—by Angela Schwarzkopf

Advice for Leaving the Nest

Learning how to be your own teacher doesn’t happen overnight. Read on for advice on how to make the process easier. Scroll to the end for online repertoire resources.

I can remember clearly when my teacher finally kicked me out of the nest. I say kicked, because it was not a gentle nudge, but rather a very direct throw into the world of music. I have had the privilege of studying with Judy Loman throughout my masters, and again during my doctorate. It was at the start of my doctorate when Ms. Loman informed me that it was time for me to work on preparing a piece on my own. Only once I had the piece at what I believed to be a performance level was I to bring it to her. I had mixed feelings following that conversation. Part of me felt really proud of myself that Ms. Loman thought I was ready to learn pieces all on my own. The other part of me felt abandoned and a little scared. I had no idea how I was to go about learning these pieces on my own. I had always learned the notes and rhythms on my own and then had musical discussions in my lessons on how best to interpret the music. But how was I supposed to do that by myself? Who was going to tell me when I was playing things wrong? It was not until I began the process of learning new music on my own did I realize that my former teachers had equipped me with many of the tools I needed without even knowing it. Like so many students, I had become comfortable in the lesson setting and was relying on my teacher to give me the answers.

 So how do you land on your feet when you leave your teacher’s nest? How do you become your own teacher? No one can replace your teacher, as she often ends up being your teacher and mentor forever, offering guidance in a pick-up lesson, or over e-mail or phone long after regular lessons become a thing of the past. Taking those first steps in learning and exploring on your own can be challenging. Whether you are recently out of school or a seasoned veteran, a professional musician or an amateur, it can be overwhelming starting a new piece of music. With the help of some of the best teachers and young professionals in the harp world, we’ve come up with a list of steps you can use when learning new music.

Michelle Gott says: “One of the most helpful things I have done for myself is maintain a practice journal wherein I keep fairly strict track of my practice routine and my approach to challenges. When working on a lot of music at one time, I find it incredibly helpful to document my approach to each piece, especially my work with the metronome, exercises I’ve used or created to strengthen certain skills and support the repertoire, and my short- and long-term goals for each work. The task of becoming one’s own teacher can at first seem daunting, especially if one has been a student for a long time, but it can be achieved with patience, constructive self-awareness, a practice journal, self-recordings, and self-initiated performances for colleagues and friends.”
—Michelle Gott recently received her DMA from the Juilliard School and is on the faculty at the Ottawa Youth Orchestra Academy.

Step 1: pick a piece

We tend to keep a running wish list of pieces we would like to learn someday. When it comes time to pick which piece that will be, you will want to think about why you are learning a new piece. If you are leaning a piece for your enjoyment or to add to your gig book, then you may be less concerned with the level and more focused on the sound of the piece. However if you are selecting a piece for a recital, competition, or to advance your level of playing, how do you pick the right piece for you?

When selecting a piece for a solo recital or a similar performance, you want to pick a piece that shows you at your best. Often we tend to be drawn to a particular style or composer. Try to select a variety of pieces that interests you from different genres, (e.g. baroque, 20th century, or contemporary). Listen to recordings, attend concerts, talk to your harp friends for ideas. Be open learning something that you may not like right off the bat. I really disliked Salzedo’s Scintillation the first time I listened to it, but once I started learning and performing it, I absolutely loved it.

Gauging your level of playing and the difficulty of a new piece can be tricky. If you are unsure what your level is, look at a recent piece you played that you found challenging but were able to perform to your satisfaction. Then check exam and competition lists online to see what other pieces are in the same category. That should give you an idea of what pieces are at your level.

If you want to work on advancing your level, you want to pick a piece that is slightly out of your reach, but will ultimately be attainable. Try picking a piece that will develop a technique that you find challenging. For instance, if you have a hard time playing strong left-hand melodies or playing a lot of arpeggios, you might want to pick a piece that utilizes one of those techniques.

Step 2: select an edition

This second step, selecting an edition, seems simple but can be deceptively hard. Often a piece is available from several different editors, publishers, or arrangers. Different editions may vary in everything from the printed notes to the musical notation to the historical accuracy. No matter whether you are playing a traditional Celtic tune or a 20th century masterwork, knowing which edition is right for you can take some sleuthing.

When selecting music from the baroque or classical era, it is important to remember that most of these pieces were not written for the harp, so there is often more than one transcription or edition of a piece. It is important to take into consideration the compositional liberties the editor may have taken. Look for urtext editions (an urtext edition is the original or earliest version of a piece) and arrangements by experts in the field  to ensure you are getting the most historically accurate edition. Elizabeth Volpé-Bligh agrees, saying she uses scholarly editions such as Laura Sherman’s transcriptions of Bach’s five Lute Suites. In some cases, such as with the Handel Concerto, you may want to consider editions edited by harpists to see which fingering you prefer and which cadenza you enjoy.

If you are selecting a piece from the 20th century solo harp repertoire, generally you will find it is published by only one company (Lemoine, Schirmer, etc.). If more than one version of a piece is available, it is usually a good idea to select the edition by the original publisher. For instance, if you are selecting an edition of Automne by Grandjany to perform, look for the copy published by Durand. That way you can be sure you have the edition most in line with the composer’s wishes.

Sometimes pieces go out of print and are later republished by a new group, such as the Lyra Music Company or Lyon & Healy. These editions tend to be exact replicas of the original publication. Occasionally you will come across editions that have been edited by someone other than the composer. In these cases you should weigh the pros and cons of the edition and changes that may have been made. For example, Mary Kay Waddington has published a new edition of Tournier’s Vers la source dans le bois in which she uses the enharmonic respelling of notes, transforming the learning process of the piece. Although some aspects of the piece differ slightly, the ease of reading Waddington’s edition makes it a great choice. It is important to be mindful when selecting your edition that you consider what is important to you.

“Never stop investigating techniques and the latest research,” says Elizabeth Volpé-Bligh. “Participate in online harp forums, subscribe to harp journals, join harp lists on social media, look for harp blogs from respected music teachers and scholars (examples: Andrew Lawrence King, Anne Sullivan, The Bulletproof Musician, Laurie Riley, etc.) Read books and articles on how to practice. Listen to concerts and attend workshops and master classes. Listen to great performances on YouTube and iTunes. Keep your standards up. Set goals that challenge you, giving yourself enough time to accomplish them. Know your capabilities, but keep improving them. Practice some technique every day before you get to repertoire. Spend a segment of each practice session playing slowly and working on details.”
—Elizabeth Volpé-Bligh is the principal harpist of the Vancouver Symphony and harp teacher at the University of British Columbia.

Step 3: understand what’s on the page

We might consider music to be our second language, however the pages of our scores are often full of terms from other languages we don’t know. There are many words on the page that are in languages other than English—French, Italian, and German are common languages found in music. Often the words resemble those of English so we can make an educated guess that, for example, con passione means “passionately.” However, foreign terms can sometimes have more than one interpretation. Being your own teacher means taking the time to look up unfamiliar terms so you play the music as the composer intended. It can make the difference between speeding up in a place where you are suppose to keep the tempo steady, and muffling a note that is supposed to ring. Vancouver Symphony harpist Elizabeth Volpé-Bligh agrees, “In a Mahler symphony, there is the marking Resonanztisch, which means ‘close to the soundboard.’ If you didn’t bother to translate it, the sound would be wrong there.”

In addition to foreign terms, there are also a lot of musical symbols on our scores. Unfortunately, there is no worldwide harp notational system (hint, hint to those searching for a doctoral dissertation subject), and so different composers have used different symbols. For example, près de la table can be written out word-for-word, abbreviated “P.D.L.T,” marked with a large wavy line, a small wavy line, or some other symbol. Some collections or anthologies have a glossary of symbols referenced in the book. In other cases a terminology and symbol guide may exist. For instance, Isabelle Perrin and Barbara Fackler created A Guide to Harp Notation Used in the Compositions of Bernard Andrès, a free reference guide available online at www.harpa.com/isabelle-perrin.

Step 4: figure out the form

Understanding the shape of your piece is critical to knowing where you are going and beginning to figure out how best to get there. By doing an initial read-through, either playing it on the harp or by reading through it away from the harp, you will begin to notice key elements that will influence how you want to play the piece.

Professional harpist Michelle Gott, who is based in Ottawa, Canada, says before sitting down to fully learn a piece, she often reads through it to, “get a feel for the ‘landscape’— the form and melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic elements.” By getting a roadmap early, you will spend less time aimlessly wandering through a piece. You will be able to establish if a section repeats, what form the piece is in (for example A-B-A, theme and variations, etc.), and most importantly, you will be able to see the phrases and climactic moments.

As Gott points out, “By taking the time to do a read-through analysis, you are able to determine which sections are initially the most challenging and, consequently, which areas should be tackled first.” This is also a good chance to look for enharmonic passages, decide on fingering, and mark “repair points,” bar numbers, and pedal diagrams.

Step 5: research the back story

If a piece of music were a novel, the notes on the page would only be its outline. A piece of music has a story, a composer, a unique set of cultural influences. Taking time to research the music and learn about a composer can completely change your outlook on a piece. If you are not sure where to start, do as Volpé-Bligh does and research if there is any story behind the title or dedication of the piece. Check online and in harp journals or magazines to see if anything has been written on the piece you are about to play. A little research can also uncover scholarly articles about errors in the published edition, such as Carl Swanson’s articles about the differences between the Debussy Trio manuscript and published version.

If your piece is by a composer you have never played before, you might like to read a little about their life. Learn about where they lived and their writing style. Perhaps find out what was going on in their life while they were writing the piece, how other musicians influenced them, or what was happening in the world.

Emily Blevedere says: “Continue to play for people on a regular basis! I learn a lot from performances and mock-performances. It can also give you a goal to work towards, such as ‘I want to play this piece by memory for so and so next week.’ The more I can perform a piece, the more it becomes a part of me.”
—Emily Belvedere received her B.M. from the Royal Conservatory of Music and her master’s degree from McGill University in Montreal.

Step 6: experiment

Experimenting with your music allows you to hear what you like and don’t like in a performance of the piece. Whether you are playing music composed in the 20th century, a Celtic tune, or anything in between, there are plenty of opportunities to make the piece your own. Experimenting with techniques and dynamics you never thought you would like often reveals surprising musical discoveries—many times these discoveries outside of your comfort zone would have been made by your teacher. The only way for you to make them is by trying something new.

Another good way to learn your likes and dislikes in interpretations is to listen to recordings of other performances. This may also help you hear the important moments and give you different ideas of how to interpret the form of the piece. Toronto harpist Emily Belvedere, who recently graduated with her master’s, feels that listening to other performances inspires her, though she says she would “never want to replicate someone else.” Listening to others provides an opportunity to train your ear to understand what other performers are doing and experiment with it in your own playing.

Step 7: be critical

One of the hardest things to do when being your own teacher is to listen to yourself objectively. It takes intense focus and attention, not to mention a good dose of self-awareness. If you struggle to critique yourself, start by listening to other performances and recordings for aspects on which the performer can improve. Maybe they are buzzing a note, or muffling the end of the piece too soon. Or perhaps their arpeggios are uneven. Picking up on these details in someone else’s performance is much easier than hearing them in our own playing. Once you are able to give constructive self-criticism, try video recording a run-through or practice session to take your self-teaching to the next level. The goal is to be able to hear what is effective in your playing, and what you would like to change or improve. As Belvedere points out, “It also allows you to be aware of your technique and of any tension in your body.”

“When learning a piece, your attitude should be that of getting to know someone,” says Judy Loman. “My relationship with the piece is important. I imagine myself having a discussion with the composer and build my interpretation upon that. It is about having a positive attitude about yourself and your knowledge of the harp. In learning a piece, we often start with the attitude that it all has to happen right away and get frustrated when it doesn’t. We should have the attitude to pay attention to the small things right from the very beginning, to approach the music slowly with the proper position, so that we are learning it in a way that our fingers will remember.”
—Judy Loman is the harp instructor at Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music and teaches at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia.

Step 8: correct mistakes

Bad habits can creep into our playing when a teacher is not spot-checking us each week. It is easy to start off with the correct rhythm or notes and gradually let mistakes develop without even realizing it. Slowing down the piece and being aware of even the smallest details allows you to check all the notes and rhythms. A metronome is an essential tool for checking yourself. If you have a piece with a lot of complex rhythms or that is harmonically challenging, you might want to slow it down and check in with the metronome, and gradually build your speed back up. Correcting a mistake, especially one that you have ingrained into your brain and hands, can be hard, but by playing it correctly repeatedly, you will be able to fix it. Try looking for logic behind your mistakes. For instance, I often mistakenly change a note of a chord by a third or a fifth because the shape of the chord does not feel like it fits comfortably in my hand. By understanding that, I am better able to correct the chord the next time I play it by adjusting my hand position before I place my fingers on the notes.

To prevent mistakes, practice slowly from the start. I often get frustrated with this part because I just want to be able to play it as I know it sounds! However, practicing slowly from the beginning allows you to build a strong foundation for your interpretation of the piece. Work on small chunks calmly and correctly, and before long you will be increasing speed.

Step 9: prepare for performance

Without a teacher to mark our progression towards a performance, it is easy to put off learning pieces until the last minute (many of us are all guilty of this). It is important to make a plan for yourself. Set goals in preparation for a performance so that you can monitor your progress. Take time to play for other harpists or musicians; not only can they provide valuable feedback on your playing, but playing for others as you prepare a piece makes it harder to procrastinate to the last minute. Gott says she finds it especially helpful to play for non-harpists. “They are ignorant to the common pitfalls for a harpist—like difficult pedals, buzzing, dampening—and are less likely to make excuses for these issues, challenging you to surpass them.” Other musicians may have new ideas or suggestions that haven’t occurred to you. Every person will hear things differently and can give you unique feedback. In addition, playing for other people gives you a chance to work out some of those nerves you might be having and help you be more confident in your performance.

After years of being nurtured by a teacher, learning how to survive on your own can be intimidating. No one is there to tell you if you are right or wrong or to point you in the right direction. It can be scary, but it can also be liberating. Take time to explore your music and find what awaits you. Slow down, listen to yourself, and make informed musical choices. You’re not really leaving the nest, you’re just making a new nest—your nest. Be patient. It takes time, but the reward is a piece to call your own. •

Ready-made Repertoire Lists

Many organizations and competitions publish their lists of graded repertoire on their websites. Even if you are not a member of one of these organizations or don’t plan to compete in a competition, these lists can provide a valuable list to jump start your brainstorming for new repertoire ideas, and also help you gauge the level of difficulty of a particular piece. Here are a few good lists to get you started:

Royal Conservatory of Music—Located in Toronto, this prestigious music school grants certificates for completing its graded, progressive learning goals on different instruments. The harp syllabus is available on its website and includes repertoire lists from beginner through advanced level.

Associated Board of Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM)—Based in the United Kingdom, the ABRSM provides graded music exams and assessments. Its progressive syllabus is available on its website.

American Harp Society (AHS)—The American Harp Society holds its national competition every two years. A comprehensive list of the graded repertoire required for each division of the competition is available on the AHS website. For a list of links to these online resources, visit www.harpcolumn.com.