With my Junior Recital approaching, I’ve been experiencing, first-hand, many of the stresses attached to preparing for the event. Scheduling, practicing, practicing, scheduling, rehearsing, practicing, practicing, scheduling… you get the idea.
Just last night as I was practicing, I became very frustrated with my current performance proficiency. There are runs that I’ve been working on for almost a year that I still can’t play consistently!
So, after fantasizing about throwing my music out of the 2nd floor practice room window and possibly retrieving it in the morning, I packed up, went frustratedly home, and got some sleep.
Somewhat refreshed today, here are some thoughts I have about these difficult passages with respect to my fast-approaching recital:
- I can play all of the passages that are challenging. I just have to figure out how to access that ability in a performance setting.
- Could my technique be better? Yes. Could I be more musical? Yes. And the answers to those questions will always be “yes.”
- What keeps me from giving what I know as my best on stage?
- To stay positive
- To relax
- To really have confidence (not just pretend to myself that I do)
- To enjoy the blessing and experience of performing music