Since launching my new Technical Exercises for Lever Harp book, I’ve been talking a lot about how to use the book and the role of technical work for harpists in improving their skills.
I often hear people talk about their technical exercises as ‘warm-up’s’ but I think there’s a really important distinction between the two, which I’m going to talk about today. For me they are totally different things, with different end goals.
HARP WARM-UPS
A ‘warm-up’ should do just that - it should warm up the muscles that you will use for harp playing in a safe way. A good warm-up before a practice session will
dilate your blood vessels, ensuring that your muscles are well supplied with oxygen
Makes muscles supple and therefore flexible
raises your muscles' temperature for optimal flexibility and efficiency
Stimulates the brain as blood flow increases
Can help prevent strains and injuries - particularly over the long-term
My ‘warm-up’ routine involves stretching (for some ideas of stretches see this previous blog post) to warm up all necessary body parts for playing harp including fingers, wrists, elbows, shoulders, and arms.
Once my muscles are feeling warm, I will then play a few scales and arpeggios at a slow tempo and mezzo-forte dynamic, being sure to get as full a tone as possible, and making sure my fingers are using their full range of movement.
By this point I will feel ‘warmed-up’ - i.e. my body and brain are primed and ready for the main work ahead, so NOW I will move on to my technical work.
TECHNICAL EXERCISES FOR HARP
Technical exercises, by contrast, are your opportunity to improve and expand your technical skills.
I have seen a lot of learners simply going through the motions with technical exercises, and treating them as little more than 'warm-ups'. They play them once or twice, at a moderate pace, but aren’t really challenging themselves. This is the OPPOSITE of what they should be - whatever level of player you are, your technical exercises are a chance to really push outside your comfort zone.
For the same reason there is NO exercise that’s too easy - even a simple scale can have many ways to use it to stretch yourself.
I tend to choose just a couple of exercises a week, and really spend time with them so I know that I’ve completely mastered that one before moving on to another.
Here’s the step-by-step process I’d use
Read through the exercise a few times to get familiar with the notes
Analyse it to really understand the shapes you’re playing e.g. identify the chord/inversion/handshape so you really engage with the theory at the same time
As soon as you can, memorise it. This is really important, because you can’t be trying to read at the same time as looking at your hand properly.
Once you're comfortable with the basics of playing an exercise, don't simply move on - instead, increase the speed, try it in different rhythms, apply dynamics and articulations. Push yourself and expand your abilities!
TIP!
I think it's really useful to make a little note beside each exercise of the date you practised it and the maximum speed at which you could play it accurately. Then the next time you visit it you know where to push yourself from, plus it’s really motivating to track your progress!
So in summary - make sure you are truly warming up your body and brain at the start of each practice session and then move on to technical exercises with the mindset to increase your skillset!
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