Memory
Background
 Many musicians experience memory laps
during performance. These unpleasant
memories shadow our confidence and
exacerbate the level of performance
anxiety. In many cases, afraid of having
memory laps is the single reason, which
causes stage fright. And for many
musicians, memory is the only factor that
prevents them from giving piano solo
recitals.
Rational


What causes memory slips
What can we do to eliminate memory slips
Aim
 Look for the cause
 Search for a cure
 Achieve performance
success in finding the ways
to eliminate memory slip
Thesis
 Eliminate memory laps should
start from how we learn and
practice our pieces.
 Understand how our brain works
and use both left and right brains
to build a safety nest and
confidence to trust your
automatic pilot.
 Through practice, we can not
only achieve performance
success by eliminating memory
slip, but also deliver music with
conviction and meaning
Tradition
 Mozart –
Before the nineteenth
century, it was considered
bad taste and ostentatious
for performers to play in
public without the scores.
Even Mozart, whose
memory was prodigious,
always placed the music
before him whenever he
performed. (Bernstein,
1981, p. 219)
www.popularpersons.org/.../
Tradition was broken
 Clara Schumann –
In 1837, She premiered the
complete Beethoven
“Appassionata” Sonata in Berlin
from memory. Leschetitzky
maintained that she was the first
pianist in history to perform
without a printed score in public.
Up through the 1840s it was held
that to perform the work of a
master without the notes was bad
form: it showed disrespect to his
art. (Schonberg, 1963, p. 221)
http://www.klavarmusic.com/schumann.htm
Other Virtuosos
 Sir Charles Hallé –
British virtuoso, developed a
mechanism operated by the foot
that turned pages. People would
go to his concerts just to see the
spectacle of leaf after leaf turning
over without intervention of
human hands. In 1861 he started
giving recitals in St. James’s Hall,
playing Beethoven thirty-two
sonatas in a series of eighteen
recitals. He is the first pianist in
history to play the cycle. The first
two recitals were performed from
memory. (Bernstein, 1981, p. 220)
http://www.nndb.com/people/938/000101635/
 Dr. Hans von Bülow
– 1870
Feats of memory were
legendary, it was his
memory and not his
musicality that
seemed to make the
greatest impression.
(Bernstein, 1981, p. 220)
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Hans_von_buelow.jpg
Today’s Norm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Horowitz
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/pe
ople/p/murray_perahia/index.html
Reason for Memorize
 Sharpens the mind –
Greek rhetorician and grammarian,
Athenaeus said, “The study of music
contributes to the exercise and acumen
of the mind.”
“In ancient Greece, students of rhetoric were required
to memorize all of their texts and recitations not only
to master public speaking, but also to hone their
minds. Music which occupied a status equal to that of
arithmetic, geometry, and astronomy in the ancient
curriculum, was performed without exceptions – both
vocal and instrumental – were handed down directly
from master to pupil without scores.” (Bernstein,
1981, p. 221)
Reason for Memorize Continues
 Freeing a performer in
musical and technical
ways –
“Memorization is the most direct toute to
this critical juncture where thinking,
feeling, and physical coordination
become synthesized. It is at this point
that we are able to transcend all
technical details and deliver in our
playing the meaning music was meant to
convey.” (Bernstein, 1981, p. 228)
http://www.cs.princeton.edu/~san/cliburn.jpg
What causes Memory Slips
 Don’t know the piece well
enough – “what is the next
note?”
 Analytical details may interfere
with “Automatic Pilot”
 May be concentrating on the
wrong thing when performing
 Distractions (visual, aural,
attire, and environmental)
 Nervousness
www.carlysart.com/artwork/?artwork_id=48
Memorization is a skill
 “All right, now go memorize
it.”
 Memorization must be taught
and practiced as any other skill
 Memorization should start at
the beginning of the learn
progress
Major Learning Modes involved in
memorizing a Piece of Music
 Visual
 Aural
– What it looks like
– What it sounds like
(both score and keyboard)
 Analytical
 Tactile
– Harmonic and motivic
– What it feels like
structure
(Comes with least effort
and seems natural and
intuitive)
( Involve with more
mental power. Helps to
increase security and
control)
margerydaw.wordpress.com/2008/05/
Aural Memorization
 Music is sound
 Musicians with absolute pitch
regularly suffer memory slips
 Hear with the inner ear (pitch,
duration, intensity, etc.)
 Sing with the inner voice
– The inner voice direct the hands
 Tamar Schalvashvili –
Performs Skrjabin Poem Tragique B-Dur Op. 34
http://www.picturethesound.com/
Listening Techniques
 Sing the notes and lines
 Place your attention on the
vibrations
 Place your attention on each
sound as it resonates in the
space around you
(Bruser, 1997, p.166-174)
 These techniques not only
improve musical memorization,
but also develop musicality
Tactile
 “Muscle memory” – anything we repeat
enough becomes automatic
 We used to memorize our pieces by
repeating
 We still memorize our pieces by
repeating
 Feeding the right information
– Sufficient fingering
– Correct dynamics
– Accurate pitches
– Sufficient physical movement
– Natural musical feelings
Is that enough?
 Distractions
– Environmental
•
•
•
•
New Instrument
Acoustic
Lighting
Audience
– Psychological
• Doubt - interference
– Physical
• Heart rate
• Dry mouth
• Extra sharpness of the mind
Visual
 What it looks like on the page
– Photographic memory
– Land marks
– Practice from the back method (many starting
points)
 What it looks like on the keyboard
– The danger lies in the slow movement
– Visualize the hands with the inner eyes
Analysis
 Importance
 Theoretical
– Form of the piece
– Phrase Structure
– Harmony
– Rhythmic patterns
– Comparison
– Come up with your own
method
 Mapping
http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/features/images/thumbnail-maps.jpg
Mapping
 The “mind map” was developed by Tony Buzan to improve understanding and
retention in reading or taking notes on a lecture. Buzan’s maps emphasize effective
organization of material and the use of visual imagery to aid recall. Students are
encouraged to abbreviate and link ideas in their own way by using underlining,
colors, or pictures to highlight important words. (Shockley 1997, P. 5)
 Map includes:
–
–
–
–
–
Piece structure,
Phrase structure and directions, (slurs, and lines)
Contour of the melodic lines
Harmonies (chord labels)
Rhythmic patterns
Practice away from the
piano
 Gina Bachauer –
– Study everything about the piece before
touching the piano
 Alicia de Larrocha –
– Study a work totally unknown
– Relies on all four modes. And most
http://www.beautyinmusic.com/artist_pages
/alicia_de_larrocha.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Bachaue
r-Gina-02.jpg
importantly on analytical: form and
harmonic structural aspects, phrasing,
dynamics and rhythmic patterns.
(Marcus, Great Pianists Speak,1979)
 Murray Perahia –
– re-write the scores from memory
http://www.imgartists.com/?page=artist/artistPicture.html&id=1610
http://web.telia.com/~u85420275/trivia.htm
 Vladimir Horowitz –
– regularly spent several weeks
studying and memorizing new
repertoire at a cabin in Vermont
without a piano before beginning
practice back in New York
 Problems:
– The euphemism takes over
– Mindless repetition (need a
plan)
– Only listen to the melody
At the Piano
 Solution:
– Practice and memorize
hands separately
– Practice from the back
(Land marks)
– Practice smaller chunks at
a time (focus & purpose)
– Practice at a very slow
tempo and exam every
note (think/reflex)
Feeling and
Meaning
 We tend to remember things that are familiar
and meaningful to us. The more a piece of
music affects our heart, the more easily we
remember it. We, as performers, should take the
time to think about the conceptual meanings
behind the printed materials. It is important to
have a concept of what the musical phrase is
saying. Then say it in our own words. In this
way, our message has more convincing power.
It takes time to cultivate emotional vulnerability,
mental clarity, physical ease, and vivid listening;
all of these should work together. It starts from
opening our heart to each sound we hear and
each movement we make when practicing.
(Bruser, 1997, p. 221)
Free your Automatic
pilot consciously
http://www.iaac.us/AH_concert/images/Carnegiehall.jpg
 Ideally, everything that
contributes to a convincing
performance ought to be
automatic
 The ease and security of
performing music from
memory depend upon the full
development of the automatic
pilot (it is important to feed the
brain with the right
information)
 To trust in the automatic pilot,
you must first condition it by
dealing consciously with each
and every facet of the music
 Supported by the conscious
memory and conditioned
reflexes, you can actually
switch back and forth at will
(Bernstein, 1981, p.231-233)
Concentration is Essential
 Concentration is the essential element for the
brain to retrieve information with flow during the
performance.
 Obtain the high level of concentration starts in
the practice rooms
 Practicing performing
 Eliminate distractions
Dealing with the
Unexpected
 Try-out is an important preparation
step before the performance
 Playing for friends should not be
taken casually
 Wear the clothes and shoes you plan
to perform in
 Rehearse in the concert hall if
possible
 Record yourself
Conclusion
 Performing by memory is the most direct way to
transcend music from printed notes to art
 Connect the music with your senses: Visual,
Aural, Analytical, Kinesthetic and Emotion.
 The ease and security of performing music from
memory depend upon the full development of the
automatic pilot
 Letting go consciously
 Practice performing
References











Bernstein, S. (1981). With Your Won Two Hands. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc.
Bruser, M. (1997). The Art of Practicing: A guide to making Music From the Heart. New York,
N.Y.:Crown Publishers, Inc.
Friedberg, R. C. (1993). The Complete Pianist Body, Mind, Synthesis. Metuchen, M. J. &
London: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Gordon, S. (2006). Mastering the Art of Performance. New York, N. Y.: Oxford University Press.
Lhevinne, J. (1972). Basic Principles in Pianoforte Playing. Toronto, Ontario: Dover Publication,
Inc.
Marcus, A. (1979). Great Pianists Speak. Neptune, NJ: Paganiniana Publications, Inc.
Newman, W. S. (1950, 1956). The Pianist’s Problems. New York: Da Capo Press, 1984.
Noyle, L. J. (1987). Pianists on Playing: Interviews with Twelve Concert Pianists. Metuchen, N.J.
& London, The Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Schockley, R. P. (1997). Mapping Music: For Faster Learning and Secure Memory. Madison,
Wisconsin: A-R Editions, Inc.
Schonberg, H. C. (1963). The Great Pianists From Mozart to the Present. New York, N.Y.:
Western Corporation.
McKinney, D. L. (2008). Mental Strategies to Improve Playing From Memory. The American
Music Teacher. Cincinnati: Vol. 57, Iss. 6; pg. 26, 3pgs.
Citation




















http://www.superstock.com/stock-photography/piano/keyboard
www.popularpersons.org/.../
http://www.klavarmusic.com/schumann.htm
http://www.nndb.com/people/938/000101635/
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Hans_von_buelow.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Horowitz
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/p/murray_perahia/index.html
http://www.cs.princeton.edu/~san/cliburn.jpg
www.carlysart.com/artwork/?artwork_id=48
http://margerydaw.wordpress.com/2008/05/
http://www.fotosearch.com/photos-images/audience_30.html
http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/features/images/thumbnail-maps.jpg
http://www.beautyinmusic.com/artist_pages/alicia_de_larrocha.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Bachauer-Gina-02.jpg
http://www.imgartists.com/?page=artist/artistPicture.html&id=1610
http://web.telia.com/~u85420275/trivia.htm
http://www.picturethesound.com/
http://www.iaac.us/AH_concert/images/Carnegiehall.jpg
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/clipart/default.aspx?cag=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOgcmiStwQA