Finding Fresh Joy in Pieces You’ve Played to Death

Ever picked up a piece you’ve played before and struggled to find a fresh spark? Here’s how I keep my pieces fresh and interesting!

1. Building a story around the music

This is one of my favourite strategies for keeping pieces interesting. I create a story that goes around the piece. In a recent piece, I visualised a walk that I usually take to a park. Some of the passages in the piece reminded me of things I see on the walk. Doing this not only helped me to remember the piece, but also keep the piece interesting.

You can make a story out of absolutely anything. What story do you want to create?

2. Using theory to understand the piece better

I have done this more recently in prepping a piece that I have played before. Understanding why the notes are what they are really helps to make the piece more interesting.

No matter what level of theory knowledge you have, try to use it to understand the piece better. And who knows, you might learn more theory as you go!

3. Playing for many people

When you play for different kinds of people, you get different thoughts and ideas about your playing. Someone might say something that you never thought about, and that might help to make the piece more interesting.

You can play for a teacher, other musicians, family members, and friends. Play to whomever you want! You might be surprised at what they say.