Supporting Your Piano Pathway
Reflection by Andrew Eales
I recently announced the MK Piano Celebration 2024, a chance for learners and amateur players to perform in front of a friendly audience of family, friends, and music enthusiasts, focusing on enjoyment and mutual support, rather than anxiety and competition.
But in an age where growing numbers learn online, perhaps playing purely for their own interest and enjoyment, some inevitably wonder whether performing is a worthwhile or necessary part of their piano journey.
I have explained before that playing the piano is an amazing journey that can bring immense personal satisfaction, cultural enrichment, and genuine enjoyment to our lives whether we choose to perform or not.
But I sincerely believe that there are many positive benefits to playing the piano to an audience, however informal, and in this post I would like to suggest a few of them.
Fulfilling our potential
Performing to others can be the positive focus that helps us to raise our game, and become the best pianists we can be. As Paul Harris and Richard Crozer write in their book The Music Teacher’s Companion (ABRSM, 2000):
“Performing is a different type of experience compared with practising and playing through pieces in lessons. It is the moment when the thoroughness of the preparation will really pay off.”
Performances provide a tangible goal for piano players to work towards, encouraging consistent practice, raised stakes, and invoking the self-discipline needed in order to meet a clear deadline. The opportunity to perform incentivises us to reach towards out full potential, rather than accepting second best and simply moving on to the next piece we want to learn.
At the same time, concerts provide a platform to celebrate our hard work and progress, showcasing our achievements to family, friends, the local and wider music-loving community. Successful performances boost our self-esteem, confidence, and provide a context in which others will take a more supportive interest in our playing journey.
Growing through our experience
Performing helps us to develop empathy with our audience, and an awareness of the emotional connection that music creates.
We learn and develop essential skills, such as stage presence, timing, communication, group interaction, and to spontaneously adapt to unexpected changes or interruptions. With experience, we refine our ability to handle nerves, making us more confident musicians.
Personal reflection on how any performance has gone is a useful mechanism to inform our continuing practice, so long as we remember to be kind to ourselves in that process.
When a performance doesn’t go as we hoped, so long as the context is not a competitive or otherwise toxic one, we can also receive valuable feedback from others, which helps us clarify areas for improvement, enabling us to grow as musicians.
And performing can create a sense of community among students, teachers, and audiences, fostering connections that inspire collaboration and support. Piano events, informal clubs, and concerts can help build affinity and camaraderie, and when managed well, they offer a space for mutual support and interest to thrive.
Collaborative events of this kind will also often feature a variety of musical styles; we encounter different genres, composers and works, which in turn can inspire and influence our future repertoire choices.
Sharing music with others can reinforce our love for playing the piano, further igniting our lifelong passion for music appreciation. Our performances are not just our precious gift to our audience, but to ourselves.
Some will prefer not to perform, which is perfectly okay, but with so many wonderful benefits I would encourage all players to have a go at performing when a positive opportunity arises!
Pianodao offers over 700 articles and reviews that are FREE to access.
If you appreciate this content, please support and follow the site here:
