Finding the time and motivation to practice is the biggest hurdle for most musicians. Some students don't practice because they believe they don't have the time or it won't make them a better player.
I wanted to write this to show that anyone can find the time, and make their practicing effective.
When Should I First Practice After My Lesson?
First off, not practicing is like never studying for tests or doing any homework. The purpose is to reinforce and retain what you learned in your lesson. The best time to practice is always immediately after getting home from your lesson. The worst is to only practice right before your next lesson.
Most people make the mistake of waiting a couple of days, only to find out they've already forgotten what was discussed. One solution is to digitally record your lesson, which can be done easily from most smart phones or handheld recorders. Then you can review the lesson at any time. Most teachers have no problem with recording lessons and usually recommend it.
Most people make the mistake of waiting a couple of days, only to find out they've already forgotten what was discussed. One solution is to digitally record your lesson, which can be done easily from most smart phones or handheld recorders. Then you can review the lesson at any time. Most teachers have no problem with recording lessons and usually recommend it.
How Often Should I Practice?
|
Playing Level
Beginner Intermediate Advanced |
Practice Time (daily)
15-20 minutes 30 minutes-1 hour 1-2 hours |
What Should I be Doing When I Practice?
Most students make the mistake of taking out their instrument, running through their pieces and then think that's enough. When practicing a certain piece, I recommend that a student only practices running through the piece in its entirety at the beginning in order to diagnose problems and at the end to put everything back together. If you're always just running through the piece, you're missing out on a lot of the details.
Metronomes and tuners will always be your best friends when it comes to practicing. String players especially need to tune every time before they practice. If you're always practicing out of tune, your ear will never hear the pitches correctly. As well as developing your ear, no one has a perfect sense of rhythm without lots of practice with a metronome.
Some more sophisticated metronomes have a feature where they can play any pitch you desire. I use this feature to check my intonation. Simply set the pitch to the key of the piece and start playing. This will quickly reveal pitches that you previously thought were in tune.
Metronomes and tuners will always be your best friends when it comes to practicing. String players especially need to tune every time before they practice. If you're always practicing out of tune, your ear will never hear the pitches correctly. As well as developing your ear, no one has a perfect sense of rhythm without lots of practice with a metronome.
Some more sophisticated metronomes have a feature where they can play any pitch you desire. I use this feature to check my intonation. Simply set the pitch to the key of the piece and start playing. This will quickly reveal pitches that you previously thought were in tune.
Should I Monitor My Child's Practicing?
Monitoring your child doesn't mean to direct their practice time. It only means to give occasional feedback and refocusing when they need it. This can be done from a nearby room, while reading, or working on the computer.
What are Your Tips for Practicing?
Let us know in the comments!
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