• Use Rhythms when the passage you’re playing a section has a Straight Rhythm, meaning all the notes are the same length
• Play through each rhythm 2 to 4 times, and end by playing the passage 2 to 4 times as written
• When you have passages that are naturally grouped into 3's, use the Rhythms of Three

Action Step

Please try this strategy. Please!

This strategy especially, I KNOW you'll see results. Why? Because it's one of the most powerful strategies out there.

And if this whole “practice strategy” think hasn't clicked for you yet, this lesson is one that will really help you understand it. So go to the piano now, and lets work on that C Major Scale.

Alright, first we're going to work on JUST right hand going up the scale. Here we go!

Step 1: Play the entire scale going up (C D E F G A B C) 4 times. Make sure you're using the right fingering (1 2 3 1 2 3 4 5). Oh, and play it slowly. Studies show your brain remembers the first and last repetition more than the rest of them, so Step 1 and Step 6 are really important to play it flawlessly.

Step 2: Play the same thing, using the pattern “long, short long, short…” 4 times. Really focus on lifting your fingers and deliberately hitting each note.

Step 3: Alright, now play it again, 4 times, using the rhythm “short long, short long…”

Alright stop now and think, “Am I using the right fingering?” If you are, AWESOME, you're doing great. If not, go back and repeat step 3 with the right fingering. Remember, when we drill in muscle memory, it's important to drill in the same fingering every time.

Step 4: Time for the 4-note rhythms. Now play the scale with the rhythm “long, short short short long, short short short” 4 times.

Step 5: Last rhythm. Play the scale with the rhythm “short short short long, short short short long” 4 times.

Step 6: DON'T skip this step. It's extremely important. Play the scale 4 last times, slowly, and focus on perfect accuracy. This last repetition is what your brain remembers most, so make sure it's solid.

How does it feel? It should feel like the scale all of a sudden “fits” your fingers better. Like your fingers will kind of feel that “snap” to the notes.

If not, sleep on it, as sometimes you have to let it sink in overnight.

Now you have another formula, another system for learning. You can repeat this on the scale going down, as well as the left hand.

Then, tomorrow, you can take a bigger chunk (remember how I said you can combine the chunking strategy with other strategies in this course?), such as the full scale up and down, and repeat all the rhythms again on that.

And eventually, you can take hands together and run the Rhythms on both hands at the same time, slicing through scales!

Happy practicing,