Try to get it better by Thursday, and remember this, that playing, and all that differentiates playing from strumming, only begins when you can play all the notes that are put down for you to play without fail.

You're beginning at the wrong end; you have admirable feeling about that prelude, but you needn't think about feeling till you've got all the notes at your fingers' ends.

Then and not till then, you may begin to remember that you want to be a pianist.

Now, what's the next thing ?" Michael felt somewhat squashed and discouraged.

He had thought he had really worked successfully at the thing he knew so well by sight.