Recital Preparation for Music Students and Their Parents
Recital Preparation! At the end of the school year, I like to provide an
event for my music students to "show off" their favorite musical
pieces for family, friends and loved ones in a supportive, loving atmosphere
that is safe and nurturing. Many students have worked diligently on musical
repertoire for the past 9 months and are ready to share their progress with
others and celebrate their musical growth and prowess. It is important that
this experience be a positive one- building each musician's self-esteem.
So many times, however, I have observed over the years that music students and
their families do not fully understand what is required of a
"performer." I grew up in a home of physicians that knew nothing
about playing music. My parents just wanted to make sure I learned to play
piano, but they had no previous knowledge or training on how to assist me with
my musical development. I see many students now in my same situation.
Many students invest the entire school year working on pieces and memorizing
their songs but then have little knowledge of how important the week and day
leading up to the recital are in the success of their performance experience,
especially for first year students!
I hope to assist people in becoming more aware of what is truly important when
preparing for a public performance such as a recital, talent show, pageant, or
public event. It has taken me 30 some odd years to master this and my hope is
to spare you the pain I experienced myself as an adolescent wanting to play my
music on stage and not understanding why things fell apart once I was up there
in front of hundreds of people.
Here is my top 6 list of Do's when preparing to play publicly:
1. Know your piece inside and out in ADVANCE. Have your piece(s) memorized
atleast a month in advance of the date you are planning to perform. I still
allow my students to take their music with them on stage as insurance but 9
times out of 10 if they have it memorized they never look up at the music. THEY
KNOW IT! Waiting until the last minute to learn your piece is such a gamble.
You are relying on kinesthetic memory of the piece and your fingers may
remember where to go but if they don't.....You're out of luck!
2. Play your piece(s) for family and friends. Test your piece out at home in
front of family, friends, stuffed animals. Make-believe you are on stage and
practice performing the piece. Have a dress rehearsal and wear the clothes and
shoes you plan to play in. Make sure you are comfortable and you can still play
your piece without a zipper poking at you, or shoes being too uncomfortable.
Remember people are there to hear your music not see a fashion show.
Presentation is important but your musical presentation comes first!
3. If you make a mistake- KEEP GOING!!! More often than not, only you and your
instructor will know you have made an error: missed a note, rushed through a
passage, forgotten the dynamic contrast or forgotten to repeat. I am all for
doing your best and playing the piece as practiced but sometimes no matter how
much you have prepared; you cannot predict what will occur between you are your
instrument. That is the beauty of live music. You are not a robot! So, don't
stop. Don't try and correct it. There is no need to look at the audience and
apologize or run off stage in terror. Just keep playing!!!! Keep your eyebrow's
raised, your chin high and stay poised- you have prevailed!
4. Be rested and save the party for afterwards! It never fails that once a year
at every recital, I see a student drag in the day of the recital barely able to
hold their head up. Then the parents inform me that "Judy has just come
from a sleepover and has had 4 hours of sleep." Guess how Judy played that
day? I will leave it to your imagination. You need to make sure you get plenty
of rest leading up to the day of the recital. It requires a lot of energy to
get up there on stage and play your music for others. Save the birthday
parties,skate nights and sleepovers for another night. You may have to skip the
soccer game the day before or resist the urge to do fifty million errands that
day. If you need to shop for the event, plan to complete those errands atleast
a week before the recital. If you are the parent and your child is the
performer, leave your child at home to rest and play their music. They will
benefit more from the down time at home. REST IS ESSENTIAL! Especially the day
before and the day of the performance.
5. Eat well, avoid sugar/caffeine & drink lots of water! Save the cocoa
puffs, COKE, and sugary dessert for AFTER the recital!This sounds simple enough
but many people do not realize the impact that food has on your performance.
Make sure you are well-hydrated. Eat foods that you know will not upset your
body. Be kind to your body. You are going to need to rely on it when you begin
playing your piece!
6. Think positive and your experience will be positive! I have to keep a check
on the little voice in my head that can sometimes tripp me up when I play. The
little voice that says, "What if you make a mistake, what are you going to
do then?" or "Well, if you mess up that is it for you! You're a piano
teacher. You can't mess up! You are supposed to be perfect and if you make a
mistake, you are a failure and you might as well apply for a job at Border's
tomorrow." I have to turn those negative thoughts off and continue to tell
myself that I know my piece and I will play beautifully. This will be a good
experience and I trust myself! Find your mantra, and repeat it to yourself.
Especially when those negative voices in your head start to take over. Drowned
them out with positive thinking! You will create what you think!
I hope to inspire you and help keep the music alive in our community. This article was written by our friends at MindaMusicis. Their mission and ours is to encourage and inspire musicians, music educators, and music lovers all over the world! At MindaMusic and B&G Music we strive to change lives, "One Note at a Time." www.MindaMusicStore.com www.MindaMusic.com
