An Investigation into the Benefits of Keeping a Practice Journal in the Learning and Performance of the Hindemith Violin Sonata in C Major

Musical expression is not a black and white concept. The ability to express oneself through music and practicing specifically is a benefit only musicians can truly appreciate. But every musician practices, so what determines the unique ability to learn? This is the question that made me interested in why practicing is so important specifically for classical music when learning a piece. For this creative project, I decided to learn and perform the Hindemith Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 4 in C Major while keeping tabs on practice times, habits, and insights. These were all recorded in physical practice logs, which built a reflective practice journal. This reflection allowed me to gain insight on how writing down one’s thoughts influences the understanding of a piece. In addition to practice logs, I researched the origins and developments of the sonata genre and compared the Hindemith sonata to three well-known sonatas by Beethoven, Brahms, and Bartok. This information allowed me to analyze the Hindemith in greater detail and describe my thoughts as I learned and eventually performed the piece. As I practiced, I noticed that reflecting on the practice logs was beginning to help me memorize the piece faster and understand the feelings I wished to transfer to the audience. The logs allowed me to remember specific sections of the piece more easily, and writing about a certain sections after comparing them to sections found in traditional sonatas shed light on some of the tonal decisions made by Hindemith. This paper will inform the reader on the benefits of keeping a reflective practice journal when learning a piece of music as well as the benefits of researching a piece and its relationship to established works in that genre.