June 5, 2004 at 8:37 PM

My bow hand is behaving better, and I got some more fine points from my teacher on where to hold it, where the thumb should be, and how to keep the wrist straight. But now, I'm amiss on how and where to put my left thumb as I move up and down the fingerboard. Okay, I know that gripping the fingerboard with the thumb is absolutely a no-no. But not sure if it should stick straight up, or lie flatter like a hitchhiker.

As for practicing, my teacher observed that I was practicing like a kid. Which is to rush through the entire piece speeding up at the easier sections and slowing down at the harder sessions. He told me that I don't have all that much time to play something a million times, but need to practice smarter. Which is to take a difficult section and practice it over and over again at a slower tempo, until I can get it right. This is surely a lot more work, and less fun, but is the right way to practice. Especially since at my age, and I want to improve faster. Makes a lot of sense. But feels like work.

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