely progress!
Slow, but steady. Part of the journey...
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Friday, June 15, 2007
Reflecting on the journey so far...
I started playing the cello about 3 1/2 years ago. I had wanted to play the cello since I was in elementary school. My parents had me play the violin instead. They said it was easier to transport (true, but I really wanted to play the cello!) I played the violin for about 3 years but quit to concentrate on the piano.
In August 2003 I got laid off from a startup, and decided that I had run out of excuses for why I couldn't start playing the cello. "I don't have time to practice." "I travel too much to be able to play." "I don't have a cello." "I don't have a teacher." "I'll suck when I start playing." Well, I rented a cello, found a teacher, and found that as an adult I have an entirely different approach and a lot more patience and appreciation for the journey. I did suck when I started playing, but when I started I didn't care!
After I had been playing for a few months I joined a local community orchestra (no auditions - very key!) I probably had no business playing with a group at that point in time, but I figured that I would just play what I could. That really worked. I'm still playing with this orchestra and it's been really fun, especially as my playing has improved.
I joined the orchestra because my real goal was to play chamber music, and after a year or so, one of the violists approached me and asked if I would join their group. They were in dire need of another cellist. Hooray!!! I've really enjoyed this group - we simply read through music. I've been playing either the piano or cello depending on who is there from week to week. We've had all sorts of configurations - piano trio, piano quartet, piano quintet, string trio, string quartet, string quintet - a great way to explore a variety of music. The other cellist is my standmate from orchestra, and since he's been playing for a looong time he keeps me from getting too lost if we're doubling on a part. It's also been a good benchmark for me to measure my improvement. I remember the first time that I was able to play loudly enough to match the volume of our first violinist!
A few months ago another member of the orchestra asked me to join their group. It was really eye opening to play with a group that occasionally does gigs in the area. Instead of just playing through music and moving on to the next piece, this group spends time rehearsing everything we are playing (as well as having fun).
As I look back on the past few years, I am grateful that I took the plunge to start playing. It has been really rewarding to play and I look forward to every single practice or playing session. I miss my cello when I am travelling. As an adult student I am much more demanding of my teacher than I was as a kid taking piano lessons (and I had an excellent piano teacher when I was young- and I studied piano all through college and graduate school). I'm not as afraid to tell my teacher where I am having problems and what I think needs to improve and to get his help to help me change what I'm doing to play better. As a kid I was terrified of how badly I might play during a piano lesson. Now I still don't like to play badly during a lesson, but I'm much more willing to find out what I can start to change about my playing in order to make it better.
In August 2003 I got laid off from a startup, and decided that I had run out of excuses for why I couldn't start playing the cello. "I don't have time to practice." "I travel too much to be able to play." "I don't have a cello." "I don't have a teacher." "I'll suck when I start playing." Well, I rented a cello, found a teacher, and found that as an adult I have an entirely different approach and a lot more patience and appreciation for the journey. I did suck when I started playing, but when I started I didn't care!
After I had been playing for a few months I joined a local community orchestra (no auditions - very key!) I probably had no business playing with a group at that point in time, but I figured that I would just play what I could. That really worked. I'm still playing with this orchestra and it's been really fun, especially as my playing has improved.
I joined the orchestra because my real goal was to play chamber music, and after a year or so, one of the violists approached me and asked if I would join their group. They were in dire need of another cellist. Hooray!!! I've really enjoyed this group - we simply read through music. I've been playing either the piano or cello depending on who is there from week to week. We've had all sorts of configurations - piano trio, piano quartet, piano quintet, string trio, string quartet, string quintet - a great way to explore a variety of music. The other cellist is my standmate from orchestra, and since he's been playing for a looong time he keeps me from getting too lost if we're doubling on a part. It's also been a good benchmark for me to measure my improvement. I remember the first time that I was able to play loudly enough to match the volume of our first violinist!
A few months ago another member of the orchestra asked me to join their group. It was really eye opening to play with a group that occasionally does gigs in the area. Instead of just playing through music and moving on to the next piece, this group spends time rehearsing everything we are playing (as well as having fun).
As I look back on the past few years, I am grateful that I took the plunge to start playing. It has been really rewarding to play and I look forward to every single practice or playing session. I miss my cello when I am travelling. As an adult student I am much more demanding of my teacher than I was as a kid taking piano lessons (and I had an excellent piano teacher when I was young- and I studied piano all through college and graduate school). I'm not as afraid to tell my teacher where I am having problems and what I think needs to improve and to get his help to help me change what I'm doing to play better. As a kid I was terrified of how badly I might play during a piano lesson. Now I still don't like to play badly during a lesson, but I'm much more willing to find out what I can start to change about my playing in order to make it better.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)