Practice Techniques For Fast Passages

Hi, I am struggling with acquiring speed in some of the repertoire I am studyiing. For example, the left hand in the excerpt bellow from Beethoven Sonata 19 Op.49 no. 1 (Rondo). The movement is allegro and I would like to perform it around 90~100 bpm for the dotted quarter. Uploaded with Currently I can play it comfortable around 60bpm, but I think my progress has somewhat stalled at this point. This is my current plan to try to gain speed, please give let me know what you think: 1) Keep practising slowly with a metoronome around 40bmp and make sure it is a very accurate slow motion rendition of the final performance. 2) For each chord figure out the hand shape and practise overholding 5 fingers while llifting only the finger that needs to play a note. Make sure that only the fingers that need to play move - this is still very difficult for me - I don't have good finger independence in the left hand and I am suffering from the "diving board" syndrome. 3) try to chain groups of notes at tempo in various rhythms so my instincts start to treat each broken chord as a seperate pulse. This is the part I am most uncertain about - I know that the final result should be "pulse" playing where I don't need to conciously focus on every note, but I am note sure if this is the way I should practise, or whether I should focus more on slow playing. On the one hand when I practise at tempo I am missing notes more often. On the other hand I am not sure how much of the physical motions during slow playing are similar to those I would need at tempo - so I might be practising the wrong motions even though I am hitting all right notes. Have you or your students had similar problems? What practice techniques helped the most? Thanks in advance for your advice. Zack

There's a glaring omission from your practice regimen. There should be a rotation in the left hand that's passive but caused by your outer fingers' vigorous efforts to lift themselves before they play their bass notes (6 bass notes in a bar). You must highly rhythmicize this alberti bass. This little pattern must have three levels of activity, and all the lower notes must by hyperactive. They must be full of energy - not loud but incredibly light, incisive, vigorous and bouncy. You can't go fast because you are all gummed up. Your overholding is great for the first stage of practice but now you have to free yourself from the gumminess, go beyond that security, into potent fall into the key whereby it differentiates itself from the hand. Good luck! AFF

Hi Alan, As always you seem to be very perceptive and helpful from distance, both regarding the thumb and the overholding. I will definitely try your suggestions. A friend of mine who is an advanced pianist recommended I do more stacatto practice, to make sure I actually make every note sound. She also recommended to play those stacatto notes very loud (as a practice tecnnique, not in final performance), and then vary the rhythms and grouping as I try going faster, still making sure every note is distinct. What do you think about stacatto playing for this passage as a practice technique? I have tried it for the past few days and the hand does feel much lighter with more active fingers. I also noticed more rotation that naturally happens and highlights the bass. I have also tried "out the back door" stacatissimo when practicing rather slowly, and I think it improves my thumb action -having that extra curling helps the thumb's fast repeated note as I no longer perceive it as up-down motion of the thumb but more as a circular motion. I don't think I will use the "out the back door" touch for this passage eventually at speed, but I think a trace of the curling might help. What do you think about it? Thanks Zack

I agree totally. When you do those techniques in practice they leave a 'neurological trace' in the reflexive memory which you can then, if you are canny, use to liven up your actual performance. AFF