#100DaysOfPractice: The Great Challenge

Many years ago, violinist Hilary Hahn created the 100 Days of Practice, a series on social media that showed snippets of her practicing over 100 days. It went viral, with countless other musicians creating their own. In 2019, I decided to take on the challenge. Here’s the first video, where I work on the famous solo from Brahms’ second Piano Concerto.

This solo is in two main parts. One which starts the movement (in Bb), and one which comes back in F# partway through the movement. It requires thoughtful phrasing, careful shifting, and much more. So there’s plenty of fodder for practicing. Of course, another super important part of this is to get to know how you fit in with the orchestra, and with the piano. Much of the time, the pianist isn’t playing during this solo, but at times, they are, and it’s crucial that the cellist have knowledge of when and how that happens, so that they can connect and have a musical dialogue.

But this is only one of 100 videos I made. There are 99 to go, and I cover the following, and more:

  • Tchaikovsky Capriccio Italien
  • Schumann Cello Concerto
  • Bach Suite 6 Allemande
  • Strauss Der Rosenkavalier Suite
  • Ravel La Valse

And that’s all in the first few days! I’ve arranged the entire series into a playlist, which I’ll embed below. Don’t worry, they’re not just boring videos of me practicing – I’ve made sure to make them educational, explaining why I’m doing what I’m doing. I think that these can remain a valuable resource to those who want to up their practice game.

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