Ten Tips
So now that we understand the value and importance of practicing, what now? The most important thing to remember is that a commitment to practice in middle school is often one that must be made by both student and parent. Here are ten tips to help you get started.
1) Supplies: The following items are crucial to effective practice sessions:
- A music stand facilitates proper viewing and encourages appropriate playing posture.
- A sturdy chair with a flat seat helps develop correct posture (the back of the chair is insignificant, as a student should not be resting their back on the chair while playing). Better yet, students should practice standing up!
- A pencil allows students to mark their music as necessary to help them correct mistakes.
- A metronome provides a steady beat for students to follow while practicing and is critical for appropriate development of pulse.
- A tuner is the only way that students may practice long tones and self-assess their intonation, or pitch accuracy.
- A CD player allows students to play along with the CD's included in their books. This is not only helpful in allowing them to hear an ideal sound for their instrument, but it also gives them the opportunity to play along with a steady accompaniment, making their practice environment more engaging.
- A practice record or some sort of dedicated notebook (even a planner) in which musicians write down goals helps track their progress and stay dedicated to both their practice schedule and goal-setting.
2) Goals: Practice is about setting goals to build good playing habits, tone, technical facility, and music reading,not about "racked up" time. Remember the old saying "quality over quantity" as far as practicing is concerned! Students should always practice with a goal in mind and work toward that goal. If your goal does not concern the beginning of a piece of music, then you don't need to play through the beginning of that piece. Go right to the part that you find difficult and start working from there ("Practice what you can't play"). Set up a practice log and keep track of your goals, what challenges still exist, and when you make progress!
3) Time: Set up a consistent practice schedule to be followed with dedication. Always start by playing long tones and scales correctly to warm up both your tone, your instrument, and your concentration. As students develop in proficiency, practice time should be increased from a minimum of 20 minutes toward a goal of 60 minutes (this is the average amount of time that it usually takes students to achieve a goal when practicing effectively. A couple shorter practice sessions throughout the day might be more effective for some students than one long one. Practice time may also be recorded in a student's practice log. Just remember: Consistency is key!
4) Place: There should be a dedicated location for a student to practice free of distractions (TV, computers, cell phones, gaming devices, etc.). Each time a student is distracted during a practice session is a moment that they lose some of the immediate progress that is made.
5) Chunking: Practice music in small parts. Break it down, isolate specific measures and rhythms and work on mastering just those few notes before going on. If you are having trouble with just two notes, then master those two notes. No goal, no matter how small, is insignificant! If something is still challenging, play the rhythm on just one note before trying to all all of the pitches. Add the notes back in once you are comfortable with the rhythm.
6) Slow Down: "What does typing on an iPhone and practicing music have in common? Learn accuracy first, then speed." Remember: It's not a race! We all learn at different speeds and paces. Here is where the metronome comes in handy. Slow the tempo on the metronome down much slower than you want to and play your goal passage following the tempo. Once you can do this six times in a row, increase the metronome's tempo by a few clicks. Do not go faster until you can play something at least three times in a row perfectly. After all, every time you play something incorrectly, you are actually practicing how to perform it wrong!
7) Celebrate Your Victories: Practice is only rewarding when we can recognize when we have done a good job. Reward yourself and recognize when you have improved! There is always progress to be made, but the small accomplishments are just as important as the large ones in the grand scheme of things. But then remember, figure out your next goal and keep going! As Steve Jobs once said: "If you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what's next."
8) Private Teachers: We always strongly recommend that a student take lessons from a private teacher for many reasons, all of which pay dividends down the road. Private teachers give music students an extra edge through one-to-one attention and individualized instruction that allow them to truly excel on the complex skill of playing a musical instrument. Additionally, they serve as an invaluable resource in accelerated student improvement, and keep them consistently accountable in their progress.
9) Teacher = Resource: Still having trouble or need an answer to a question? Use your music teachers as a resource. We don't expect you to be perfect. That is why you are a student, and we are here to help!
10) Mantras: Remember these top practice tips:
- "Excellence is not an act but a habit."
(Practicing correctly builds good habits. Practicing incorrectly builds bad ones!)
- "Practice what you can't play." - Larry Teal
- Don't waste your time just playing music. Practice it! ("Break it down, slow it down...")
- Be organized and use your time wisely. Watch the clock!
- "Repetition is the beast of excellence."
- It's not mastered until you can play it perfectly six times in a row.
Finally, we highly encourage investing in SmartMusic software, a fantastic music learning tool that is quickly gaining popularity for its immediate feedback and interactive and individualized learning opportunities for students. Our method books are one of many downloadable items that is included with a yearly subscription.
We hope that this information has proved helpful to making your practice sessions more effective, more focused, more meaningful, and more enjoyable. Be sure to check out the downloads above for more specific information. There are detailed handouts on practice techniques and marking music, a "Practice Poster" to put up near your practice area to remind you of appropriate practice habits, a fantastic article with more perspective on practicing, specific pointers for working on tuning, and a handout for parents to better support students in their journey toward musical improvement and excellence. All of these items and information are designed to work together to yield the most effective results possible.
Good luck!
So now that we understand the value and importance of practicing, what now? The most important thing to remember is that a commitment to practice in middle school is often one that must be made by both student and parent. Here are ten tips to help you get started.
1) Supplies: The following items are crucial to effective practice sessions:
- A music stand facilitates proper viewing and encourages appropriate playing posture.
- A sturdy chair with a flat seat helps develop correct posture (the back of the chair is insignificant, as a student should not be resting their back on the chair while playing). Better yet, students should practice standing up!
- A pencil allows students to mark their music as necessary to help them correct mistakes.
- A metronome provides a steady beat for students to follow while practicing and is critical for appropriate development of pulse.
- A tuner is the only way that students may practice long tones and self-assess their intonation, or pitch accuracy.
- A CD player allows students to play along with the CD's included in their books. This is not only helpful in allowing them to hear an ideal sound for their instrument, but it also gives them the opportunity to play along with a steady accompaniment, making their practice environment more engaging.
- A practice record or some sort of dedicated notebook (even a planner) in which musicians write down goals helps track their progress and stay dedicated to both their practice schedule and goal-setting.
2) Goals: Practice is about setting goals to build good playing habits, tone, technical facility, and music reading,not about "racked up" time. Remember the old saying "quality over quantity" as far as practicing is concerned! Students should always practice with a goal in mind and work toward that goal. If your goal does not concern the beginning of a piece of music, then you don't need to play through the beginning of that piece. Go right to the part that you find difficult and start working from there ("Practice what you can't play"). Set up a practice log and keep track of your goals, what challenges still exist, and when you make progress!
3) Time: Set up a consistent practice schedule to be followed with dedication. Always start by playing long tones and scales correctly to warm up both your tone, your instrument, and your concentration. As students develop in proficiency, practice time should be increased from a minimum of 20 minutes toward a goal of 60 minutes (this is the average amount of time that it usually takes students to achieve a goal when practicing effectively. A couple shorter practice sessions throughout the day might be more effective for some students than one long one. Practice time may also be recorded in a student's practice log. Just remember: Consistency is key!
4) Place: There should be a dedicated location for a student to practice free of distractions (TV, computers, cell phones, gaming devices, etc.). Each time a student is distracted during a practice session is a moment that they lose some of the immediate progress that is made.
5) Chunking: Practice music in small parts. Break it down, isolate specific measures and rhythms and work on mastering just those few notes before going on. If you are having trouble with just two notes, then master those two notes. No goal, no matter how small, is insignificant! If something is still challenging, play the rhythm on just one note before trying to all all of the pitches. Add the notes back in once you are comfortable with the rhythm.
6) Slow Down: "What does typing on an iPhone and practicing music have in common? Learn accuracy first, then speed." Remember: It's not a race! We all learn at different speeds and paces. Here is where the metronome comes in handy. Slow the tempo on the metronome down much slower than you want to and play your goal passage following the tempo. Once you can do this six times in a row, increase the metronome's tempo by a few clicks. Do not go faster until you can play something at least three times in a row perfectly. After all, every time you play something incorrectly, you are actually practicing how to perform it wrong!
7) Celebrate Your Victories: Practice is only rewarding when we can recognize when we have done a good job. Reward yourself and recognize when you have improved! There is always progress to be made, but the small accomplishments are just as important as the large ones in the grand scheme of things. But then remember, figure out your next goal and keep going! As Steve Jobs once said: "If you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what's next."
8) Private Teachers: We always strongly recommend that a student take lessons from a private teacher for many reasons, all of which pay dividends down the road. Private teachers give music students an extra edge through one-to-one attention and individualized instruction that allow them to truly excel on the complex skill of playing a musical instrument. Additionally, they serve as an invaluable resource in accelerated student improvement, and keep them consistently accountable in their progress.
9) Teacher = Resource: Still having trouble or need an answer to a question? Use your music teachers as a resource. We don't expect you to be perfect. That is why you are a student, and we are here to help!
10) Mantras: Remember these top practice tips:
- "Excellence is not an act but a habit."
(Practicing correctly builds good habits. Practicing incorrectly builds bad ones!)
- "Practice what you can't play." - Larry Teal
- Don't waste your time just playing music. Practice it! ("Break it down, slow it down...")
- Be organized and use your time wisely. Watch the clock!
- "Repetition is the beast of excellence."
- It's not mastered until you can play it perfectly six times in a row.
Finally, we highly encourage investing in SmartMusic software, a fantastic music learning tool that is quickly gaining popularity for its immediate feedback and interactive and individualized learning opportunities for students. Our method books are one of many downloadable items that is included with a yearly subscription.
We hope that this information has proved helpful to making your practice sessions more effective, more focused, more meaningful, and more enjoyable. Be sure to check out the downloads above for more specific information. There are detailed handouts on practice techniques and marking music, a "Practice Poster" to put up near your practice area to remind you of appropriate practice habits, a fantastic article with more perspective on practicing, specific pointers for working on tuning, and a handout for parents to better support students in their journey toward musical improvement and excellence. All of these items and information are designed to work together to yield the most effective results possible.
Good luck!