Playing by heart

[Shiva]

I've never been good at remembering pieces. When I play the piano (I play very bad, i'm about grade 3), I remember pieces by the fingering. Because I remember the fingering pattern and which fingers go where I can cobble a performance from memory from it.

[Gryvix]

heh fingering won't help much on a cornet, you only have 3 valves
for clarinet you got for each note one or more fingerings.

[tawei82]

yeah, definitely very difficult. trumpet horn type also same difficult i think

[Benny190891]

I think MaestroX got it right when he/she (I don't know haha) said that on the piano you remember visually where you fingers will go whereas on a wind or brass instrument (or similar) you remember music by seeing the notes (or sections of notes) on the page not your fingers....

I think that an emotional connection to each section or phrase to a piece like telling a story would work quite well, and also effective practise like slowly and correctly, building up confidence with the music works for sure.

Hmmmmm, I definitely find memorising on the piano a hell of a lot easier than on my oboe (I find it almost automatic on the piano actually)! Although I've never found it difficult to memorise something when I put some effort into it.

Hope that helps a little bit!

Regards, Ben

[Ron Ofir]

I'm like Thorolf, I have terribly bad sight reading, so whatever I'm learning, I first figure out the fingering, and then my hands just remember what to do. That's why it also takes me quite long to re-write things from memory. I wish I could read notes properly!

[sarah-flute]

Originally Posted by Benny190891

I think MaestroX got it right when he/she (I don't know haha) said that on the piano you remember visually where you fingers will go whereas on a wind or brass instrument (or similar) you remember music by seeing the notes (or sections of notes) on the page not your fingers....

Depends how much you look at your hands whilst playing, surely? I tend to look only when I have to.

I find it easier to memorise on the flute, generally - fewer notes to remember ;-)

[PeterG]

Originally Posted by sarah-flute

Depends how much you look at your hands whilst playing, surely? I tend to look only when I have to.

I find it easier to memorise on the flute, generally - fewer notes to remember ;-)

I tend to agree with Sarah, but also with Thorolf. I was pretty decent sight reader for the oboe but the music must come alive inside before I can play it like it should without the help of the notes. Having said that I found it easier to play by memory for the oboe so far (compared to the piano that is).

For the piano lessons I have now I'm not allowed to look at my hands if not necessary (only when there is a change in position, she sais... you must feel the notes.....) and I'm also not allowed to play on my ears only (God know why.. the songs are so simple that by the time my hand do what they must do all is in my head, but hey! she know best...).

And then all is different if you are playing your own composition. The parts I can play (in the mean time, I'm practicing hard on them) are all playing in my head and I use the notes on paper to check occasionally if I haven't forgotten any (mostly in parts where I have been re-writing or adding notes after the initial, uhm, "conception" ?). Obviously it's very easy to play your own music by memory as you have it alive inside all the time (at least I have) ; it's part of your own feelings....

[Will Kirk]

Originally Posted by MaestroX

Its to do with having a pictorial memory because you can see the notes on the piano. So many player do remember from sight of the notes not the music. I think thats why many people have greater trouble remembering pieces for other instruments such as the clarinet etc (I know I do )

that may have to do with methods for memorizing, some people simply play what they see and create a pyhsical memory for it, (sometimes called Muscle Memory) With me, I can simply look at a section of a piece and play it (on classical guitar that is) I usually try to balance what I see with what I know it should sound like.

But it's different for every person, some people have a problem with it, and some don't.

[sarah-flute]

I definitely think it's possible for playing piano to have a more visual or perhaps a more physical feel would be the way to say it. My hands move very little playing the flute - it's all in the fingers. On the piano, my hands are all over the shop, and it's not unknown for my to play chords (which I am bad at) by shape/feel rather than by reading all the notes at once.

[LethalBunny]

Best way to learn music is to do it patiently.
Play the music once through as accurately as you can
Then leave it.
Go do something else.
Come back.
Play it again as accurately as you can.
Repeat.
Then, before you go to sleep,
play the piece through as slowly as you can,
looking through the music thoroughly and paying attention to every little detail
Then go to sleep.
Wake up.
Don't play the song for a few days.
Then when you go to play it, it will have sunk in deep into your subconscious. Trust me. It works. From experience.
Do this again and again and after a month or so your hands will simply find the notes, you will start to play it by intuition, without any conscious thought.
This is in fact how all music is learnt.
Most people don't realize this happening, because they simply equate learning with sheer hard work.
The hard work makes us learn the music because we end up finding a way to learn the piece of music usually by accident, because we try so many times to find out how to play it. It is not because of any force that we put in. Music is deep.