I have memorized 2.5 pages of Clair de Lune, which only leaves me 3.5 to go. That sounds daunting now that I read it and it has taken me nearly a month. But the 2.5 I have done is the difficult middle part, so I’m hoping the rest will be cake (ha). As cake as memorizing with permanent mommy brain can be, I swear to you that having the dutchkid has eaten up copious braincells.
The memorization is definitely working for me, however. I can see flashes where my playing is better than it ever has been before. It’s encouraging, and definitely motivating. Which is good because my teacher’s method is time consuming and pretty much the antithesis of how I normally operate at the piano.
Breaking the music into small sections (often just a phrase, or a line of music), I then have to look at the chord structure or melody line and find a way to remember its specifics. Sort of like the good old ROYGBIV for the sequence of colors. This is difficult for me because I have a good ear and good tactile memory so in the past I have cheated my way through. It’s even harder because he insists that you work in a backwards sequence. So for example within my difficult section I start at the last 4-5 measures, play those, then go the section previous to it and play those measures, etc.
It’s a pain in the butt, but by golly it works. He likes to remind me that tactile memory and your ear can fail you when you are under stress, on a different piano, in front of people. I know he’s right because that’s why my performances in the past have been so dismal. Even WITH music.
I just hope my brain has enough space left to memorize everything. He gave me some new Beethoven variations that I know will probably be next (he claims I need to be more well rounded). This whole process has given me an entirely new respect for concert musicians. I would be old and decrepit by the time I had something like a concerto memorized.
It amazes me that my daughter has two Suzuki books of violin music memorized perfectly. And my son, even at six, has just about an entire book memorized himself. When they are suddenly called upon to play some old piece that we only review once a week, I am always amazed at what they can do.
I’ve been there for every step of the process and I still wonder at how much the mind is able to absorb when taken at one bite at a time.
I’m so glad you’re finding this joy in your music! (Did I say “glad”? I meant “jealous”.)
You need to hurry up and find yourself a teacher! I’m jealous of your chldren’s ability to memorize so easily, oh to be a kid again.
Oh, Clair de Lune! Wow! You have more memorized than I would ever have memorized. I am so glad for you that your playing is improving. Especially when I am sure that you are putting so much time into it. I get a flash every now and then that my playing is better. I wish that I was further than I was, but I guess it takes time.