I memorize whole pieces by visualizing it as a road or a trip. If I play through the piece then I see oh here comes that two little hills, and now the large house, and here comes the bridge, and there is the old tree, and so on. These are all groups of measures which I know by muscle memory. It works well for me.

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Thats really cool! I love this abstract ways to organise your memory! Thanks for sharing it here in the comments Arthur!! 🙏🏻

@LibertyWarrior68

5 ай бұрын

You are breaking up your serial memory into sections creating new starting points, it is a good way to go. Muscle memory is the most unreliable memory unfortunately, it's far better to understand what you are playing in terms of chords and melody interval patterns over chords, using the ear to hear the melody and chords.

If only I had a memory like yours!!! I find it incredibly difficult to memorize music. I am practicing a piece now that I have been working on for almost a year, and I STILL can't play it from memory!!

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Dave! maybe try not to practice always playing the same exactly as is written. use exercises, variations on the different elements (melody, harmony, fingerings, position changes, etc...) to create variety in your practice, challenge yourself. Usually this freshness in practice keeps your brain engaged and should help you memorize better :) Let me know how it goes if you try it out!

Thank you dear Merce, always insightful and I like the fact that you break down your complete thought process about how you approach a piece of music. Take care and have a wonderful new week 🤗🎶🎸❤

Just found your channel. Love the video I have just watched. What works for me is what you suggest: visualisation. Learning something new, I will go through it a number of times. Then, away from the instrument, I will go through it in my mind. If I struggle to recall what I am trying to learn and I try to "see" the music. This works really well for me. Looking forward to watching more of your videos. Thanks!

Hey Merce -- so..catching up yet again (crazy wacky schedule) and have a few weeks of your vids to take a look at. Anyway, very interesting points. I like this idea of going into "memorize mode" from the very beginning by studying the musics, etc. Will have to try focusing on that. Also kind of cool that you are able to remember everything from the beginning it seems! I find that for older pieces I had memorized a while back but haven't had time to practice or play for several months (due to working on other pieces), I do lose some memory. Comes back relatively quickly though once I pick it up again, so it's not completely gone. Wonder if this may be due to an over reliance on muscle memory, as you highlighted in the video. Great topic!

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Absolutely, try not to rely only in muscle memory! Do engage a bit your memory on the melody, harmonic movements & rhythm to begin with. That alone can make a huge difference!

Hello Merce, and another great video. I have been trying to use the method "counting fingering by the numbers", and slow going. If I fall in love with a piece then it gets easier. Awesomeness!

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Great if that works for you! :D

I like this idea of visualizing a piece like playing the whole thing in my mind. I tried it and was surprising how that worked (and what I couldn't remember for the life of me).

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

very true! is very eye opening! It's just that sometimes we don't take time for such easy things... :D

very interested in this , I can memorize quite well and fast playing to myself BUT it doesnt seem to be pressure proofed , I cant let go and trust under pressure which is where you want to be ! Obviously I m doing something wrong in practice !

@manu-singh

3 жыл бұрын

interesting

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Playing under a bit of pressure is also a skill you can learn. GOOD NEWS: ⚠️In yesterday's MFA private live-stream I announced the class concerts that we will do with the MFA members. This way you can extend your practice until 'concert ready'. To do this is like a work in progress, it takes getting used to it and lost of repetition to play for others, and that's what we will do very soon! 🔖You will find the inscription to these class concerts in the MFA Forum (check on the last Workshop entry under Live Workshops replays). We will start organizing this play through sessions around September and starting by playing a short little piece can be great way to jump into it without too much overwhelm :) I'll keep you guys posted about more details soon in the Forum 😉

Looking forward to this 🤗 Edit: Also, can you do something about sight reading in classical guitar? Thanks, I love all your videos.

@MerceFont

3 жыл бұрын

Sure! will keep a note on that! :) Thank you for the comment!

It is amazing how focused your help is for me, thank you.

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

You're so welcome!

Hi Merce, Been following your channel quite some time now , Thanks for all the tips, |Your expertise is helpful in getting a better understanding of different concepts in music. I aint no expert, more of a DIY guitarist. Singing along While learning/playing the solos with the combo of watching the finger Movements helps me remember the shift from one tonal center to another while moving through progressions. Its more like memorizing a song, I feel memorizing the movement of a piece is like memorizing a song itself. Not sure if im on the right track, But somehow i manage to keep the groove together by learning to sing along while practising...Will try out your techniques..................Kudos

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you Deepan! Glad to help and wish you all the best with your guitar!! 🙌🏻

Hi Merce, great topic! I memorize pieces similarly to you. When learning a new piece, I begin with a small couple of measures at a time and work with those measures over a longer period of time (sometimes even two measures a month if the measures are super difficult). The memory becomes more reinforced. I'm not actively trying to memorize, it just happens because I am concentrating on less or smaller amounts of musical content at a time. I appreciated your talking about shoring up memory weaknesses once you have a piece put together. I'll have to keep working on that mental practice "super power." It is a very weird way to practice for me. I am still at the very beginning of applying it's power and working out how to strengthen the mental clarity of this type of practice in my head. As a mental practice beginner, Imaging can get really fuzzy. I very much have to approach mental practice the same way I learn a piece. Use only a couple measures at a time with the sheet music in front of me. I also have to assist the mental training by using my arm as a fret board to reinforce what I am seeing in my head. Sorry for the long reply. Thank you for the great topic!

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Awesome!!! You are doing great Kari! Can't wait to see where you are in some months time! 😊

Tatyana suggests using not just one method but all. She made a good video on different methods. If I am really into a piece I can learn it immediately. But this has only happened a few times. I am good at visualization. I currently only have one piece of classical music memorized and it's short. I've had a few others but forgot most of each. I find the mandolin to be more memorable. I enjoy your videos!

You are great and your videos help me a lot

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Thats wonderful! Happy to read that :)

This video answered many questions that escaped me. For example, why could I play more difficult pieces, and forget the simple ones? Unfortunately, I do not play enough in public, so I do not practice for the performance stage like I should. As of this moment, my practice sessions have a short duration, and I practice a piece, then perform one of your drills, then return to the original piece. My attention span or desire is not very long, so I practice a session, stop and do something else, return to the work in question etc. I work outside and my nails break a lot, so I clip my nails, and play without them, which irritate me. I have also noticed that during your barre chord exercises, I was not in the proper position, so my elbow was not helping by pulling down naturally. I have corrected that problem ever since. Lately, I have been working on quality rather than quantity. The sad part of all this, is I have had a classical guitar for over 20 years, and I cannot even play 10 well know classical pieces, which is sad. I play along with the songs that I sing, I practiced Chet Atkins style, I practiced Flamenco, and perform drills that are just pieces of a longer passage. So I think my practice has been in error, and being an amateur I feel that I have no way of knowing what to do next, or how to progress in a logical, realistic manner. What are your thoughts about my dillema?

Have you done a video on how a classical guitarist holds a guitar? I can memorize music just not easily. I have one piece of music memorized and some blues guitar exercises memorized. I find it helps to use a timer and not play longer than25 minutes. I started out with 15 minutes. That is my secret of success, to keep it relatively short and not to go longer but to do it everyday. I really like guitar but I found true love when I got a mandolin. I practice both 25 minutes each day.

I love Barcelona ❤ ,I have trouble remembering chords of songs xxx

Querida Merce, he estado siguiendo tu fantástico canal por un tiempo. Soy una guitarrista francés con un canal mucho más pequeño que el tuyo pero llevo 6 meses desarrollando más y va creciendo. Quería saber si me permitirías citar pequeños fragmentos de tus videos en un video donde presentaré algunos de mis canales favoritos de guitarra clásica en KZread y hablaré sobre por qué me gustan estos canales en particular. ¡Muchas gracias por su respuesta!

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Claro que si Laureline! Será un placer estar en tu canal! 😊

Hi Merce. Thanks for another great video. Two things I find help with memorising a new piece: 1) start to learn it from the end and work back to the beginning. This way you always know what is coming next. 2) when you think you have it memorised stress test it by playing it in the dark! :-)

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Yes! practicing backwards is also a very useful thing to do! Thanks for sharing it in the comments Chris! :)

@mitsanut5869

2 жыл бұрын

Very interesting approach. Never heard of such style of memorizing music, but it's very logical in some sense.

@AngieGrecia

Жыл бұрын

Hello, how can I learn it backwards?

Hey :) How many classical pieces per grade of classical school should you learn to play? I have 14 years of experience in blues, rock, campfire songs :) My first two pieces I tried to learn were recuerdos de la alhambra and moonlight sonata. And yes I did manage to get up to 110 bpm to play small part of it, but I never used i and m fingers to play scales or have I ever deeper explored arpeggios. It's more appropriate to start with F.Sor B-minor etude, Tarrega E-minor etude, Julio Sangreas Eminor etude. I am trying to build a list of pieces for gradual improving.

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Igor! that's a difficult question as it depends on how you develop. Some start playing guitar and they scale up to high repertoire quite fast and some they take years to get there. It's very difficult to tell. What I would certainly do is try to cover different pieces/etudes that work on different techniques (eg. a piece based on arpeggio, another on counterpoint, another on accompained melody, maybe a tremolo, repeated chords, etc...) and become very observant on how difficult or easy each setting feel so that you know with better accuracy what you need more work on and where you can go up in level with a bit more ease. Maybe a good idea is also to stick for a while with guitar composers (its a lot more idiomatic) and later move to more complex and less comfortable works.

I was never required, or shown how, to memorize my pieces when I was young. Returning to guitar as an older adult makes memorizing a huge challenge.

@MerceFont

3 жыл бұрын

You are very right, it can be indeed a challenge to pick it back up

Ciao Merce, thanks a lot for your advices! Do you think it's important to improve sight reading to help memorize the pieces? What do you recommend for a good reading, especially in the positions from the fifth fret onwards? Best regards, Max

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Good question! Yes sight reading makes the whole process of reading a new piece faster and because you are better at it, one remembers a lot quicker the other aspects of music (structure, harmony, voicing...) so yes, its always a good thing to do to sight read for 10min every day. As for exercises you can take a simple melody and play it on first position, then 3rd, then 5th and so on. You can do the same with scales (eg, just the first 5 notes of a scale). Another idea is to take a piece that you know it has lots of passages in the high positions. That will 'force' you to get to know the higher frets a lot better. These are just a few ideas to get you started :)

@maxmarto

2 жыл бұрын

@@MerceFont Thank you very much for answering me and for the study advice, very kind! Max

Please list out the must learn classical guitar pieces that a beginner classical guitar learner must learn. Only those classical pieces which are composed on classical guitar not the common classical music, not the ones which are composed in pink or violin but those ones that are composed on classical guitar itself.

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the suggestion! Will keep it in my notes! :)

My memory muscles fail when I'm playing in front of people. I can barely hear the song in my head. How do you practice that??

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Could be lack of regular stage practice (that helps al to get used to nerves/pressure and make it easier for your thoughts to flow normally) or a combination of this with a too superficial practice.

What I find peculiar is that I have much difficulty memorizing polyphonic songs on the guitar even though I had easily memorized them on the piano years earlier, yet I don't have nearly as much difficulty with homophony.

Hi Merce.. Hope you are doing well What kind of digital tablet or laptop computer do you recommend for reading scores? (Excuse my language mistakes I m French) Thanks Be well

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

I think any tabled 12'9inches would do (so its similar to paper A4 size). I use an ipad and I enjoy the ForScore app for keeping my scores and edits all in one place :)

@joelpenazzo7248

2 жыл бұрын

@@MerceFont Thanks 🙏🙏

Aulas muito boas, mesmo eu não sabendo inglês, da para entender algumas coisas, inclusive os exercícios, que são ótimos. Se tivesse legenda acho que atrairia um publico ótimo, brasileiro e de outros países que falam português... Aqui há uma certa ausência de aulas praticas e boas, como essas, para violão clássico. Parabéns👏👏 responda-me, please!😅

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Oi! Tente usar as legendas automáticas do KZread, talvez isso ajude? :) Um dia, quando eu puder pagar, adoraria ter alguém ajudando a traduzir os vídeos para mais idiomas, com certeza! Até então, a tradução automática do KZread terá que fazer: D Hi! Try to use the KZread auto subtitles, maybe that helps? :) One day, when I can afford it I'd love to have somebody helping out to translate the videos into more languages for sure! Until then, KZread auto-translate will have to do :D

Not sure if "old farts" like me will have your focus, and you sure make me wish I had got your guitar approach 40 years ago! Bravo, girl. You are superb.

@MerceFont

3 жыл бұрын

I do think it's possible! maybe will need a bit of getting used to practice focused as nowadays is so easy to get distracted quickly. But I'm confident you can if you want to! :)

🙌🎸🎶🎵😊👏👏👏

6K Followers! 🎸 👏

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

🥳🥳🥳🥳v

I think, reading music as you play will induce efficiency of recall?

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Yep, reading with attention while playing is great to improve memorisation! :) Wish you a nice day Robert!

What the hell are you doing?!! Summer is ending.. We want you back again!!

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

I will! I have been working a lot these summer, too many things needed my attention but I can't wait to get back to YT soon! 🙏🏻

Where'd you go? Haven't heard anything in a few months. 🤨🤔

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Hi Dave! I had lots of work to take care of, I'm hoping to be back soon! 🤞🏻

Very interessante what thiouy say thanks.

@MerceFont

3 жыл бұрын

You're welcome!

@hamidabbana7190

3 жыл бұрын

@@MerceFont thank you to Match.

you are so right re negative thoughts - as soon as i find myself thinking 'im going to play the wrong note', sure enough i do. The best mindset for me is just forcing myself to 'hear' the music as i play and blocking out any 'feelings', then i make way less mistakes

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

Totally true! It's not an easy thing to do to keep the focus on that point but regular practice on that helps a lot!

My guitar instructor in college suggested to memorize all my fingerings by number. I thought this was tedious but when I went blank in the middle of my recital, in my next lesson he said, "I told you so!" I think Merce's approach is much better for me though. 🙂

@MerceFont

2 жыл бұрын

It's good you try different systems. Eventually you will find your own way, what comes the most natural to you, there will be your sweet spot for performing music by heart :)

My memory is gone...

@MerceFont

3 жыл бұрын

time to bring it back then! :D

@shortbrazilianguitartips5795

3 жыл бұрын

@@MerceFont Question: What should go on in your brain while you play a piece ( assuming you have it memorized)? What should you be thinking? What is the right thing to think?

Ezberleme duygu ağırlıklı bir gençlik çabası olduğu için belli bir tekniği yoktur. Ezber yerine parçadaki matematiğin özümsenmesi diyebiliriz. Batı müziği teknik ağırlıklı olduğu için ezberleme gerekli birşey değil. Ezberleme bir çeşit işkencedir :) Geleneksel müziklerde ezberleme şart. 40 yaşından sonra ezberlemek ise neredeyse imkansız. : TR > > > ENG : Since memorization is an emotion-based youth effort, there is no specific technique. Instead of memorization, we can say that the mathematics in the piece is assimilated. Memorization is not necessary, as Western music is technical. Memorization is a kind of torture :) Memorization is a must in traditional music. It is almost impossible to memorize after the age of 40.