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Music Memorization Tips

Memorizing music can seem like a daunting task at first glance. It combines visual, aural, and muscle memory; however, developing these skills to memorize music does not have to be difficult or overwhelming. There are a few key things to do when you first receive a piece of music. Once you apply some aural, visual, and muscle memorization tips, it will make it easier to transition a piece of music from your hands and into your ears and eyes.
  1. First Look at Music for Memorization

    • Take a piece of music you have to memorize and look at the following information: time signature (the number that looks like a fraction at the beginning of the first measure of music), the key signature [a collection of flats (look like: b's), sharps (look like: #'s) or there may be none at all], and any passages that immediately look like they may be tricky (e.g., changing tempos, time signatures, key signatures, dynamic markings) and circle them. This will give you a visual picture of what's happening in the music.

    Aural Memorization Tips

    • Aurally memorizing music can work if you have a strong aural memory. When memorizing music by ear, listen for melodies and phrases that repeat themselves as well as tempos.

    Visual and Muscle Memorization

    • Visual and Muscle memorization tips go hand-in-hand because the goal is to work through melodies, phrases, tempos, and dynamics in small segments. Working on a piece of music a few measures at a time at a slow tempo (quarter note equals 60 is a good starting place to set your metronome) and then gradually speeding it up five beats at a time (i.e., 60 to 65) will help you develop muscle memory with your instrument and visually you will start to really read and connect with the music as the measures go by. You will move away from the page faster if you learn the music the aforementioned way. You'll be able to see notes and phrases in your mind and your muscles will begin to 'know' where the notes are on your instrument.

Music Basics

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