When you play a solo piece. You’re responsible for everything in the music. From the rythm to the voicing and phrasing of the piece. It’s more technically challenging. A solo piece is good for showing off one’s virtuosity. Whereas ensemble, it’s a teamwork. Although the technical requirement is not as demanding, the listening skill becomes more important. In order to maintain the togetherness, rythm becomes a big issue. Counting on your own without listening to the other team players will of course make it sounds like you’re just sitting by the piano and try to join the group. I found that listening to the other teamates is sometimes more important than counting on your own. The base provides the beat of the music. Following the beat will make it easier to flow with the music. The other crucial point is that knowing where the melodies are and try to voice that out. Otherwise, everyone just blast off all the notes that would sounds like a jam of noise. So I would suggest practicing the parts that you’re not in. Know who is making what sound. Once you know where the melodies are coming from, the rest of the notes will fit into the harmonies. The other thing to overcome is rushing. The most terrible situation is that the person who’s rushing doesn’t even know that he/she is rushing. That happens to me as well. Sometimes, one of us rushed then all of us rushes. Once you rushed, it’s hard to hold it back again.
As a whole, it’s a good experience for ear trainning .
