"I had been practicing for several hours when I suddenly realized that the sound was coming directly out of the piano. Instead of singing the music in my mind, as I usually did, and focussing on that imaginary sound, I heard the actual sound. I was shocked by its vividness, and by the realization that although this brilliant sensory experience had been available to me for years, I had been missing it....Everyone starts out in music a listener. As young children we hear music with freshness and delight. But when we start practicing an instrument, we stop listening intently. We become so involved with producing a sound, that we forget to take it in. We get caught up with trying to make the instrument do what we want, and trying to make the music sound as we think it should. In directing our attention towards the desired results, we take it away from the actual sounds that could be giving us pleasure in the present moment. This approach becomes a vicious circle. The less pleasure we receive, the more we try to force the instrument to give it to us, gripping it tightly instead of moving simply and comfortably."
-- The Art of Practicing, Madeline Bruser (II)