Piano, flow, and adrenaline

I went out for a long exercise walk this morning. My challenge is that I don’t usually have long periods of time available so I try to exercise in “bits and pieces.” But this morning was different. I had a full hour and decided to make the most of it. I started walking along a path and after about 25 minutes that wonderful moment came when the adrenaline kicked in. I got a big rush of energy and picked up my pace, savoring the feeling. At that moment, I didn’t have to use any “will power” or any other motivation to exercise. My body simply wanted to keep going, and I did. (I wish I felt this more often.) Wow!

Piano is just like this. The biggest challenge a lot of us face is simply getting to the piano every day and establishing some sense of continuity. But when you do play, do you play long enough? Do you sit there and play long enough to get to that magical moment when something else takes over and the music just pours out of you? Like me with my exercising, you probably don’t get there often enough, but you can.

The great thing is that it doesn’t matter what level you’re at. A beginner can experience this just as well as an accomplished pianist. To get there, don’t worry about what you can’t play. Go for some sort of “flow” in your practicing and if you sit with it long enough, it will happen in some way, shape, or form. And once it does, you’ll want to play more and more piano, just like with exercising. Try it today, and don’t give up if it doesn’t happen immediately. (And yes, I’m going to go back out and walk again tomorrow!)

Happy practicing!

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