Fiorillo in the morning

March 25, 2008 at 11:32 AM

Last year it was Wohlfahrt in the morning, this year it's Fiorillo. What is it about starting your day with etudes? In high school I used to start my day with orchestra music. My parents' TV turned on first on the other side of the wall and woke me up. Then I got out my violin and returned the favor.

I think it makes a big difference for the entire rest of the day, what you do first. For a lot of people, it's TV. I have to admit that for me, it's often the other little screen. Get up, go to the bathroom, put on a bathrobe, shuffle down the stairs and turn on the computer. Type, type, type as the sun slowly comes up and the brain, like the little frowny face on the Macintosh that turns smiley, slowly boots up.

But etudes are better. Really. Feeling the wood in your hands and the strings under your fingers. A-440. AAAAAA, AAAAAA, AAAAAAAAAAA A. All the senses engaged, not just the eyes. It makes the smiley face come on faster.

From Tom Holzman
Posted on March 25, 2008 at 1:04 PM

Starting with the scales etudes gets you centered for the good stuff. That's the way it seems to me.

From Pauline Lerner
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 3:57 AM

I see that you're a morning person. I'm very strongly a night person. I can't imagine playing my violin that early. No matter when I get out of bed, my mind doesn't turn on fully until about 10 AM. I could probably play etudes after midnight if I didn't have any neighbors.

From Karen Allendoerfer
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 10:36 AM

Well, it's funny, I wasn't a morning person AT ALL until I had children. Then the morning became a sanctuary of sorts, a time when I could do things for myself before everyone else is up. But then, the other time of day that I practice regularly is 10:45-11:30 p.m.

I feel fortunate, the play/rec room is off the living room and an add-on to the overall architecture of the house, and so when I close the two doors, to the rec room and the living room, people in the rest of the house can't really hear me.

From Jon O'Brien
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 12:25 PM

TV first thing in the morning would break me. It would destroy my will. I would quit, and go into a shell. Dictators, and mind-control totalitarianists take note: how to break the resolve of the staunchest citizen: TV by force, first thing in the morning. Oprah, Judge Judy, re-runs of survivor or whatever they happen to play in the morning these days. That sort of thing. But maybe Thunderbirds or Lost in Space would be OK.

From Jon O'Brien
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 12:30 PM

It just occurred to me that Americans probably don't know the Thunderbirds. You'd have to be British or an Aussie to know that show.

From Anne Horvath
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 4:30 PM

No breakfast??? Oh no..."Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!". I like NPR in the morning. And the local birdcage liner. As far as practicing goes, I worked out a nice little 1/2 hour warm-up using some Sevcik bowing etudes, left hand stuff, and Kreutzer. After I slog through that stuff, I get down to scales. For years and years, I warmed up on scales, but I have found it more beneficial to be warmed up completely before diving into the Flesch. Well, that works for me anyway.

From Karen Allendoerfer
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 5:40 PM

Oh, no, I eat breakfast, just after I am done practicing (and blogging ;-)--sometimes I eat while blogging, actually). I am *really* not hungry when I first wake up. Plus, I have a medication to take on an empty stomach and am supposed to wait an hour before eating, so it works out well.

From Tom Holzman
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 5:53 PM

I thought eating breakfast was one of the etudes. Don't you learn it between Wohlfahrt and Kreutzer?

Breakfast is crucial. I do not sound good without it.

From Karen Allendoerfer
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 6:48 PM

I eat breakfast with my kids when they come downstairs. Once they come downstairs, practice time is OVER. I'm trying to get my daughter to practice with me. So far, she's not buying it.

From Tom Holzman
Posted on March 26, 2008 at 8:29 PM

Karen - the good news is that your kid wants to play an instrument other than electric guitar or drums (my kids' choices of instruments) and is interested in some music that you like.

This entry has been archived and is no longer accepting comments.

Fiorillo in the morning

Subscribe

Laurie's Books