Musical Time: Micro-Lessons

An illuminating collection of insights to help you think about and express Musical Time like an artist and human being, not like a computer…

Prerequisites

LOVE of music… and the discipline to study and practice the right things the right way.

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Lesson Goals

To establish the proper mindset that sets the tone for establishing highly efficient and effective practice habits.

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Special Note from Frank

Please let me know (frank@piano-ology.com) if you’d like to get these micro-lessons as a single PDF or zip file of MP3s.

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Musical Time: Micro-Lessons

Developing a deep sense of musical time isn’t about counting numbers in your head. It’s about feeling motion in your entire body. ~ fjp

Rhythm, even without pitches, is a musical LANGUAGE in and of itself. ~ fjp

Musical time is not some abstract mathematical concept. Musical time lives and breathes in the way you MOVE your body! ~ fjp

Musical rhythm and musical techqniue are INSEPARABLE! ~ fjp

Rhythm is just as important as the notes you play. ~ fjp

Playing “with good time” is not about robotic precision, but about learning how to dance. ~ fjp

Musical time is a very delicate fabric. Any attempt to fight its natural flow will tear the threads. ~ fjp

Musical Rhythm always flows OUTWARD: from your torso, through your shoulders, through your arms, through your hands, and into your fingers. ~ fjp

Rhythm should feel NATURAL… ebbing, flowing, breathing with each musical phrase. ~ fjp

Musical Rhythm is not achieved by machine-like precision, but by fluid CHOREOGRAPHY! ~ fjp

TIME NEVER STOPS. Time keeps flowing… even in-between the notes... especially in-between the notes. ~ fjp

Don’t try to keep time with your fingers. Express the rhythm with your entire body and let your fingers go along for the ride. ~ fjp

You cannot MAKE musical time happen. You can only ALLOW musical time to happen. ~ fjp

Musical rhythm has the power to MOVE people… literally and figuratively… transforming your audience from passive listeners into active participants. ~ fjp

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learn more… Musical Time