Yesterday was finally the big day. I enjoyed every minute of it. From doing the hair, to make-up, then eating and waiting in the dressing room in the back stage, rehersing on stage with photographer and video man stay close around you, to getting ready to perform live on stage. I loved it! I like the feeling of uncertainty but yet still know everything will be under control. The music will just flow out from our fingers. I loved to listen to the music that we made in the big concert hall.
Since our group (6 of us) performed after the intermission, we still had a bit of time getting together in the waiting room. We stayed together and sang out our parts with the metronome. Making sure we were in sync, be close and tight together. We practiced the eye contact between teamates from one piano to another piano, and among ourself in our piano. After doing this a few times, we felt that we were in unity. That’s the most important thing in piano ensemble.
The other fun part is that when we’re on stage, we have to act like one unit instead of 6 individuals. So the timing of walking, bowing, sitting, puting our hands on and off the keyboard, and standing up after finishing the piece are all very crucial in terms of the persentation.
Well, after doing it once, just want to do it again if we have a chance.
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. 
