When taking up a new endeavor, the word practice is thrown into the mix almost immediately. I’m familiar enough with the idea, and sure, I may even agree on its merits. Growing up playing classical music, practice was associated with work. It was the time spent working on learning, but it was absolutely work. A minimum amount of time was encouraged (or required, depending on your circumstance). As one who thinks a lot about language (I’m an interpreter, so it comes with the territory), I think about the word practice and compare it to the rehearsals of my theater days, and study time in college.
When I got interested in playing piano, it was because I wanted something to enjoy, to bring peace, and to play music which felt calming or good. I wanted to play the music which had been so helpful to listen to. There’s no doubt that dedicated, structured practice can lead to the ability to play, but the thought of working in such a manner has felt antithetical to why I wanted to learn piano in the first place. I want to learn in a calm way, which for me means learning in a way which is less rigidly structured, and more about what feels motivating and good. I had a few months in the spring of this year where I recognized that technique is important, and spent a good bit of time focusing on such skills. I realized soon enough that I was neglecting learning music in that time, and have since corrected course.
So where does that leave me as someone who likes to write, and has started a blog to write about my journey of learning piano? I note the irony here, of course, that the act of creating a website and blog itself seems to be a way to organize something I’m otherwise not fond of organizing. So I think of it this way: I quite enjoy reading about others’ experiences learning, so it might be interesting to write about and document my own. I want a scrapbook, in a way, of how I’ve learned what I’ve learned, and how I’m reflecting on what I’m learning. In other words, a study of my own study, one which I’m not concretely planning out but which I’d like to reflect on as I go. A way to show my work, and to think and learn out loud. I’m curious to see how I progress, and even to see how my philosophy of study may shift over time. In short, for me piano has been less about structure and formal practice and more about curiosity and study. I spend time playing, and indeed practicing what I learn, though I like to think of that time as being spent studying, learning music, learning to relax, learning to get in touch with how my fingers move, and I can create music and feeling through them.
I have no idea what this will ultimately look like, and that’s perhaps the most interesting thing of all.