Customer Reviews

The Art of Practicing: A Guide to Making Music from the Heart

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After earning a masters degree in piano performance from a major conservatory, I struggled for years with debilitating performance anxiety and frustration, to the point where I changed careers and moved into the corporate world for 15 years. The practice techniques and disciplines which Madeline Bruser so clearly describes in this book enabled me to recapture my earlier love and enthusiasm for music and performing, and have put me on a path toward "playing from the heart," which has led me among other things to a decision to return to teaching and performing again as a career. This book is written in a simple and straightforward style. The author is not dogmatic about her ideas, but rather, deals with the physical and emotional aspects of playing music at a basic and fundamental level. Ms. Bruser's own credentials as a pianist and teacher are impressive. The research she cites -- interviews and collaboration with numerous professional musicians and teachers, experts in posture and movement (Alexander, Feldenkreis), and medical professionals, are partly what attracted me to this book, as did the praise for this book from musicians such as Peter Serkin, Yehudi Menuhin, and Richard Stolzman -- all impeccable sources in my opinion. When I first found this book, I couldn't put it down. I felt like I had found an oasis from my musical struggles, and hope for resolving them. If you are a musician, former musician, or aspiring musician, this book will be a source of encouragement and creative ideas. I highly recommend it!

This book relieved me of so much anxiety and negativity! Though I spent years studying the piano, I always viewed practicing as a chore and would drive myself into a nervous, sleepless, frenzy of practicing before every recital. My final recital was twelve years ago -- I had worked myself into a horrible state, had come to despise the piece I was preparing (Beethovan's Six Variations), gave a lousy performance, quit my lessons and got rid of my piano. When a friend asked me to store his piano in our home I started playing again and was amazed to find that I still felt anxious although I was not preparing for any performance.

My son's violin teacher loaned me this book and I must say if I'd read it twelve years ago I never would have given up the piano. Using this book I analyzed my physical approach to playing for the first time and realized my posture was horrible and I was actually clenching my teeth when I played! Now I am enjoying myself so much more and I feel so comfortable that I have started playing as an accompanist.

There's much that's useful in this book though you may (like me) skip a lot of the technical information or parts that seem geared more toward professional musicians. I especially recommend this book for anyone with performance anxiety.

Madeline Bruser's book offers the pianist a chance to rethink the business of practicing. Instead of seeing time spent working at the keyboard as onerous and exhausting, you can change your approach to one of exploration and pleasurable work. This doesn't mean that you smile all the time or that everything suddenly becomes easy. Bruser's emphasis on "mindfulness" means the focus shifts to the process rather than the manic acquisition of more works, more speed, more technical fireworks. These will come as a by-product to paying attention to the actual playing at hand. Shifting that focus is not as easy as it sounds (or reads). Try sitting silently at the keyboard for two minutes before you start playing. It can seem like an eternity to those of us who are used to rushing up and getting going (and then getting mindful after we drive the piece into the wall).

The book is really keyboard-focused in spite of its claim to help all musicians. And it's not sparkling reading; it's rather slow and serious and the photos are dull. The business about a foreward by Menuhin is silly since the comments are vague, leading one to wonder whether he even read the book. So don't consider that a reason for purchase. The publisher should drop the foreward for subsequent editions.

There is a fair amount about the mechanics of playing and proper alignment. While less than riveting, that can be a useful review for those who take their technique for granted. It certainly was for me, as was the discussion of various types of bodywork that can help musicians.

Bruser's book provides an initial way to rethink the approach to the piano for the serious musician. It will help some more than others. When you think about it, the ratio of time spent practicing to time performing is about 100 to 1. Anything that enriches those hours is worth a read.

The srength of this book lies in its ability to inspire and offer some very practical approaches to becoming more self-aware both in practicing and performing.
I liked the chapter on stretching and also the question and answer sections.I enjoyed alot of the stories that the author shared-one in particular on page 61 ..."Once, when the conductor Arturo Toscanini and the cellist Gregor Piatigorsky were about to go onstage to perform, one of them said to the other,"How are you feeling?" "Terrible," he answered, "because I'm no good." "I'm no good either,"the first said,"but we're no worse than the rest of them. Let's go."

The weakest parts of the book for me as a professional musician and pianist(BM and MM in Piano)were those parts dealing with specific piano repertoire, musical analysis and technique.The writing pertaining to technique and analysis is very dry, unclear, and misleading in parts.Most of that could have been left out with no harm done to the book.
There is nothing like a good teacher to make things clear, direct, and straightforward.
That aside there is much in the book that can point the way to more freedom and inspiration in practicing and playing.

For a while, I was in an uninspired musical slump. I still practiced, but it wasn't fun anymore, and as a result, the time I spent wasn't very effective. This book gave me many ways to freshen up my practice sessions and make them more enjoyable and more productive. It is very easy to read, and one afternoon spent with it can make a world of difference for your music-making.

Madeline's indepth observations of the human experience in learning the art of music are unparalleled. She keenly and with pinpointed accuracy shares with the reader what he will face in the process of learning music. And, more importantly, she presents insight on possible ways to deal with and overcome those trying times. As an adult student with only one year of piano behind me, I wish I had read this book earlier. I definitely would have learned to be more patient with myself or at least would have been more understanding of what was happening to me in the process of learning. In any case, I have a brand new and refreshing approach to my continued learning process now. Thank you very, very much.

I greatly regret that I should have read this book long long years ago ! I have seen many music students teachers who completely lack the most important things that the book describes. And I think that any musican-want-to-be should read this book first. This is the "Road Less Travelled" equivalent in psycology of musical practicing and performance. Her explanations were inspiring. Very often they were too conceptual. OK. That sounds very nice, but what is it exactly, and how do we achieve it ? Fortunately, at the end of each chapter, there is a section called "Questions and Answers". I think that the questions are from her students. And the questions were more "practical" ones rather than conceptual. And answers were very good. She provides 10 steps (suggestions) for practicing. Most of them are quite reasonable. Some of them may not be applied to me. However, it may be because I am still musically immature (far from her level) comparing with her.

If a musician could only read a single book to learn about how to PREVENT injury, this would be the one. Madeline Bruser has assembled, from a host of resources terrific practical advice that does far more than help you find a healthy approach to using your instrument: The Art of Practicing also examines how to bring the highest level of artistry and communication to your playing. It includes question/answer sections throughout and instrument-specific advice. I really can't say enough about this book: if all teachers and students would take its guidance to heart, we would not have the levels of injury among musicians we now see, and music making would be both more human and humane.

This book is definately worth while for most musicians, particularly pianists. Some of the suggestions are common sense, but it certainly helps to read these things every so often. I strongly believe that Ms. Bruser's method works. In fact, it is not so much a method, as some advice on how to practice in a different, more enjoyable, and more effective manner. I do believe - also from experience - that a lot of hours spent practicing are wasted if not accompanied by the right mental (and physical) approach.

Madeline Bruser's compendium on her Art of Practicing seminars will prove valuable to all musicians who feel that the physical/mental stresses of life affect their playing. For a long time I suffered from a sore left wrist after a several hour practice session at the piano which was a result of built up tension and using inefficient motions. After correcting the height of my bench (to be higher) and studying Bruser's text (specifically the chapters on stretching/basic mechanics) I have begun to learn to play in a much more relaxed and efficient manner. Her book is inspiring and full of radiant ideas. I would recommend it to anyone who feels that their practicing has become stagnant or whose expression and speed is being held back by forceful and tense playing.