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V: Let’s start episode 270 of Secrets of Organ Playing Podcast. And this question was sent by Juan. He writes: Hello Mr. Pinkevicius: Thanks a lot for your enormous work propagating the practice of organ. I followed your daily e-mails with special attention dissecting every sentence you wrote in the process of improving organ techniques. My case is a little different because I am man who plays piano for personal entertainment and now when I am retired from public work as software engineer I decided to explore the intricacies of organ playing and state of the art of this wonderful instrument. My knowledge of software, electronics and music had let me to begin the process of "midifying" my Rodgers electric organ aside of the adventure of playing it. And now, to answer your questions, (1) my dream is to continue improving my organ playing musically and technically, and (2) really the only thing that is holding me to get my dream is simply TIME but I think with patience and good tips I can get my proposal. Going back, the reason I got your web link was because I was looking for a student score of Toccata & fugue in D minor (BWV 565) with fingering, pedaling and tips for practical study of it. So I think with the guides you sketched in your e-mails and having the work done for fingering and pedaling I can embark in such work. Again, thanks for your help and additional idea I can assimilate. Juan A: I think it’s very nice, you know, that he wants to improve in his playing. I think it’s a common wish for all organists, and all musicians in general. Don’t you think so? V: I hope that everyone who plays the instrument wants to get better at it. If somebody is just playing for the sake of playing, then it’s not that interesting. Right? A: True. V: So, Juan now is retired. Do you think that people can improve faster when they retire? A: Of course, because they should have more time when they retire, and can be able to plan their time better. V: But Juan still writes that the problem is time, so what’s behind this question, would you think, Ausra? A: I think everybody would want to have more time. But, if you want to achieve something, you need to learn to plan your time. V: And planning probably means, first of all, prioritizing, right? Doing things that matter to you first. A: True, because you cannot do everything. Sometimes, our planning is unrealistic. So, when you plan your schedule, just be reasonable. Make it as realistic as possible. V: Are you one of those people, Ausra, who plans too much and does too much? A: Yes, I do too much. V: Is it because you want to do too much, or do you feel you need to do too much? A: I don’t know. I’m sort of that kind of person that, you know, I don’t know how to say, “no,” and always take too many jobs, too many responsibilities. V: In my case, I have too many passions. Not, perhaps, too many, but a lot. Right? And to do them properly takes a lot of time. That’s also time consuming, and takes a lot of planning and prioritizing what’s really important, and what to do first, and second, and third. A: But I’m thinking that if you have, let’s say, if you can manage your time as much as you want, and to do what you want when you are retired… if you don’t have to go to a job every day, then try to do things that matter the most in the morning and at the beginning of the day. V: If he is a morning person. A: True. Morning time, relatively. If he gets up at, let’s say, 11:00 AM, then it’s morning for him. For me, morning is 7:00 AM or 6:00 AM. But it doesn’t matter. Do things that matter the most earlier in your day. V: So you think that the reason that he cannot find enough time for organ practice is that he’s not doing organ practice first thing in the morning, probably, right? A: I think so, yes. For me, at least, that works best. To do the most important things first. Do not procrastinate. V: And, of course, learn to say, “no,” to the things that don’t really matter. A: Sure. V: What could be some examples of that? Because, people sometimes get confused, right, what is important and what is not. A: I think, you know, to every person, it’s different things that are important and that are less important. V: Are there any general ideas you could think of? A: I don’t think so, because you know you can say things and offend people. V: Ok, let’s offend people. A: You can do that, I don’t want to do it. V: Because, we’re doing this now for educations purposes, of course. And, well let’s say, cleaning your house; Should it be on the top list of your priorities or not? A: Well, it should be, but you don’t do it every day, so… we have very different opinions, I think, about this, because for me, to live in a clean house is important. For you, it’s not, so, you know… V: I can live in a cave. A: True. V: With worms. Good. But it’s of course important, then to have an organ at home for us both. And Juan also has this instrument at home, and he doesn’t need to go to church to beg to anybody to let him play. He always has this opportunity. A: But look, organ playing for him is sort of hobby, yes? And I guess he has many other hobbies, too. I don’t know, I’m just guessing. Maybe reading, watching TV, fishing, swimming, or it could be many things. But, you know, then you need to think that playing the organ is such an activity that requires both mental and physical preparation, so you cannot play the organ when you are tired, for example, or exhausted. So that’s why it’s good to do it first thing in the morning. And then maybe do an activity that doesn’t require so much physical and mental power. V: Focus. A: Or focus. V: You’re right, Ausra, and you mentioned a very important thing here a moment ago. I want to focus on it for a second. You said that perhaps Juan might have other hobbies besides organ, right? And when people have a lot of hobbies, it’s difficult to do them all well, and sometimes, they all take too much time, and doing those activities, although it’s a pleasure for a person, might be selfish in terms of other family members. Imagine, Ausra, if I had 50 different hobbies every day and I would take up swimming, running, drawing, writing, reading, playing the organ, and whatever comes up to my plate, I would do it with passion: “this is my hobby,” right? My entire day would be filled with my hobbies. Would that be ok? A: Of course not. I think you already have too many hobbies. V: Right. A: And that’s why, you know, other family members suffer from that. V: Right. So, the way I look at it is you have to help other people with your own hobby, too. If it’s helping other people, then I guess this hobby can be practiced. For example, drawing—we both draw—and I think other people enjoy it when we share those things, so that’s why we continue to do it. A: So then, what about exercising? Does it help anybody else when you, for example, exercise? V: No, but what I hope with this is I hope to share my own experiences in a book afterwards, too. When you exercise, you have to exercise, physically, to be physically healthy and in a good state, right? And what I’m doing is I’m also documenting my exercising, which will later become part of the book. And other people can read about it. A: You know, I would disagree with you about making good things for other people. You are saying that you are doing everything for everybody, and I don’t think so. I think the most important thing for any person is to be happy him- or herself. V: Of course. A: Because, I think only a happy person can make others happy, too. So when you are saying you are only thinking about then others, I think that you are a little bit dishonest about it, because I think, first of all, you are making yourself happy. V: I didn’t say that I wasn’t thinking about myself first, here. Of course, I was thinking my hobby like this, let’s say exercising, I’m doing it for my own improvement, but not only for my own improvement. I am documenting the process and making it a part of the book, which might be helpful to other people later on. A: Yes, and now I think we need to switch and go back to the organ. V: So, organ playing for Juan, let’s say, is also a hobby, right? And I think he has every reason to practice it, right? Because, as you say, it has to make him happy. And if it does, he has to spend more time at this, right? A: True. V: And when you are retired, you can find more time doing it, and if you are a morning person, try to do this thing first thing in the morning. That would be helpful. Thanks guys, this was Vidas! A: And Ausra! V: Please remember to send us more of your questions, we love helping you grow. And remember, when you practice, A: Miracles happen!
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AVA247: The improvement I’m feeling may not be apparent, but I have pushed through several things7/7/2018 Vidas: Hi guys, this is Vidas.
Ausra: And Ausra. V: Let’s start episode 247, of #AskVidasAndAusra Podcast. This question was sent by Ron. He wrote: Hi Vidas and Ausra, Thank you for the nice comments on the post. The improvement I’m feeling may not be apparent, but I have pushed through several things in my contest attempts. I’m starting to learn and mentally catalogue groups of note fingerings. Speed is still a problem, but I know that comes with time. Keeping to the correct notes is becoming second nature, and I’m starting to get a kind of grip on forms I can re-use. The recent lessons you posted, like the 9 day Bach style improv is one of those things, and helps to make sense out of a sort of chaos—when you first start out you think you have to do everything, when in fact.. it seems that just to get one or two things down well is an actual accomplishment. I’m also learning how to record the entries better, so’s not to make people have to listen with difficulty, while not making my early attempts too long, either (in hopes I don’t drive people away!) I do hope the others continue to send in contest recordings. This is too good of an idea, and I know that there are a lot more people out there far more advanced than I who could really add to this and make it a great teaching tool, where we learn from others. You two put in a lot of hard, careful, and considerate work. Cheers, Ron V: So, Ron, Ausra, writes about our series of organ playing improvisation contest. And he participated in several weeks in a row. A: Yes, I remember his performance. V: Do you think that he made progress each week? A: Sure! I found it remarkable how much he improved actually, even the first week. How carefully he responded to our comments and changed his performance. V: Mmm-hmm. We thought that people are traveling and having vacations during the summer so we kind of postponed the next entries until the fall comes, right? A: True. V: But it’s a great opportunity for people to learn together, improvise on the same theme together, and upload those entries and listen to those and receive support too. So during the summer when we don’t have improvisation contests, what would your first recommendation to Ron be? A: Just keep working. Keep improvising. Because it’s bad to have too long breaks of anything that you do. V: Why? A: Well, because you might need to start from the beginning. V: And you lose motivation too. A: True. V: When you don’t practice one day, you just yourself notice that, right? When you skip practice for two days, your friends and family notice. And when you skip practice for three days, everybody.,, A: Everybody will notice. V: Mmm-hmm. So that’s why I’m improvising too, regardless whether I continue to create those improvisations contests or not. Every day I try to sit down on the organ bench and play something interesting. Maybe on those four notes. Maybe based on a hymn tune or choral melody. It doesn’t matter which one you choose. But I found really motivating is to record myself and actually live-stream it when people on Facebook can join in and listen to my playing. Then this act of live-streaming prevents me from stopping in the middle of unfinished improvisation. I have to finish because I know that people are listening. And it doesn’t matter if it’s good or bad but you have finish what you started. A: But it’s good that you can handle the pressure. Not everybody could do it probably. V: I know what you mean, but,,, A: Do you feel nervous? V: No. It’s so relaxing. I kind of, if I have only four notes to worry about, just four notes, C, D, E and F, let’s say. Then I know that I can handle this texture well, and the only think I’m worrying about when improvising like that, is to keep things interesting all the time. So I kind of, try to listen how my listeners are hearing at the same time, sort of from the side, and not to be too immersed in improvisation so that I won’t be able to get out of it in time. A: Yes, and it’s amazing how much you can achieve actually, when working with four notes. I listen to Ron’s recordings and to Mindaugas’ recordings and to your improvisations, and it’s quite remarkable. V: Mmm-hmm. Yes, and especially if you have an organ with a decent acoustical environment. Then those four notes become like four colors, and they work together very well. Any type of color, any type of notes, group of four notes will work well if combined together. It doesn’t matter which ones you choose, it’s just a matter of using them often enough. And then they sort of blend. A: True. V: So, that’s what I’m doing. I’m also trying, I think today I’m going to improvise based on the Genevan Psalter. I recorded those improvisations maybe six months ago or more. But then got distracted from that practice so I think I’m going to come back to those delightful Genevan Psalter tones and keep improvising too. That’s very interesting, especially with the manuals. A: Yes, that’s a good source for hymns. V: And if you don’t have Genevan Psalter, of course, your hymn book is ideal way too. A: True. V: So, guys, let’s keep this day creative, okay? Because when you just play from the score, you are developing one sort of ability. It’s very good, it’s very handy. It’s actually indispensable, right? We need to sight read and play from the sheet music. But, also, if you only play from the score, you are missing something very, very important, something that you have to let out of yourself. And for a second, if you haven’t done this before, for a second, forget that you don’t know how to do this. Forget your fears. Forget your insecurities. It doesn’t matter, right? But, can you trust me when I say that you need to let it out, and of course there plenty of people who are doing this and you would say, ‘Oh, I am not good at this. I’m not Bach, and I’m not a virtuoso performer and improviser’. But it doesn’t matter at all because your improvisations will be unique and they will be yours, and that’s all that matters. Would you agree, Ausra? A: Yes, I agree with that. V: Okay guys. Thank you for sending these questions and for taking action on our advice. And remember, when you practice... A: Miracles happen!
Why are people progressing so slowly with their organ playing skills? Why can't they learn it overnight? No, wait! Overnight would be too slow! How about in 25 minutes or less?
The way it would work is you would set your Pomodoro timer for 25 minutes and when it beeps you're done, you have mastered organ playing! Organ repertoire would take you 8 minutes, technique - 6 minutes, sight-reading 4.5 minutes, registration - 2 minutes, harmony - 1 minute and 45 seconds, improvisation - 90 seconds, hymn playing - 60 seconds and Widor Toccata - 15 seconds!
Today's question was sent by Joanna, our Total Organist student. This is what she wrote:
Dear Vidas, thank you for your email! Yes, the idea of taking breaks is a good one and something I never used to do. I am always so anxious to do my organ practice that I try not to waste a minute but that is a mistake! I tried taking breaks today like you said and it really helped! ? I suppose the thing that is most frustrating to me is that my progress is so, so, so slow! But I have started practicing in fragments as you suggested and I have found that helpful…so perhaps I will see more progress. Perhaps I am a bit impatient too! ? Yes, I look forward to your podcast on #AskVidasAndAusra. Thank you! Listen to our full answer at #AskVidasAndAusra TRANSCRIPT Vidas: Hello, guys. This is Vidas. Ausra: And Ausra. Vidas: And we're starting Episode 15 of #AskVidasAndAusra Podcast. Today's question was sent by Joanna, a Total Organist student. This is what she wrote: "Dear Vidas, thank you for your email. Yes, the idea of taking breaks is a good one and something I never used to do." She's writing in response of Podcast 5, when we talked about is it possible to learn the organ when you are 56 years old. She writes further, "I am always so anxious to do my organ practice that I try not to waste a minute, but that is a mistake. I tried taking breaks today like you said, and it really helped. I suppose the thing that is most frustrating to me is that my progress is so, so, so slow, but I have started practicing in fragments as you suggested, and I have found that helpful, so perhaps I will see more progress. Perhaps I am a bit impatient, too. Yes, I look forward to your podcast on #AskVidasAndAusra. Thank you." This is wonderful, Ausra, right, that our advice is helpful to somebody in another country. She is 56 years old, taking breaks now, and really getting, I think, a healthy habit in organ practice. But she is progressing so slow. This is most frustrating thing. What would you suggest for her? Ausra: As she wrote herself, maybe she's a bit impatient. That might be it, in effect. We all want to make fast progress, but things like playing the organ takes a really long time. I think why the progress is so, so, so slow might be that you are either not practicing enough or you're practicing in a wrong manner. What do you think is the case? Vidas: I think she should learn the correct practicing, efficient practicing technique, which might be practicing in fragments, taking frequent breaks, repeating those fragments over and over, until at least you get three times over that mistakes, doing it very, very slowly, of course. What else would we suggest? Keeping the movements of the body and hands and feet to the minimum basically. Do not lift the fingers and the feet of the pedalboard of the keyboard. Movements should be economical. Yeah, I think, when we play also sometimes difficult, advanced pieces, it might take months to master. We know the deadline for our recital, for example, is coming up, and this frustrating and sometimes challenging to free the joy of practicing. But somehow you overcome this, right, Ausra? Ausra: Yes. Vidas: What helps you to overcome this fear of not progressing fast enough? Ausra: Usually I have a due date, and I know I have to be ready by that date. Vidas: Ready or not, you will perform, right? Ausra: Yes. So I better be ready, because it's not a good feeling when you show up to your recital and you aren't prepared. When you are well-prepared, it gives you a sort of comfort. If I'm not making progress fast enough, I'm thinking what I have to do differently in order to reach my final goal, because I want to be that comfortable with my recital. This is my probably biggest motivation. Vidas: The external motivation? Ausra: Yes. Vidas: You set up a goal, and you know that people will come to listen to you, and if you are not well-prepared, you might feel ashamed or embarrassed, right? Ausra: Yes. Vidas: So you figure out a way to progress fast enough to meet the schedule. Maybe Joanna might also benefit from this approach. Set a deadline. Well, internal deadline. We won't suggest she should perform in public just yet, but maybe for herself set a deadline and maybe choose how many fragments a day she should learn in order to reach this goal in time. That would help to stick to a schedule. Ausra: Sure. Vidas: For example, if she can master four measures at a time and take a rest, because our body needs that, take a walk, stretch, drink a glass of water, and then you might come back to practice some more. If you learn four measures at a time, count those measures and count the fragments in the entire piece, and tell to yourself how many days would you need to have in order to master this piece on time. So maybe you would need to practice a little bit more in order to learn two fragments for one day sometimes, or maybe you need longer periods of time. Maybe not 30 days but 60 days for that piece. That's acceptable. Ausra: I think if you are thinking that you are not making enough progress, you have to record yourself and your practicing, not all the time but, for example, when you sight-read a new piece of music just record yourself. After a few days, maybe after a week, record yourself again, and compare those two recordings, and you will see that you actually made a progress. Vidas: I think I suggested once the same approach to John, our student from Australia. He also was feeling a little bit impatient, but I suggested to take maybe three months between those recordings. You sight-read a piece, record it, maybe just one page, and you make maybe 50, 100 mistakes, it doesn't matter, this is your original level. Then in three months, you come back to the same piece. In this period, you never look at this piece, of course, but after that three months, you come back and sight-read it again, recording yourself. Joanna, if you do this, you will find out just how really fast and far you have progressed with this. Three months. Okay, if you are impatient, do this in 30 days, a 30 days challenge. That will be enough. It's a compromise. What do you think about this, Ausra? Would that work? Ausra: I hope so. Vidas: But Joanna has to take this seriously and practice everyday just to keep moving, right? Ausra: Yes, definitely. Vidas: Good, guys. Go ahead and practice today some beautiful organ music, and send us more questions. It's fun, and we like helping you grow as an organist. This was Vidas … Ausra: And Ausra. Vidas: And remember, when you practice ... Ausra: Miracles happen.  By Vidas Pinkevicius (get free updates of new posts here)
This morning I went to church to practice to prepare for my upcoming "More Palatino" recital and as I was playing, I thought about how can I help you grow to the next level in organ playing faster. I realized that producing fingering and pedaling for organ scores doesn't necessarily give you results that you want. Sure, it will save you many hours and put you on the right track but you wouldn't necessarily know if you're playing correctly. Yes, I can create training programs that teach you many things (and I do that) but what do you do when you feel stuck? When you don't know what to do next... When you're afraid you're not going to make it in time for the recital or church service... When you keep hitting the wrong notes consistently... When you can't find the right pedals on the pedalboard... When you sit down to improvise and don't know what to play... When you try to sight-read organ music it's just too overwhelming... When you can't manage 4-part hymn playing texture... When you don't know what kind of organ stops to use on your piece... When you don't know what those chords in your piece mean... When you try to create an accompaniment for a hymn but keep playing with parallel fifths (or maybe you're not even aware of this)... Basically you need feedback. Personal and relevant feedback from somebody who was stuck in the past but figured out the way to overcome these challenges. So today for a limited time I'm going to invite you to join my live coaching class where you can ask me the burning questions that you have. Let me help you advance to the next level in organ playing faster.  Sonja writes that her dream is to reach other hearts and souls while conveying the happiness organ and the music of its great composers bring. The three things that are holding her back from realizing this dream are bad education from her past, missed any stimulation from her environment, and her health.
Perhaps some of my other readers feel, like Sonja that their lack of decent musical education is interfering with their efforts to progress in organ playing. Perhaps in the past they were diligent students who didn‘t have caring and experienced teachers and had to find out everything by themselves. If you are in this situation, you might experience the moments in your practice when it seems like you are not progressing. This is because based on your previous experiences you don’t actually know how progress looks like. Over a period of several months, when you take new pieces and try to master them, you still struggle at the same two-part combinations, you still miss those pedal notes, you still can’t play your pieces fast enough, and you still stumble with your musical ideas when it comes to improvisation. So you think you are just spinning your wheels. However, you will only know the true level of your advancement when you look back at your previous abilities from the distance. And when you look back, you’ll find out you don’t want to go back to that state you were before. From this place, you only want to go forward. Sight-reading: Part III: Priere a Notre-Dame (p. 9) from Suite Gothique, op. 25 by Leon Boellmann (1862-1897), French Romantic composer and organist. Hymn playing: Take My Life And Let It Be |
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Drs. Vidas Pinkevicius and Ausra Motuzaite-Pinkeviciene Organists of Vilnius University , creators of Secrets of Organ Playing. Our Hauptwerk Setup:
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