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During my podcast interview with Rachel Ehring, host of The Topmusic Piano Podcast, she asked me about a sentence every teacher hears over and over...

"I played it better at home."

Sound familiar? 🤦‍♀️

Here's my answer.

It's not your playing. It's your audience.

All week, you play for nobody. Then you sit down for one person, and that's the first time you've practiced being listened to.

Nerves are a skill. You have to practice them too.

So I ask my students to climb The Audience Ladder. 🪜

1️⃣ Record yourself, just for you 🎧
2️⃣ Play for your stuffed animals 🧸 (yep, it works!)
3️⃣ Play for whoever is home 🏡
4️⃣ Invite a neighbor over and play for them 🎹
5️⃣ Record yourself on Facebook Live but make it private, so only you can view it. 🫣

Little by little, the room gets less scary. By the time you sit down for your teacher, you've already done it a few times.
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It also helps as you prepare to perform for an unfamiliar audience.

🎼 A tiny practice experiment for you

Line up two stuffed animals on the sofa. Play one piece start to finish for them. 🧸 🧸

Then notice your nerves. Did it feel different than playing in a room alone?

MORE PODCAST HIGHLIGHTS 🎙️

✅ The notebook I kept after 9/11 that developed into Piano Ninja Tricks
✅ What really happens in the Juilliard practice rooms 🤷‍♀️​
✅ Why you should bring your new music to a lesson in the first week, not when it's ready

🎧 Listen to the full episode here!​
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Play On,
Lisa Spector
Piano Practice Strategist
Founder, Piano Ninja Tricksters Club​
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​ps I turned three clips from the interview into a reel about practice mistakes. Watch it on Instagram.Then reply and tell me which one is yours. (No shade if it's more than one. 😉)