Forest vs. trees: This practice mindset can transform your performances

Have you ever felt bogged down or defeated by all the details in the practice room?

(If you said no, I suspect you’re lying!)

With so many directions you could choose to focus on during every practice session, it can feel like these tiny details quickly add up and become overwhelming.

A few years ago, I was reflecting on my own practice habits. Although I’ve always been good to balance small-scale polishing work and larger scale performance run-throughs, I had a simple shift in perspective that made practice much more enjoyable and productive for me.

After finishing a run-through of a piece, I was still getting bogged down by tiny details (I squeaked in that measure, there was a chirp in this measure, tuning was wonky over there). It was easy to get discouraged until I asked myself, “Am I missing the bigger picture?”

“You can’t see the forest for the trees”

I was getting so bogged down in tiny details that I was missing opportunities to create a more impactful performance overall. I was performing defensively, afraid of tiny mistakes and choosing not to take opportunities to create a more meaningful bigger picture.

Of course these tiny details do matter, and we should make a mental note during any run-through of these to go back and continue improving these issues. However, in a musical performance, I believe the overall impact is more important (the forest).

Think of the last concert you attended? Were there tiny technical imperfections? Probably. These are not uncommon in live performances. But ask yourself this – did you base your overall impression of the performance on these, or were you focused on the bigger picture?

(Of course, too many tiny mistakes can add up to detract from the overall experience! I’m referring to a small amount of imperfections or blemishes)

This mindset shift has allowed me to focus on creating more memorable performances, because I’m focused on the bigger picture: What do I want people to feel? What story am I telling?

During my daily practice, I spend a good deal of time on the “trees” – shorter sections of music where I’m focused on the smaller details. Our priorities shift as we move from trees to the forest. I gradually add more “trees” together to create larger sections of the forest, until I’m ready to perform the overall work.

I invite you to explore this mental shift to see how it might help transform your own practice!