Mental practice away from the piano

Glenn Gould claimed to learn part of his repertoire without touching the piano; many great pianists have described similar methods. Without going that far, mental practice is a powerful complement: it strengthens memory, clarifies interpretation and tires neither muscles nor tendons. It's also a great way to practise on the train or when an injury forces rest.

What you practise mentally

• Inner hearing (audiation): hearing the music in your head, with its dynamics and tempo.
• The keyboard image: seeing the keys and the hands move, with fingerings.
• The feel of the gesture: imagining the weight, the shifts, the wrist release.
• The structure: knowing where you are in the form and which harmonies go by.

Exercise 1: read before you play

Read this melody without playing it. Sing it inwardly while tapping the beat with your foot. Imagine the fingers (G = 1 in the right hand). Only then play it, or listen to it, to check.

M:3/4
L:1/4
Q:1/4=90
K:G
G B d | c A F | G2 D | G3 |]

Was your inner hearing accurate? The intervals (third, third, then the descent), the F sharp from the key signature, the final cadence? This back-and-forth between the inner ear and the real sound is the heart of mental practice.

Exercise 2: "silent rehearsal"

1. Choose 4 to 8 bars you already know a little.
2. Close your eyes and play them mentally, at a slow tempo, seeing every key and every finger.
3. Where the image becomes blurry, open the score: that is exactly where your memory is fragile.
4. Then play the passage once at the piano, attentively.
5. Repeat the mental rehearsal.

Studying the score

Before playing a new piece, spend ten minutes with the score, pencil in hand:

• Identify the form (A B A, verses, repeats) and number the phrases.
• Note the keys passed through and the cadences.
• Circle the recurring motifs and what changes when they return.
• Find the tricky passages and decide on fingerings before playing.
• Imagine the character: what story, what colours, where is the climax?

Challenge of the week

Choose the first four bars of Gymnopédie No. 1. Learn them only at the table for two days: reading, inner hearing, mimed fingerings. On the third day, play them at the piano. You'll be surprised by what your brain has already built.