“An Ensemble With Many Homes Finds Another”

from New York Times

When I was looking through music section of New York Times, I found a familiar picture.
The picture was ‘Pacific Quartet’, which I could meet them in Master class and Pickman Hall in Longy. It was about mostly their carrier and who they are, and there was one special thing that made me constantly think after finishing to reading it.


It was how to work on their music.

1. Start to get to know them, what their vibe is
2. How they get from one work into the next
3. their basic tempo, if that makes sense

and, they said that “ By playing a lot of it, we end up getting to play it better.”

The last saying maybe means “practicing a lot”.

Character, connection (where I am during playing), and the basic tempo, these three are their points. Character is like spirit for music, and to me, the second one is picture. I heard a conductor studies and analyzes score over hundred times. Completely understanding the score is also as important as practicing in practice room. My teacher advice me when walking, being in the car, or in any situation that I can think, Hum melody and think of my music. The last one, thinking the basic tempo sounds routine, but it is also one of the good points making progress on music. Sometimes too fast or not slow tempo, comparing with others is to make listeners feel disturbed to understand the music, and the character might be lost.

Polishing and creating spiritual music is still and would be like a homework to me, but these useful advice and endless learning such as reading article and news, catching the fashion in music, efficient practicing, going to concert, and listening to people that already have gone through the way such as a professor, or winner of competitions would be my guide for it.