Every now and then
one of my older students asks me whether memorizing music is important. Younger
students often ask this question because they’re afraid I’ll make them memorize
their pieces, and some of them aren’t very good at it. However, when the question
is from an adult, they’re asking more than a simple “Do I have to memorize
this?” The question is about the value
of memorization.
Do I think it’s worthwhile
to memorize music? Absolutely. First, it’s a good exercise for your brain. We
don’t need to memorize many things these days. So much of what we need to know
can be looked up easily – we can even ask
our phones or smart speakers – that the art of memorization is no longer
valued as it used to be. But the ability is
valuable. Thinking in a different way and challenging your brain keeps it alert
and engaged, which makes it more efficient at other mental tasks. Plus, recent
studies show that keeping the brain active in different ways can help our
mental faculties as we age.
More important, though,
from a musical perspective, is the fact that we can never be fully engaged in
the music if we are looking at dots on a page. Just as an actor cannot get
fully into character if he’s still reading the lines from the script, we cannot
fully get into the character of the
music if we are reading from the page. When reading music, there is more of a
tendency to keep a stricter rhythm, because the measures and the beats are
right in front of us, confining us to a steady one, two, three, etc. Getting
away from the page helps us to let the music breathe naturally, just as an
actor might pause in the dialogue for emphasis or emotional effect, even if
it’s not indicated in the script. We do the same thing in music, but not as
often if the page is in front of us. Playing all the correct notes in the right
rhythm is only the beginning of playing a piece well. Playing from memory allows
us to freely interpret the emotional content of the music. That’s why soloists
for a concerto play without the music. Unfortunately, memorization is difficult
for some people. I have some suggestions that I hope will help:
§ HEARING
What the piece sounds like
is the first thing you notice. The more times you hear a piece, the more you
reinforce your memory of what it should sound like, or what you want it to
sound like. Hearing engages the memory in a different way than the other types
of learning I have listed below, as remembering what something sounds like is
not a conscious process; it’s automatic. However, we can improve our listening
skills with practice.
§ SEEING
We also remember music
by sight. As we read the music, we see the contour of the melody on the page,
and the relationship of the notes to each other. Not only does it help us to remember
how the music unfolds; it gives us a picture of it that can stick in our minds.
This includes having a sense of “where you are on the page.” If you have a
spatial sense of where you are on the page, it helps you to know where you are
in the piece of music – how much further you have to go. Additionally, there is
the visual element of what our hands
look like when we play the piece. Many teachers tell their students not to look
at their hands when they play, but I maintain that it’s part of the
memorization process. You don’t want to be playing something from memory and
look down and your hands and think, “What are they doing? I’ve never seen them
do that before!” Seeing the patterns
and movements your hands make helps you to remember what you’re supposed to
play. (As an aside, there are many good reasons
for students to not look at their hands, and times when it is important to be
able to play without looking at your hands, but I will address those in the
next blog.)
§ ANALYSIS
Analyzing the music
also helps with memorization. Most of us remember what key a piece is in, and
how many beats in a measure; those things are obvious. But analyzing other
things about the music will help you to remember it better. For example, most
music has phrases of equal length. If you have just played a 4-bar phrase,
chances are you’re going to do the same thing again. Knowing where you are in
your phrases can serve as a place-marker, and help keep you from getting lost. In
addition, many pieces of music have different sections. Know how long the
sections are and whether they repeat. Also, if you analyze the chord
progressions, you can see how the piece unfolds within the key. An added bonus
to this is that even if you can’t remember exactly what notes you’re supposed
to play, if you know that you’re supposed to be playing a D chord, for example,
you’ll know which notes will make the harmony sound correct, even if you don’t
play them in the right place.
§ REPETITION
Repetition is valuable
because it reinforces the elements of hearing, seeing, and analyzing. Plus, the
more times you play something, the more you will develop your muscle memory of
the piece. Muscle memory alone is not sufficient for complete memorization, but
it’s certainly part of the equation. I have found sometimes that even if I am
distracted briefly while performing a piece, my fingers are on “autopilot” and
keep playing accurately.
- CHANGING SPEED
This may not seem like it would
make much difference, but playing a piece more slowly and more quickly that you
would perform it forces you to feel, hear and see it in different ways. Playing
more slowly allows you to think more about each note, and the techniques listed
above. Playing faster forces you to remember what you’re supposed to do next
more quickly. Then when you slow down, it seems easier.
While
each of these techniques alone generally isn’t sufficient, the combination of
them can help most people feel fairly confident in memorizing a piece. The
beauty of memorizing a piece is that once you have done it, the music can fully
become part of you, and will always be there for you to get lost in. Perhaps
that is why we call it “playing by heart.”
