How to get inside a piece of music

What does it mean to get inside a piece of music? This esoteric concept is difficult to explain because it’s both conceptual and personal. Yet when you listen to two performances of the same piece—one by someone who plays all the right notes but doesn’t seem to understand the piece, and one played by someone who feels the music from the inside out—the difference is immediately noticeable. This is why getting inside a piece is the goal of every musician—because we know that no matter how well we play the notes, they don’t come to life until we can wear the music like a second skin.

Music teachers try to teach this concept in multiple ways. Some talk about understanding the “mood” of a piece. Others focus on finding meaning in the structure of the composition. Still others use story to help students “enter” the music they’re playing. Some pieces resonate with the player so strongly that they never have to worry about getting inside the notes—it captures them at first hearing. Other pieces are more challenging and require more work on the part of the pianist. If you, like I, have occasionally struggled to find your way into a piece of music, here are some tips that have been helpful for me:

Choose a piece you enjoy

The best place to start learning how to get inside a piece of music is to choose a composition you love. Few of us are motivated to try and make friends with music we don’t enjoy, no matter how many people tell us that this or that piece would be good for us to learn. Listen to a recording of the prospective piece. Does it catch your ear and your imagination? Is it one you find yourself humming or thinking about? If so—much like when we meet a new friend—you’ve got the curiosity and motivation to get to know it better.

Analyze it

It’s difficult to understand and showcase the magic of a piece if we don’t understand what we’re playing. We start with the score. What are the time and key signatures? What is the overall form of the composition? When was it written, and in what style? Who wrote it, and what do we know about the composer’s compositional style? Because we’re blessed with piano music that spans hundreds of years, pianists who play standard repertoire are required to musically time-travel to different eras and cultures. This analysis takes time, but it’s an indispensable step when seeking insider understanding of the music.

Free associate

What does the music bring to mind when you practice it? Because each individual reacts differently to a piece of music, this step has no right or wrong response. Sometimes the answer appears effortlessly. Other times, we need the help of a few prompts. If you think well on paper, it might be helpful to write out your responses to these ideas:

* If this music appeared in a movie, what would be happening on the screen?

* What emotion (if any) does the music evoke in you and why?

* If you were to dance to the music, how would you move?

* What colors, tastes, or sights can you associate with the music?

* If you sing the melody, how does it resonate in your body?

Experiment

I once premiered a composition by a living composer that for all my imagination and story-telling I just couldn’t find my way into. It was only when I hit on the idea of the piece being something I needed to act out like a piece of performance art that the music fell into place. The composer loved the interpretation and I learned a valuable lesson: when in doubt, experiment. Throw out all internal “shoulds” and “oughts” and try every crazy idea that comes to mind. I’ve danced (badly) to recordings of pieces I’m playing. I’ve experimented with touch, release, pedal, etc. When I was learning to play 7 beats against 8 in the third movement of Samuel Barber’s “Excursions”, I found I could only do it effortlessly when I imagined ocean waves, moving at different speeds, mingling on the sand. Curiosity and patience almost always reward those who are willing to keep trying.

When we get it right, we know it. We find our minds working in lock-step with the composer’s. We sense the flow of the music as a living, breathing thing. We find elements from our lives influencing the music, and the music providing a mental soundtrack to our lives. The piece has become “ours,” and we can wear it with the comfort and confidence of a second skin.