Making Memories

Whether practicing or performing, competing or playing for fun, hitting a wrong note in a piece can be one of the most frustrating experiences for a musician or a student just starting out in music.

When this happens, we then associate this wrong note with the word "bad," and then put it in our heads that our entire performance was thus "bad" because of one or two wrong notes. So instead of focusing on what went well with the piece, we end up focusing on the tiny things that didn't go the way we'd hoped they would.

This can be discouraging, especially to younger students and beginners.

It's important to always encourage your students, and to teach them how to encourage themselves.

One wrong note or phrase in a piece of music doesn't mean the entire performance was "bad," it just means some areas need more work than others.

So instead of always focusing on the little mishaps of a piece, try learning to focus on what went right. And learn to give constructive criticism, whether it be to yourself or a student. Instead of "I hit the wrong note. I did horribly." start saying "Well I did hit a wrong note here, but the phrase leading up to/after that note went very well."

Music performances are about making memories for an audience, and most importantly for yourself.

Do you want your memory to be that one note you hit wrong, or the fifty other notes you hit right?