Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Pianist Corner How do you memorize?

Well then, you ARE aware of these things. Since you are, for the benefit of those who aren't in the know, pass on your knowledge rather than tell them to "play it over and over...blah blah blah and you'll learn it". You know better.

I just sort of assumed that everyone naturally learns these things when they play. I don't actually individually practice these things. It all happens as I learn. Maybe it's the way I do it -- one measure at a time, starting slowly and being aware of what's going on. After reading some posts here, I'm now aware that memorization doesn't come as easily to everyone.

I have quite a few books that consist of collections of interviews with pianists. I can't remember which one this refers to, but in one of them the interviewer asked many of the pianists about memorization. I was very surprised that quite a large number of them said they didn't know how they did it. I had assumed most high level professionals were pretty sophisticated and self aware of what they were doing regarding memorization.

One of the things that makes a high level professional is that they have mastered certain skills so well that they cannot understand people not being able to do them. That is why the best performers may not be the best instructors.

To memorize a piece I learned from sheet music, I play it over and over again, and eventually, if the harmonies are not too complicated, it will sink in.

I guess it's muscle memory. Because sometimes, when I play and get derailed, I start a few measures from that point, and it usually works the second time.

For pieces that are harmonically challenging, I find it more difficult to memorize them.

It looks like the way pianists memorize aren't much different between amateur and professionals, between great and so-so pianists, after all .

The last time I saw a well-known pianist having a major memory lapse, it was quite excruciating to watch - he floundered around for several seconds, playing some random notes that bore little relation to the music until he finally found a way back, skipping a whole section to do so. It was probably no different to the way a decent non-professional pianist in the same situation would cope, and it surprised me that someone with such long experience as a concert pianist didn't manage to disguise or cover it up better.

And professional concert pianists frequently play atonal (and avant-garde) music with the score, rather than trust to their memory. I've attended several piano recitals over the years where Schoenberg, Webern, Berg, Stockhausen, Boulez or more contemporary works were performed, and in every case, the score was used. But never for composers like Shostakovich, Bartók or Stravinsky.

I am a beginner so take my comments for what they are worth. I like to be able to play a memorized piece, with eyes closed, with the power off, and away from the piano as an ear worm. Some pieces are too difficult for all that, but sections can be memorized that way.

There is the cliche of memorizing a poem. Most will do it a line or two lines at a time. Some like to use mnemonic tricks, attaching words or images to each musical phrase, to string the lines together. Some folks like to write out the score or visualize the score. Writing out a shorthand version of the harmony can often be enough to trigger the rest. When I perform, I like to have a crib sheet with just the first few bars in shorthand, because I often feel like my mind is blank. The entire score is often less valuable than the crib sheet and less portable.

I find that it helps to have recovery points, in case of a flub. On performance day, mental rehearsal is often more valuable than more playing. I find that too much playing on performance day tends to be counterproductive, if a person has rehearsed enough before hand.

Yeah, those things don't just happen naturally. They are all things that one must be consciously aware of.

Everybody should absolutely be aware of the factors mentioned by Joel. The problem for many is probably to know how to do what he mentioned. Rushing through a piece is definitely not the way to memorize. You must become aware of things - like for example if you walk to a certain destination you recognize signposts, crossroads, shops etc. on your way to said destination. In the same way you must become aware of harmonies, modulations etc. when you learn a piece slowly, paying attention to all details. Motivation is also a factor I think.

7 times perfect in a roll.

What do you mean, "how"? As in, how does your brain function to allow memorization (visual, kinetic, aural), or what deliberate steps do you take to cause memorization to take place? Never mind; I confuse my own self sometimes and this question really did confuse me.

At any rate, I have realized, about part 1: it's not visual; either from the page or from visual patterns on the keyboard. It's mostly aural. It doesn't even seem like motor memory plays a great part. Once, motor memory did save me, though, as my mind went totally blank while playing Chopin 10/12 at a student recital, and I watched as if a spectator while my hands (after a split second pause) launched themselves into the next section. It so startled me that it took my brain a few measures to catch up. But that was my first recital since a teenager, and I had worn the keys of the piano down to nubs with incredible mind-boggling repetition. I know I can't take that approach with every piece, though.

Mostly it's a physical awareness of shapes and patterns formed by my hands; I have a mental image of lines and angles and geometric shapes formed by intervals and chords and runs. And they all seem so interesting and quirky and individualistic, it's easy to remember.

About part 2, I have recently realized I need some sort of plan. The music goes into memory fairly quickly, which can be good (can practice without the score and internalize the music) and bad (no more need to read, can get details wrong). But this is a sort of incidental and not deliberate memorization; it *just happens somehow.* And experience in lessons has shown me that this kind of memorization-through-familiarity is not reliable. Often my pieces have a dreadful awkward stage where I neither read the music, nor have the piece solidly memorized; so between memory lapses, and looking up at the music again in flustered silence, trying to locate the measure where I've broken down, it's not pretty.

So, last night I sat down to deliberately start memorizing my next recital piece. It's familiar enough that it's mostly memorized, but not solidly and deliberately. My procedure was: Read through a section; play it from memory a few times; read through the section again "with a fine-toothed comb" to make sure I have every note and rest exactly so and check against my memory; play from memory a few more times; read through again. Then go back one section and start that one, and do the same things, but join with the following section. Make sure I understand what I am playing, i.e. what chord. Make sure I know where the phrase ends up. If worst comes to worst at the recital, I can fill in a few forgotten measures with fluff as long as I end up on in the right place.

I got through two pages, starting from the back. I'm actually quite concerned about it as the recital is in less than 2 months and I still have technical work galore to do on it... Mendelssohn rondo cap. which my autocratic teacher handed to me with the announcement "You'll be playing this in the December recital." And I liked it and was game, but now... ugh... Anyway yes, memorization is definitely something I am thinking about these days.

Maybe a bigger concern is "retrieval of memorized content in a stressful situation." Whatever happens at the beginning or in the middle of the piece, I am definitely planning to have fun with those octaves at the end!

I don't systematically memorise that much, but I have effectively done so simply through substantial reptetition. In these cases I try and consolidate the memory by visualising the score as I play. I managed to play two pieces in my recent Trinity Grade 8 exam from memory (which is not common, according to my teacher), though I was worried I'd draw a blank so I took the music along just in case (and so the examiner could reference it if they wanted). It went well and there were no problems on that front.

I may try and develop a more involved methodology now as I add more pieces to my repertoire. It's great to have a few on tap should you come across a piano and get exhorted to play by someone.

Visualising the score is a good start, I think, but I like some of the other suggestions in here about concentrating particularly on harmonic changes and other milestones.

Do you actually picture the score in your mind and 'read' from it?

I've often wondered what people mean when they talk about photographic memory. I can never picture a score in my 'mind's eye', but I can 'visualize' my hands & fingers making the movements and 'hear' the results, just as I can visualize a chessboard in my mind and play 'blindfold chess' with someone else, without sight of the board. (Though I can only play one such game at a time - maybe two, if I really concentrate and write down the moves, unlike the Argentine GM Miguel Najdorf, who broke the world record playing 45 blindfold games simultaneously....).

Memorization seems to be getting more and more common among musicians - even those that audiences expect to play with the score in front of them, like chamber musicians and conductors - in fact, many of the world's greatest conductors now conduct without the score. That would have been considered a remarkable feat two decades ago.

It's interesting reading about all the different techniques people use. There's usually two stages for me, the concentrated memory stage where I have to think hard about what notes to play, and then the awesome muscle memory stage where it just flows from the fingers.

I've heard that knowing theory, chord progressions, etc. can help with memorization. I'm not very good at theory and for me, thinking about chords is more trouble than it's worth. However, I played enough piano as a kid to be able to recognize chords, even if I don't know them by name. I think I know them by fingering and the "feel." For example, a 6/4 inversion has a stretchier-feel.

The other thing that I found useful is memorizing the base progression. For example, I was memorizing this section (http://www.notablescores.com/clips/65) in the Ballade and I found it useful to just focus on the base notes (G, F#, G, F, C, C, D, D).

It's hard to describe exactly - kind of, but not quite. I see the stave in my mind's eye, but not constantly as I'm playing. It's like my brain is very faintly focused on it, and every so often (perhaps when it things it needs to) it sharpens the focus briefly. I think I'm relying mostly on muscle memory, with the score visual just to supplement it in case I lose it.

I'd say I've got a decent long term memory, and a good one for remembering lists, long quotes and music, but a not brilliant short term memory. I always thought a photographic memory means you can look at something one time and then retain every single detail about it - I don't have that. I don't think I could do blindfolded chess; I have never actually tried so I might be wrong, but because of the spatial complexity in the game I like to be able to scrutinise the board and I don't know how much it would affect me to lose that ability. 45 games simultaneously is insane.

I did the same for both my recent Grade 3 and Grade 5 exams and will definitely do the same for Grade 8 which I plan to take next year. I really have no choice.

My memory is very good because I cannot sightread to save my life or maybe I cannot sightread to save my life because my memory is very good.

I guess blind pianists have to rely entirely on memory in performance? It would be interesting to hear from a visually impaired pianist about the techniques that he/she uses to learn and memorise music. Even more so, from someone who learned to play before his/her vision deteriorated and has had to adjust.

There is a sight-reading test involved in the Grade exams, isn't there?

A good mark in it could mean the difference between Merit and Distinction ....

I'm wondering if by sightreading DazedAndConfused means simply reading from the score, given that he/she writes about it as though it were the alternative to playing a piece from memory?

That's what I took it to mean, that he finds it easier to memorize the music than playing from the score the set pieces he's learnt. But the Grade exams also include a test in sight-reading, where the examiner plonks a piece of music on the music rest that you've never seen before, which you have to sight-read there and then. (As well as aural tests, scales & arpeggios etc).