adamgood
Oud Junkie
Posts: 499
Registered: 6-27-2005
Location: Brooklyn, NY
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Mood: 2.7 koma flat
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memorizing pieces!
ok y'all here's an interesting topic. Wouldn't it be nice if there was a magic recipe for memorizing long pieces?
I'm curious how any of you go about memorizing. In particular i'm concerned with learning say, 4 hanes of a pesrev (or saz semaisi which for me is
only slightly easier)
Repetition is surely the name of the game but any more detailed ideas. I think we can all agree that having a recording of the piece is only going to
help in the process.
now here's a couple questions:
1. is it working better to:
a) learn it first away from your instrument, like be able to sing it before hitting the instrument?
b) learn it immediately on your instrument?
There's a teacher at New England Conservatory named Ran Blake who had the idea that, if you can sing it, you can play it. I take that to mean also, if
you can hear it, you can play it or, if you can't hear it, how are you ever going to play it?
maybe this is a really good approach. maybe our brain thing is quicker to analyze melodic shapes and forms that way.
well, ok guys fire away!
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Jason
Oud Junkie
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Registered: 9-17-2005
Location: Louisville, KY
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I think it's helpful to learn pieces a phrase or two at a time. If you read down an entire piece everytime you put it in front of you it will be
difficult to memorize the whole thing in one chunk.
I don't think it would be that beneficial to learn to sing a piece you're going to play. That won't help you overcome physical hurdles that may arise
from more difficult pieces. If you can play something from memory you can also sing it. I suppose it would work the other way around too but I don't
see the point.
One exception would be if you still have trouble with hearing intervals intervals. Learning to sing (or hear) the notes may help your intonation.
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Greg
Administrator
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Registered: 7-22-2004
Location: Brisbane, Australia
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Adam, I agree that this is an interesting topic.
I am trying to sort out in my mind what it is that I do in learning to remember complex Sama'iyyat. I think it is a combination of all the techniques
that you describe.
I usually listen to a recording a few times before hitting the sheet music. Then when I have it up to speed, I usually play along with the CD. I often
find myself humming the tunes when driving to the office and I feel sure that helps in the process. By the time I feel that I have "got it," it is so
firmly embedded in my mind that I don't even think about where I'm putting the fingers. It just becomes an intuitive thing.
Thanks for raising the issue, it's good to think about the process.
Regards,
Greg
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SamirCanada
Moderator
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Registered: 6-4-2004
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The way I got about it is learning each khana individualy.
I find it less overwhelming then to try and tackle the whole peice. Also I find it hard since there are no words you cant associate singing easily.
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eliot
Oud Junkie
Posts: 252
Registered: 1-5-2005
Location: The Gorges
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Great topic, Adam.
My current style involves transcribing a recording, with ornaments, from some recording of it I particularly like.
In the process of writing out the piece, of figuring out the turns and appoggiaturas in the tanbur figuration, etc., I tend to memorize 2/3 or so
without ever having played the piece actually. I do this even with pieces for which I have notation.
In groups, we'll put 1-4 bar phrases (depending on the complexity) on repeat-perform (meaning, we set the usul and play the phrase as a loop) until
we've played it perfectly 5-10 times in a row, then move onto the next 1-4 bar phrase. That works well, too.
PS: on the singing thing, it could be a good tool for some people. I'm always singing (even if inaudibly) with whatever I'm playing, so I can
potentially learn a piece from singing and transfer it to the oud without having physically played it before. But I know other musicians who don't
sing (even on the "inside") while playing for whom it would be moot.
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kevin
Oud Lover
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Registered: 1-8-2004
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this is a large area for me, too. I don't remember where I heard that phrase "if you can sing it you can play it", but it I have always kept it in
mind.
I sight read really well, so I find that reading it is helpful. But, what I have found so far to be the most sucessful is doing two things: 1) singing
and playing a drum along with the sheet music & 2) playing it repeatedly on the oud. Learning the usul by singing seems to go hand in hand with
learning the piece by memory, at least for me.
Its the combination that seems to make a difference. Visually picturing the phrases, associating these with patterns on the neck and then associating
these with aural sounds, shapes, and beats or pulses. Of course, in our instances, having knowledge of the makam is also helpful.
Personally I find I tend to forget pieces if I just learn them by ear, the longer ones that is.
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