By Joanne Garcia

Practice, Practice, Practice

How much? How long?  What to practice?  Students need to learn how to practice as they work through their musical journey.  As a parent, you can assist your child even if you’re not a musician.  Adult students at all levels often struggle with having limited time to practice.  They can benefit by learning to use their practice time more efficiently. 

Effective practice centers on consistency, focused intention, and structure over time spent at the music stand. The required duration and session structure vary significantly by age and ability, but effective practice involves a logical progression from warm-ups to technical work and repertoire, emphasizing slow, mindful practice and using a metronome. 

You probably have watched a video of a very young child, beautiful bow arm, strong vibrato, shifting up into the stratosphere while belting out some virtuosic solo.  This child may be referred to as being ‘gifted’ and ‘having talent’ but more than likely there’s a good teacher, supportive parents, and a good practice plan in place.  Effi

Consistency

Consistency is key! To quote Suzuki, “Practice only on the days you eat.” Another quote, often attributed to Jascha Heifetz, "If I don't practice for one day, I know it. If I don't practice for two days, the critics know it. If I don't practice for three days, the audience knows it."  Practicing five or more hours a day was routine for Pablo Casals, who continued this regime into his 90s.  When asked why he still practiced so much, he replied, “Because I think I’m making progress.” 

“How long should my child practice?”  This is a frequently asked question posed by parents to their child’s teacher.  Every student is different but there are guidelines.  Young students, beginners under 8 years old, should practice 10-20 minutes a day.  A goal can be set, such as see if they can play their song three times in a row without making a mistake.  A reward system, such as stickers, charts with stars, or yarn tied to the pegs to mark milestones, makes it fun.  Adults and advanced students should aim to practice 20-40 minutes a day.  After about a year, practice sessions can increase to an hour.  Adult amateurs looking to step up their game and intermediate students can increase their time to 1-3 hours a day.  Real progress will be made with a consistent practice schedule.  Conservatory bound students need a minimum of three hours a day to cover all the material and to stay on top of their game.  These sessions can be broken up into two or three.  It is not recommended to practice any longer than five hours a day.  It’s tiring, the benefits of long as an excessive amount of time spent pushing a bow back and forth can lead to injuries, especially repetitive strain.  Conservatory bound students and conservatory students practice, play in school as well as outside, and take lessons and can easily suffer injuries.  It is important to break the time up, incorporate rest, and stretch.  Moreover, it’s tiring and difficult to stay focused.  Everyone should rest for at least 10 minutes after 45-50 minutes of practicing. 

Of course, life happens and there will be days when you’re not home until very late, you don’t feel well, or you’re travelling without your instrument.  Aim to practice daily and remember that ten minutes every day is better than sixty minutes on Saturday.  

Focused Intention

Each session should have a goal, and goals can be discussed and set with the teacher.  Maybe the goal is to improve vibrato, intonation, work on a new bow stroke.  Students usually work on scales, arpeggios, etudes, and then repertoire.  As more scales are learned, cycle through them, working on one or two a day.  When working on repertoire, it is important to identify and work on the difficult passages. Mark them in the music.  If you are a parent, communicate with the teacher.  Your child will progress much faster if you are involved.  Join our free Musician’s Advantage program to gain access to original content and tips for parents and students.  Get the most out of your lessons, adult students!  Jot down a few notes at the end of a lesson and set your goals.  Serious, advanced students should aim to proficiently practice and accomplish more in less time by having an intention, setting a goal, and learning to structure their time on instrument.

Structure

Warm up with stretching, scales, an etude, and then work on repertoire.  Take the time to play slowly and use a metronome.  Mark beats in your music for tricky rhythms.  This will add structure to your practice time.  Take notes, track progress, make a recording, see what works and what helps you the most. Set small goals, such as learning to play a difficult 8-10 measure section instead of learning to play the first movement of a concerto.

Avoid Practice Session Pitfalls

Ah, the pitfalls.  Don’t be a first page wonder and don’t play on auto pilot.  Don’t repeatedly play the section you already have up to snuff.  Remember: identify the difficult passages and work on them.  Take your time, work on listening, practice slowly.  If it can’t be played slowly, it can’t be played fast.  Use a metronome and make sure you understand the rhythm.  Listen to a recording for inspiration or ideas.  Don’t play too fast too soon or you will undo what you’ve learned.  It’s important to not skip your scales, they are the foundation of proficiency. 

Open the Toolbox

When you open the case, open the toolbox.  Aim to practice consistently, a few minutes here and there on a busy day is better than not practicing.  Focus Intention: Set your goals and stick to them.  Keep the sessions structured: Scales, arpeggios, etude, pieces.

Conclusion

Using these guidelines will enable a student to get more out of their lessons and improve their skills as a musician.  If you are the parent of a young musician, don’t send them off to another room to practice.  Keep it interesting, support them, challenge them.  Adult learners will improve by building more consistency and structure into their practice sessions.  Most importantly, enjoy your instrument, enjoy the music, and have fun learning.