Many people love to play music but they don’t necessarily like to practice it. Practice can be tedious, frustrating, and grueling. Much like athletes must work out, musicians must practice.
That’s not to say that practice can’t be fun. If you enjoy playing music, you should enjoying practicing and if you don’t, you’re probably doing it wrong.
Back in the dark ages of music, the way to practice was to go in to a room with a single light bulb hanging from the ceiling. The room had nothing in it other than a piano and a bench. (Maybe some water) You went in to this chamber and you emerged only after hours of hard work. Then, the next day, you did it all again. You repeat this process for a few years and suddenly, one day you emerges as an amazing pianist!
If that’syour idea of practice, no wonder you don’t like it. Very few people do that! Practice doesn’t have to be that way. Sure, you have to be focused, detail oriented, willing to face adversity, and yes, some days you won’t want to do it but there are numerous ways to practice to make it enjoyable.
First, how much? It goes without saying that the more you practice, the better you will be. If your goal is to be a professional pianist, let’s not lie, it’s going to take a lot of time. If your goal is to play in a more casual setting, then less time will be needed. If your son or daughter is in 5th grade and has an attention span of a 5th grader, even less time. Your teacher will be able to get you more exact amounts of time but try to get at least 30 minutes each day.
Adult pianostudents should break up their practice sessions into two or more segments, using the principle of spaced repetition. If you practice an hour a day, try breaking it up into 3 sessions of 20 minutes each. You will focus better without getting bored, and of course your rear end will appreciate the break.
Can you only practice at the piano? No. You could practice counting rhythms, using flashcards to learn your note names or musical terms. You could write in difficult fingerings. You could practice improvisation by tuning on your favorite song. There are many activities that make you a better musician that don’t require a plan.
Of course, most of your practice time will be in front of the piano but find other ways to break up your practice time if you find your mindwondering.
A basic practice routines may look like this:
Warmup-10 minutes (Scales, arpeggios, chords)
5 minutes-Sightreading-Find a piece of music you’ve never seen before and try to play it
Pieces-15 minutes-Practice pieces for an upcoming recital or any other study, exercise, or music that your teacher assigned to you.
Adjust these times based on the total practice time for the day.
Remember this: All of the great people in the world didn’t get there without hard work. Athletes with a lot of natural talent work hard. Inventors who process the ability to change the world often go through a series of failures, and musicians go through periods of frustration where things don’t seem to be improving. That’s a normal part of the process and the peoplewe see every day who are at the top of their field were the ones who endured the tough days. Practice won’t be fun everyday but in the end you’ll be happy that you pushed through rehearsing your piano lessons. Maybe you’re the next great pianist of the world!
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