Tue 1:05 (1100-1215)

Warmed up with open strings and slurps, morphing into Vivaldi string crossings. Focused on right elbow motion. Found as the energy need increased with faster crossings it worked better to provide more body support forward from my chest. Funny, I'd never noticed that before.

Started the No Tension part of my practice with a run through Perpetual Motion in G. Continued to feel more relaxed with more body support.

Then Apres Un Reve. At my lesson yesterday we spent a lot of time on just the first two notes: starting the first note, and the shift to the second. Pointers included:
* Can't start with the bow sitting on the string. Must be dynamic.
* Over-supinate, even putting the frog in the hand to start. At about 1/3 bow, normal bow hold, then increase bow speed after the shift.
* The "shift happens" as the first note is played. Think dynamic again - can't sit on the note, then decide to shift.
* The arm motion is akin to the preparation needed to launch a basketball. Remember to "bend the knees."
* Remember to hummmmm. Pressing the string inhibits this.

For practice today, I did a lot of shift double minting, exploring these pointers and releasing tension. I played short phrases over and over, again attempting to release tension before beginning and to maintain relaxation through the phrase. I tried different (irrelevant) head movements and wiggles to monitor my body parts for tension. I also practiced phrases with a neighboring open string double stop to check intonation.

After working through the piece in fragments a couple of times (~45 min), I recorded a run through. What I tried to do on the recorded run through was to sit on the end of each phrase until I remembered the next fragment and released residual tension before proceeding.

There are some trouble spots still in the middle of the screechy section. I had my music to my right, so you will see me squinting at it (forgot my glasses this morning) to check when I can't remember what comes next. One takeaway is that I need to know the piece well enough to be able to think ahead, but I was surprised that what felt like lots of thinking time didn't perturb the rhythm as much as I thought it did.



Making the video at the end of my practice block turns out to be a very useful exercise. Initially I couldn't help but add the layer of nerves that a performance situation "requires." Today, I felt for the first time that I was allowed to practice in front of the camera.

Note: as I was warming up, I realized that I was never going to release tension while I felt cold. Thus, the funny furry scarf and the down vest. Funny-looking, but much more comfortable!