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You don’t have to be a concert pianist to take the time and effort to develop a substantial repertoire. What does “directory” mean anyway? In short, the repertoire is a set of works or songs that forms the core or foundation of the pianist. (Technically, a “song” has lyrics while a “work” or “song” does not. The word “song” is often misused.) Many pianists believe that you should keep all the lyrics. pieces “under the fingers” or easily playable at all times and that this constitutes his repertoire. I think, however, that the repertoire implies something more encompassing. Now let’s take a look at the term and explore the most effective ways to develop, extend, and nurture it:
Five golden rules for building a substantial piano repertoire
1. Practice, practice, practice
2. Micro-cycle work you are currently doing
3. The macro-cycle works throughout your life
4. Consider that no job is ever “done”
5. Constantly add books and sheet music to your library
The first rule of practice hardly needs to be explained. To become better and more proficient at everything, you have to do it, do it often, and love doing it with all your heart and soul. Tiger Woods didn’t become a great golfer by munching snacks and watching TV. The best surgeons in the world didn’t make it by hanging out in bars and drinking beer. Likewise, an aspiring pianist wishing to have fun and succeed in playing hundreds of songs or works will never succeed by neglecting to train regularly. Ideally, one should not practice out of obligation, but rather out of love of music and a burning desire to improve.
The second rule of micro-cycling work is the pianist’s short-term plan, which can range from a few weeks to several months or maybe a year at most. This is what most people imply with the word “repertoire”, because it is the time frame in which one can sit down at any time and perform (preferably from memory) a fixed number of works. I have found the best results for micro-cycling by focusing on about five works at a time. For example, I will often spend an entire week practicing one work exclusively (such as a Joplin rag), the following week exclusively another work (such as a Mozart sonata), and the following week exclusively another work (such as a Liszt study). . Then I might not even touch them at all for two months, and as I walk back to one, I feel like “meeting an old friend” who speeds up their relearning phase. What once took a week to accomplish now only takes a few days. Ideally, the pianist should strive to learn, forget, and then relearn works in monthly, weekly, and daily cycles. It is the everlasting, endless plan that I follow when practicing and preparing my YouTube videos.
The third rule of macrocycling works is the pianist’s long-term plan, which can range from one to ten years. A thirteen-year-old just starting out usually doesn’t realize that what is learned in those formative years lays its musical foundation for life. As I wrote this article at the age of 47, and having started playing the piano at the age of 6, I am constantly amazed at how resilient and powerful the human brain is. For example, I started practicing Mendelssohn’s “Rondo Capriccioso” this week after it had been inactive and fully intact for 27 years, and I was shocked when it came back to me memorized again in just three. days. What took up to three months to learn well at age 20 only took me three days to relearn as well or better at age 47. This is one of the surprisingly satisfying aspects of piano music and repertoire. All music ultimately remains in your consciousness and forms your “musical identity” until the day you leave this earth. It’s never too late to learn the piano, develop a repertoire, and tap into the power of your musical memories. After working on “Rondo Capriccioso” for a week and recording it on YouTube, I probably won’t touch it for several years.
The logical successor to the third rule of macro-cycling is the fourth rule of seeing a job as never being finished. When I was a first year music student at university at the age of 18, I thought that the works became “finished” after I had performed them in recital or in concert. My usual plan of action was to work on a set number of pieces for a semester or year, “complete” them, then move on to the next pieces my teacher assigned. Now at 47, I can’t help but smirk at my young innocence. As my “Rondo Capriccioso” experience shows, I have learned over time that no job will ever be finished. Never. The micro and macro cyclic piano repertoire is the bread and butter of the pianist’s musical life. These cycles continue until the end, just like food and water. I am constantly resurrecting works that were thought to be finished, and I have never been so satisfied with my musical evolution and progress.
While the first four rules are the mental or intangible components of developing a large piano repertoire, the fifth rule of constantly adding books and scores to one’s library constitutes the physical or material component. Just as one cannot do the dishes without first purchasing or acquiring plates, cups and utensils, a pianist will never be able to develop a vast repertoire without purchasing or acquiring printed music. Most people refer to all printed music as “sheet music”, however, this is really a misnomer. Technically, “score” refers to single works of no more than four pages. For example, I recently ordered “My Heart Will Go On” from my favorite music company, Sheet Music More. (Although I am primarily a classical pianist, I also enjoy playing pop music from time to time.) Being a unique title, it is correctly called a score. On the other hand, “Complete Rags For Piano” by William Bolcom, which I also ordered from Sheet Music More, is not at all a sheet music but rather a “music book” or a “music volume” because it is thick and contains 21 titles. (Please excuse me for this clarification, but the term “partition” is often misused.)
I love my music library and still play from books I’ve had since I was 10 years old. I always find new books and sheets to buy, cherish, and add to my library. I diversify and constantly explore new repertoires. In the age of the internet, the use of free PDF files has become far too prevalent in my opinion. PDF prints often only last a few weeks at most because they get lost or torn so easily. I sometimes rely on free PDF files, however 98% of my music library consists of sheet music and books that I paid for. Although all music published before 1922 is in the public domain, and therefore legally free for all, it is wrong to rely too much on free PDFs. Books last a lifetime and can be used and reused until the end of life. Refusing to buy music and desperately trying to get everything for free is like eating from paper plates and plastic utensils. A pianist will never greatly expand his repertoire without acquiring the physical props (ie books) along the way. Let’s end with a story.
Once, while I was teaching piano at a college, a student came to his lesson with the first movement of Beethoven’s “Appassionata” copied onto twelve thin sheets of fax paper. They did not stay on the music stand and constantly fell to the floor. It went on for a whole semester until I pulled out almost all of my hair and suffered from coronary artery disease. Forever thereafter, I banned the use of PDF printouts in my studio and started encouraging students to buy music from a store like I did when I was in college (before the internet, imagine that!). If my pupil had invested some money in a volume of Beethoven sonatas (as much as it costs to go to the movies and order popcorn), he would have had “Appassionata” as well as thirty other great sonatas. for the rest of his life. However, instead of investing in his future, he chose the cheapest route. The moral of the story is that quality and longevity prevail and that it is in their best interests to develop and maintain their music library throughout their life. The immaterial and the material work in unison. Physical and not physical. Yin and yang. (In Chinese philosophy, “yin” or “feminine” is equivalent to the intangible or ephemeral aspect of practice and cycling while “yang” or “masculine” is equivalent to material accessories like music books and sheets. .)
So there you have it in a nutshell: practice, micro-cycle, macro-cycle, no work is ever done, constantly add music to its library. These are the five golden rules of building a substantial piano repertoire. Thanks for your time and good practice!
