Digital Soul's Music, Performance, and Production Blog

For those of you aspiring musicians that have been tuning in to some of my practicing tips posts, I have been given a great and valuable article that I’d like to share with you. It is written by Dr. Gary de Sesa about how to maximize the memorization process of music for performance. Although this article was originally written by a great classical pianist, the process explained within can and should be applied to any instrument, in any style of music.

Memorizing Music For Performance – By Gary de Sesa, Ph.D

Memory is probably the last thing many performers think about before completely learning a work, and the only thing they think about just before performing it. The “final touch” on a piece for these individuals is usually the memorization. So many times I hear students and colleagues say, “Now all I have to do is memorize it.” Of course, one does not hear some of the silent thoughts of a performer’s mind before presenting a piece publicly such as, “I hope I don’t have any memory slips”, or, “I hope I remember the spot where it modulates…and how do I get out of it if I do forget?” Doubts such as these are normal enough I suppose, and account for much of the nervousness a performer experiences before a concert. But sometimes a performer will carry these doubts into his performance, and will begin asking himself while he is playing, “Do I really know what is coming next?” This is dangerous because the mental process of questioning is enough to cause the memory lapse the performer is trying to avoid.

The preoccupation with memory before a concert is understandable to anyone who has performed in public and I think it is safe to say that most performers consider good memory during a concert, vital to the success of that concert. There are those who say that memory loss doesn’t mean anything – it’s the music that counts. While to some degree this is true, this attitude neglects an important half of a concert performance – the listeners. It is true that any performer can have a memory lapse, and this may in no way reflect his artistry. But the fact still remains, whether justified or not, that the audience as a whole is disturbed by this lapse and therefore the musical message is disturbed. Furthermore, the performer is disturbed, which causes compounded anxiety and increases the possibility of even more memory and musical problems. Performers spend many, many hours practicing to secure the memorization of a piece of music, and there are various books and articles describing how one should go about this process of memorization. Many of the suggestions are similar, some are a bit more unusual in nature. For instance, in an article by Wendell Keeney entitled, “Memorizing and Memory Security,” it is suggested that the performer practice memorizing by, “playing left hand notes with the right hand, and right hand notes with the left hand…cross hands and play both parts with hands reversed. This tests note-memory apart from finger-memory.” As an example, he uses the first Invention of Bach, which is all well and good, but I find it hard to imagine anyone practicing the Liszt B minor Sonata in this fashion!

At this point I would like to offer six of my own suggestions which I consider important aids in the process of memorization. These suggestions are based on my personal experience as a solo performer and teacher.

1. As I said in the beginning, memory is probably the last thing many performers think about before completely learning a work. I believe you should start to memorize a piece, or parts of a piece, as soon as possible or at least work on it with the idea of memorizing it. Think more of what you are doing instead of letting your finger automatically respond to what your eyes see printed. If you begin memorizing early, your mind’s memory “muscle” will be strengthened instead of later relying mostly on your fingers’ memory “muscles.”

2. After going through a piece once or twice, for the idea and general feeling, learn the notes from the very beginning with all the composer’s other markings – dynamics, phrasings, accents, staccato marks, etc., even when practicing at extremely slow speeds. If you practice just for the notes, you are more likely to do larger sections at a time, less frequently. On the other hand, if you practice trying to do all the things the composer has written, chances are you will do smaller sections with more repetition, in order to solidify all the various aspects of the printed page. Practicing in smaller sections with more repetition is already an aid to memorizing and you’ll be memorizing the music, not just the notes. Learning the notes as a separate function to learning the dynamics is almost a similar process, although considerably less disastrous, to learning the notes without any sharps or flats, and then adding the accidentals afterward as a separate function.

3. When practicing small sections with many repetitions as I have just described, it is a good idea to look away from the music and try to memorize the spot you have repeating. You may be pleasantly surprised that this spot, although new, has already been memorized through concentration and repetition. Concentration on the music and repetition of the notes. When looking away from the music, you should alternate between looking away from the instrument (if applicable) and looking directly at it. This will strengthen the aural and visual process of memorization.

4. Just as it is a good idea, in the first stages of learning a piece, to look away and check if a passage or section is memorized, it is also good in the latter stages of learning, to look back at the music to check that the passage or section memorized has remained an accurate representation of the printed page.

5. It is important when practicing a piece of music, not to constantly start from the beginning and work toward the end. Difficult sections, in terms of technique and memory, should be practiced first. It has been shown through experiments by Woodworth and Schlosberg, that “inhibitions generated in the process of memorizing poetry, numbers, or music, hold back responses in spite of forward associations making the middle of the work more difficult to master than either the beginning or the end.” Therefore, it is important that a performer be comfortable starting from any section of a piece. This, in case of a memory lapse, may make the difference between being able to work out of the lapse gracefully, or having to make an obvious start from the beginning, with the constant worry of whether you will get through that spot or not the next time.

6. I suggest three things a performer should do before a concert as an aid to memorization. First, study the music away from the instrument – look at where the modulations are, and the key relationships of repeated sections. Understand the structure and harmony. Sing it to yourself, or out loud, and try to become one with the music. Secondly, if you fell the need to play through a work, try playing it at an extremely slow speed – one that enables you to concentrate on each note. If you can memorize it in slow motion, it is securely memorized. The third suggestion, which I believe to be the most important, is to practice performing! Broadway shows constantly go out on the road before opening in New York, astronauts go through one trial run after another before that actual launch into space, and athletic teams play exhibition games before the season starts. Musicians too, need to try out their pieces several times before a vital performance. Practice audiences can be made up of other performers, students, groups of friends, or family. The more times a piece is performed successfully, the more likelihood there is of a confident, smooth performance. In conjunction with this, it is important that the performer simulate, as nearly as possible, the exact conditions of a concert (lighting, applause, bowing, the order of the program, intermission, etc.) These practice concerts should be recorded, so that they can later be evaluated by the performer.

The recording can be a handy aid not only to memorization, but general performance as well. Once you have a piece learned, it is a good idea to record it. The recording can detect the smallest details, and you can sit back and just listen to yourself play, without playing. We sometimes get so involved with the technical aspects of playing, that we don’t listen as well. Hearing yourself back on a recording relieves you of this so that you may give your one-hundred percent attention to listening. This of course, should not become a substitute for listening to yourself while playing, as the ability to listen while playing and adjust accordingly is a must in achieving artistry.

Naturally, each performer has his or her own way of preparing for a performance and as with all aspects of memory and performance, the formula must be an individual one, one which the individual performer feels will best him or her, and in turn, best serve the music.

The reason a performer spends so many hours each day in preparing his repertoire, is so that when the performance day arrives, he can perform each piece under concert conditions to the best of his ability. After all the hours of study, practice and devotion, a performer walks out on stage to present the music – and as I and my comrades in music know, a little good luck doesn’t hurt.