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Mendy Smith

Lesson Blog Number 574

May 29, 2008 at 5:39 AM

Lesson night once again. This time I was exhausted. I mean so tired I could barely stand up. Started on E minor scale nice and slow. By the time we got up to 4 notes per beat my brain disengaged. It stalled out, ran out of gas. How do I play 2nd position again?

OK, skip that... vibrato studies. Brain disengaged again on the fingering exercise I was applying vibrato exercises to. Totally forgot my finger patters. OK, skip that. Just play 3rd and 4th finger alternating on all strings. THAT I could do... with a very nice vibrato - on all strings.

We moved onto the Sonata again. Brain still has not re-engaged. Took 3 tries to get through the first measure. No matter, just keep going. By the end of page 2, my brain suddenly engaged on the last few lines of 16th note runs, going faster and faster and faster on each beat, until the last measure I was playing so fast it was hard to believe.

At the end of the page I looked at my fingers on my left hand, completely stunned that they just did that totally on their own. How in Holy Toledo did that happen?!?!?! Did it a second time! Wow!

Onto page 3 & 4. Brain disengaged again. :::sigh::: How do I read treble clef again? Another musical moment lost to exhaustion.

So, we worked on dynamics instead. Loud, soft, loud, soft. And a cool little trick on keeping a harmonic going without your finger on the string. Now that was something my exhasted brain could handle and have fun with.

At least my teacher appreciates these moments. We had a good laugh at my body and brain's inability to do simple tasks one moment then do something phenominal the next. What is weird is that by tomorrow, those dynamics he taught me will have really sunk into my playing without any effort.

Time for a nap.

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