I asked ChatGPT how to practice Paganini

The other day, Akiko and I were rehearsing a string quartet with two LA Phil colleagues (one of those new-fangled pieces that requires a foot pedal to trigger sound files… but that’s a whole other story) when the topic of Artificial Intelligence came up.

If you haven’t heard of ChatGPT or the other AI tools making the news these days, you will soon. In fact, how do you know it’s me writing these words right now?

I promise, it’s me. Give me the Turing Test. Ask me about the first page of the Mendelssohn!

In any case, the cellist in the group mentioned that just for fun, he had asked ChatGPT to give him a breakdown of the optimal tennis workout for his teenage son.

To his surprise, the computer gave him a step-by-step process by which his son could hydrate, warm up, work on strokes, and cool down. It sounded like it was written by a tennis coach. And the advice was actually good!

How does ChatGPT do it?

Well, it pulls what it thinks is relevant information from all over the internet, just like Google does. Then, using an algorithm that’s hidden from the likes of you and me, it chooses the most important points and puts them into a logical order. It then uses its bag of tricks to put this argument into natural-sounding human language.

Of course, this got me thinking: what would ChatGPT say about practicing the violin?

And, more importantly, are we teachers about to be replaced by chat-bots?

Chatting with HAL

I started by asking ChatGPT how to practice Paganini’s 24th Caprice:

I'm a violinist. What's the best way for me to practice Paganini's Caprice No. 24?

Here’s what it told me:

1. Start slow: It's important to begin at a slower tempo and gradually increase the speed as you become more comfortable with the piece.

2. Break it down: Break the piece into smaller sections and focus on mastering each one before moving on to the next.

3. Focus on technique: Pay close attention to your technique, especially your left hand position and right hand bowing.

4. Repeat: Repeat each section multiple times to solidify your muscle memory.

5. Listen: Listen to recordings of other violinists playing the piece to get a sense of the phrasing and style.

6. Experiment: Experiment with different bowings, dynamics, and articulations to find what works best for you.

7. Get feedback: Consider working with a teacher or mentor to get feedback on your playing and receive guidance on areas you need to improve.

A pretty good plan, if you ask me! Short on details, perhaps, but each of these points has merit. Can you honestly say that you live up to them all in every practice session?

For example, even experienced players often forget how much slow practice is required for an easy performance. They sometimes forget, too, how it’s fruitless to play 2 tricky bars together until they can play just 1 at a time!

Every numbered point, including the last one (getting feedback) is right on the money.

Further down the rabbit hole

That wasn’t the end of my fun with ChatGPT though, not by a long shot! I made it come up with a bedtime story for my three kids, and it spit out a charming fable about a fox and an owl saving a village from a landslide.

Then I decided I’d ask it about a topic near and dear to my heart: scale practice.

I can’t say I “wrote the book” on scale practice, but I did write a book on it. So I was dying to know what ChatGPT’s answer would be to this question:

Give me a 30-minute routine for practicing scales on the violin.

Here was its answer:

Here's a sample 30-minute scale practice routine:
Warm-up (5 minutes): Start with a few minutes of stretching and playing simple scales (such as C Major or G Major) at a slow tempo to get your fingers moving and your body ready to play.

Scales in first position (10 minutes): Play through all the major and minor scales in first position, focusing on a smooth and even bow stroke, clear intonation, and proper left hand placement.

Scales in third position (10 minutes): Shift to third position and play through the major and minor scales in this position, focusing on fluid shifting and accurate left hand placement.

Review and maintenance (5 minutes): End by reviewing any scales you had difficulty with, or go back and play through any scales you'd like to improve.

Some additional tips to keep in mind:
Practice regularly: Make a habit of practicing scales every day, even if it's only for a short period of time.

Experiment with different bowing patterns: Try playing scales with different bowings, such as all down-bows, all up-bows, or alternating bows.

Vary the tempo: Practice scales at different tempos to challenge yourself and improve your speed and control.

Focus on tone: Pay attention to the sound you are producing and aim to create a beautiful, rich tone in each scale.

Remember, scale practice is an essential part of a violinist's routine, so make sure to allocate enough time for it in your daily practice schedule.

Once again, not bad! You could do better, but then again, you could do a lot worse! Nice ringing keys to warm up, followed by some first position and third position work. Very 19th-century German.

I might quibble with playing “all the major and minor keys” in first position though, especially for 10 minutes. I suppose we’re limiting ourselves to 2 octaves!

The “review and maintenance” point is a nice touch. And the “additional tips” are just right; scales every day, different bowing patterns, different tempi… all with a focus on tone.

All up-bows or all down-bows, though? I used to have a stand partner who would do that for fun, but I can’t say it did wonders for his playing!

Entering the Meta-Verse

Then I did something devious. I asked ChatGPT this question:

How would Nathan Cole advise a violinist to practice scales?

Aha! Now I would be able to see myself as the world (at least the artificially-intelligent world) sees me. This would be like holding a mirror up to my mind. The bot’s response:

Nathan Cole, a highly experienced concertmaster, would likely advise a violinist to practice scales in the following way:

1. Start slow: Begin with a slow tempo and focus on correct finger placement and tone production.

2. Increase the speed gradually: Once the violinist has mastered the scale at a slow tempo, gradually increase the speed.

3. Practice in different keys: Play the scale in all major and minor keys to build finger flexibility and familiarity with different tonalities.

4. Incorporate various bowing techniques: Experiment with different bowing techniques, such as slurred and staccato, to develop a well-rounded technique.

5. Practice with a metronome: Use a metronome to maintain a consistent tempo and improve rhythm and timing.

6. Work on intonation: Pay close attention to the tuning of each note and strive for accurate intonation.

7. Add dynamics: Incorporate dynamics and phrasing into the scales to make them more musical.

8. Incorporate into pieces: Use the scales as a warm-up and incorporate them into pieces to apply the technical and musical elements in a musical context.

Nathan Cole would emphasize the importance of regular and focused practice, as well as providing feedback and guidance to help the violinist improve their scale playing.

First of all, ChatGPT, bless you for calling me a “highly experienced concertmaster!” I’ve been called a lot of things in my life, but having this artificially-intelligent honor bestowed on me, for the whole world to see, really puts the cherry on my sundae.

As for the advice, do you see how it’s subtly different from the previous answer about scales? (I know, my question was phrased differently as well, but let’s ignore that for now.)

Already we’re combining slow practice with a focus on finger placement and sound. I like it! We also get the instruction to increase the tempo once we’ve mastered the slower tempo. That was missing before.

Point #4 asks us to work on different bow strokes, but we get specifics, and they’re pretty good ones: slurred and staccato. Much better than all ups or all downs!

Point #5 is all about the metronome. Point taken, though check my rules for using the metronome.

Intonation gets its own number, as opposed to “finger placement” which came up in #1. They can be two different things, after all. And how about the call to add dynamics? I appreciate that.

#8 is eerie, because it’s pretty much the thesis of my book, Scales: The Road to Repertoire. How was ChatGPT savvy enough to know that I would advise you to “Use the scales as a warm-up and incorporate them into pieces to apply the technical and musical elements in a musical context?”

Finally, we get the instruction to perform “regular and focused practice,” which is certainly an improvement over the “long and hard” practice we’re often told we should be doing.

Have the machines won?

I have to admit: I’m impressed. If ChatGPT were a person, and I met them on the airplane, and we struck up a conversation about the violin, I might be fooled into believing they were a real violin teacher… for a few minutes at least.

The scary thing is that the bot could just as easily pretend to be a chef, a film director, an astronaut, even a conductor! Though to be fair, some conductors fool themselves for years at a time.

So what’s missing? In a word: feedback. That’s the last piece of advice, after all:

Nathan Cole would emphasize the importance of regular and focused practice, as well as providing feedback and guidance to help the violinist improve their scale playing.

But I see no reason why machines couldn’t eventually listen to violin playing and make intelligent observations about what needs improvement. From there, we’ve just seen that they can offer coherent practice strategies.

And what about the music? ChatGPT has mastered English grammar and syntax, and can even assemble phrases into sustained arguments. Are musical grammar and structure really orders of magnitude more difficult? I don’t think so.

So am I about to be replaced? I don’t know, but I plan on staying at least one step ahead of the machines. To tell you the truth, I’m excited about the possibilities of augmented musical learning. AI-powered devices have learned enough from us humans; it’s time they returned the favor and taught us a thing or two!

How? I’ve got something up my sleeve for you later this year…