16 The Way to Flow is to Play Slow (w/ Pablo Martinez)

The Piano Sensei Way

After I posted in the Piano Teacher Central Facebook group saying “slow, slow, slow to keep the flow, flow, flow,” Pablo Martinez shared it in his Instagram to his followers because he was just thinking the same thing! We linked up in this episode to share stories and ideas on effective practicing. We learn about Pablo’s journey and how he had to rethink how to practice due to an injury. He had to make progress but maximize his time at the piano in order to not further injure himself.

He gives us his top 3 tips for practicing: pick a tempo that allows you to do all that you want; go back and forth between small and big; and the feedback loop. The feedback loop is 3 steps: plan, play, and assess. You first plan what you’re going to play and what the goal is. Then you play it. Then you assess how it went in order to plan again, hence the feedback loop!

We talk about helping students do this in the lesson, guiding them through the process instead of just telling them to do it at home. This episode has examples, stories, and “fattening the pig!” Be sure to check out Pablo’s links, the suggested book he mentions, and the video clip we discuss:

• Pablo’s website: https://www.pablomartinezpiano.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pablomartinezpiano/
• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf4-DR4KR8JZDKbNg3RsC2Q
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pablomartinezpiano

Practicing the Piano by Graham Fitch: https://practisingthepiano.com/resources/ebooks/

Marc-Andre Hamelin clip saying to practice “slooooooowly”: https://youtu.be/UdykXfa6fnc?si=aA9Cr3aPwsNdROPK&t=447

Creative Teaching Conference: https://creativeteachingconference.com/

Related episode: Episode 6 - The Way to Teach Piano is to Teach Practicing (w/ Michael Richey)