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Self-taught piano player here, I've managed to practice every day for the past 2 and a half years. I'm not sure how I suddenly gained such motivation, I started learning German daily a year prior, and perhaps that taught me how to work on something daily. But I think in the end if you're truly passionate about something, it's not difficult to get yourself to practice, you just do it because you enjoy it.
Exactly. Enjoyment of “practice” is key. I think that’s the main reason most amateurs give up within a year or so, they just don’t enjoy practice enough and it becomes a chore instead of an enjoyable activity they look forward to.
Sometimes when you are not practicing your musical instrument for about a week and then you finally deacide to practice you may feel improvements, I really don't know how it works, but it works, so sometimes you need to have a rest so you could move further
This is so true, most plateaus I’ve broken through came off a break from the instrument. Once I get my strength back up I always surpass where I was stuck before
I had like 2 or 3 months of break, and after that I gained improvement. Not huge, but still, felt positive because my skills improved, which is amazing.
When I first started learning instruments (3 at once) I did 20 minutes each, 5 days a week. Once I found myself getting past absolute beginner level, I bumped it up to 30+ as I found myself needing to practice more individual things with overall technique (this is huge on guitar). Not surprisingly all of them improve at a very stead pace.
Exactly, i play 3 instruments (piano drum violin) i had to focus one at a time or i wudnt be able to progress as fast. Its rlly difficult to multitask all those instruments at once if u want it to be very effective
I did minimum 15 on both piano and guitar but very focused all the time and effiecient and always with set goals like getting this riff from 90 to 100 and improvements were very big. After those 15mins i often played around but that wasnt practice
Music teacher here... Thank you for breaking this down so well. I just sent this to a group of music students. I am seeing a clear difference between those who practise more times a week than those who practise once a week. When I was a young student I only made real progress once I realized that the mind and body needs consistent practise over the course of a week rather than a cram practise session of two hours before lesson day. These days I make a point of telling and showing my students HOW to practise because you have to have a plan🙏
Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this subject. I find that my challenge to improvement is staying focused. If I find myself getting bored or burned out with what's before me, I'll keep it moving. I set a timer for between 5 and 10 minutes that I practice a specific piece or exercise. When it's up, I move on to something else. The last thing that I want is for that hour of practice to drag by. My priority and my goal during any practice session is to enjoy what I'm doing. If that happens, then I've had a successful practice.
Throughout my life I've been discouraged in many of the things I've tried. But lately I've been better at pushing myself through and just trusting the process. While I agree that practicing efficiently is the platonic ideal, I believe that for some people as myself, chasing that ideal can get in the way of progress, at least when you're starting off. Basically over-thinking things and wasting time I worrying about if my practicing is good enough. In reality, I think that you need to reach a certain level of competence before you're able to then reflect and say 'OK. This is how I should spend my practice time'. Before that, it was more effective for me to just shut my brain off and follow a generic process. For context, the two skills I'm working on are playing the violin, and wakeskating. And I've finally made huge improvements to both over the last year by just doing it and not worrying about anything like long term goals or whatever. And now I am finally at the stage where I can properly plan and target key things in my practice Just my thoughts of course, everyone is different.
I tottaly get what youre saying, it has always been this way for me too, I start something, dont have the enough motivation to keep this level of practice or set goals, even do I love it, and then make myself feel bad for not being able to do it, along with my parents, and end up giving up entirely. But what you said about just following what you want and not worrying is what got me to stay strong on learning the piano, which im doing now, and I feel like its the most honest thing Ive tried learning in my life, its working for now
Guitar player here. I play everyday and I think it's important to have fun because if it's a chore you will never allow yourself to achieve the same level as success as someone who is passionate about the same hobby. My goal Is to be able to play anything I'm presented with, no matter how technical. Even if it takes me 50 years to get there!
I have a drum instruction book written in 1934 by Max Bacon, who was regarded as one of the World’s best drummers at the time (pre-dating the superstars, such as Gene Krupa and Buddy Rich). His practice routine advice was to practice every day, both morning and evening, but only for 15 minutes each session. He said, obviously, you could do 30 minutes or a hour if you have the time, but as a minimum, 15 minutes twice a day every day is far, far more useful than ‘3 hours at the weekend because it is raining’. He insists, though, that you MUST practice every day, twice, no compromise. Same times, every day, it must be a regular routine. Nothing must interrupt this practice. Don’t open the door to visitors, don’t let anything interrupt your routine, it is sacred. He also emphasises the importance of twice a day. He claimed things stick in your head much quicker if you attempt to learn something in intense concentration for 15 mins - then revisit it later in the day. I tried it for a while and he was definitely onto something, it was a very efficient way to learn and practice. I ultimately found it impossible to stick to it, though. Real life and other people have a habit of butting into the routine 😡
I feel like it also depends on your passion, your thrive for practice. I'm a self taught guitar player, and I know that if I start constantly playing guitar, then I'll more easily get tired and annoyed and lose my passion. You have to also be passionate and find what you are doing fun.
This is great - says it all. The truth can hurt, or at least irritate a bit. Fact is, when I was a young kid, there were so fewer distractions. My piano WAS my Gameboy, my Xbox, Facebook etc. I loved it so I wanted to practice, but because no one CALLED it practice, it didn’t ‘feel’ like …. Practice. I feel if we could just find another word to substitute for practice millions more students would do far better. I tell my students not to use the word ‘practice’ but “REHEARSAL” instead. I find that focuses the mind in the right direction, on performance rather than drudgery. It’s also installs a sense of urgency. Give it a try and let me know how you get on
Lots of great tips in this video. I would like to add that it is paramount that you don`t force speed on yourself in learning something new. Resist the temptation to play or do something too fast. You will inevitably be repeating and learning mistakes if you do this. If you are practicing music, use a metronome and keep dropping the tempo until you can play it well. Only then should you increase the tempo but start backing down the tempo when you make mistakes. This is a long process, so be patient. You aren`t going to become great or fast overnight. Chart your progress. Do at least a little bit everyday. Make yourself do at least 5 minutes a day, which sounds crazy but if you can get yourself to do that, the chance is high that you will take much more than 5 minutes once you get into it. You`ll likely at least end up doing a minimum of 15 minutes a day, which is nearly a total of 2 hours a week, spread out. Memory experts say that learning anything spread out over time is far more effective than cramming information in a single session. Food for thought.
@@cyrusthe0ther795 I follow those basic rules, but I don’t necessarily practice every day. Some days I get a lot of practice in and other days I’m just too exhausted. Consistency is key but not always entirely possible. I definitely practice with a metronome religiously.
You always need to practice, (I taught myself how to play the drums and then later taught my Dad as well.) You always need to practice or you will forget things or just let the muscles you use get weak. Also, you don't notice you are practicing if you are enjoying what you are doing.
8:55 That hit really hard and it was probably what i needed to hear. I really need to fix my bad habits and make a schedule for what I'm going to do. I'm glad i watched this video!!
I am a solo instrumental guitarist once I started reading music back in 1981 I will practice reading about four or five times a week at least but as I got better I got more interested in it and started putting more time into this day I practice every day and sometimes take a day or two off to let my mind rest but most times I practice guitar every day I have become a solo instrumental guitarist and been playing for about 46 years musics my life I love it thanks for the video I will save it have a great day👍🏼🎸🎼🎶👍🏼😀💖
I love this (and all your videos)! I think the part about scheduling practice is particularly important! The one thing I would add/say to anybody reading this is don't undersell the value of warm-ups! It isn't just something you get through at the beginning of practice so you don't pull a muscle before you get to the productive stuff. Warm-ups, especially things like long tones for musicians, can be the most productive time of finding the fundamentals on your instrument. I prefer to think of warm-ups as fundamentals instead because they are the fundamental foundation to all the skills you are hoping to develop!
Totally agree! I think part of the problem is that new musicians don’t know what “warm” feels like. They do know what it feels like when they struggle to play and don’t sound good though! (It’s of particular importance for brass/wind players, I find).
I drilled technique from my 15- to my 17- like mad, talking about guitar, just mindless hours of practice and that's it, now im 40 and still enjoying benefits of that drills in younger days and string skipping, alternate picking and sweeping is easy now for me and I can enjoy playing guitar. I had 5 years break from guitar but first day after a break I was capable to play very well, all muscle memory was there.Thinking about taping technique now but I am to lazy to start and practice it.But in younger days I practice 5 days on week, 6 to 8 hours.
I juggle several musical interests and average each one about twice a week for an hour per day and I’m able to make fairly satisfactory progress. Not virtuoso level but, with time, decent skill. That’s with roughly 2.5h days, 5-6 days/week or about 13h/week.
This was so well expressed and explained! Ty for taking the time to do this! I played the violin for 7 yrs in school, and i have recently picked it up again after 15/20years… I’m quite nervous and don’t know where to begin….! So far, I need much practice…yes indeed..! I’m just grateful and happy to re-visit my fave instrument again… discipline is needed…! So help me God😛
I practice 3 x 1 hours practice sessions. 1) Morning. 2) Afternoon 3) Evening or 2) After lunch 3) before dinner. I also study for 1 hour / day theory. I will stop that after I passes the theory exam.
I've learned Mandarin 1-2 hours daily the past 4 years. (I also live in China so that helps) I've also been practicing Violin 1-2hrs a day almost daily the past year
@@Mrphilharmonic Yes fair enough, that’s good - but ‘Practice doesn’t make perfect, only PERFECT practice makes perfect.’ is a useful and pleasing corrective nudge (when quoted in full ,as here, by Whynot690) and is more memorable and effective, I suggest.
Great video and the advice within isnt just applicable to music! I take all these things into consideration when I want to get better at the games im playing and when I want to improve my strength in the gym.
Have a log book. At each practice session write down what you will do. At the end of the session write down what you actually did. Make a not about anything you need to do during you next practice session.
I only recently found your channel and as an aspiring pianist I thoroughly enjoy your videos. I am currently learning a piece called Nuvole Bianche, your tips will come in handy as I'm easily distracted. Keep up the great videos!
Me "oh I never did any drugs!" Also me everyday "Je voudrais une tasse de drogues socialement acceptables" (I speak french as a first anguage and I like your funny french bits in your videos, these are hilarious!"
A long time ago a wise man said to me practice practice until you are sick of even looking at your guitar, then pick up your guitar and practice some more.
Apply going beyond being bored with it is deeply Ingrain ingthe study piece being able to monitor your progress bit by bit.. I choose a segment and repeat every morning for a week. Dont make practice a chore. The musician you enjoy in concert has repeated his music nightly on stage for months on tour. Find any excuse to perform to an audience
Personally, I play three instruments: the piano, guitar, and trombone. I practice piano around 30 min. a day and trombone about 1 hour and 30 min. a day. As for guitar, I practice that around every other day. So far, this routine has worked pretty well. I practice trombone more because my goal this year is to get into my district's band. I am in the seventh grade, and I also play one of the most unpopular instruments, so I decided that it was quite a reasonable goal. Even if I played one of the more popular instruments (trumpet, flute), though, I think that I would still aim so high because the pursuit of something in itself, even if the thing or things that are being pursued are not reached, is quite valuable. For example, think of a pharmacist; their goal is, basically, to create a cure-all. They will, of course, never meet this goal; however, it is still quite valid because the pursuit of a sort of panacea (or anything that can lead to other sorts of fulfillment other than the completion of your goal) will always have value within itself. I take private piano lessons (which I got after I taught myself how to do the most basic things with some of my brother's old piano books) and I teach myself guitar. My end goal with piano is to be able to play Pachelbel's canon; for guitar, though, I really just want to memorise the different sevenths chord shapes and minor chords (as well as the triads of course). So far, I am about halfway to my guitar goal and, per my self-assessment, I am about 2 thirds on my way to my piano goal. Great video as always! I will try to make myself more amenable to your suggestions about practice.
I’m currently in the 7th grade as well, I play 3 instruments. The flute, piano, and saxophone. This comment motivated me to start practicing a bit more, thanks!
@@hexshott Cool! I'm hoping to learn either the clarinet or baritone sax once I get into high school so that I can march; you can't march with a trombone. A lot of my friends play the flute, though, so I might play choose to learn that instrument. There's a lot of options out there.
mate the translations are nuts: "Je voudrais une tasse de drogues socialement acceptables." translates to "I would like a cup of socially acceptable drugs.", "J'ai une urgence dans mes culottes." translates to "I have an emergency in my pants.", "Je préfère ma nourriture avec du goût." translates to "I prefer my food with taste.", "Le vin français est surestimé." translates to "French wine is overrated".
I may crazy, but I set out to practice 1 hour a day every day for 2000 days to see if you can really achieve a professional (or near professional) level of competence in 2000 hours. According to your video, it sounds like I just might be able to do it.
I play and learn it with an online video course...I just do lesson after lesson everyday another one and sometimes I learn some songs that are actually way too hard But I never really practice I guess
It’s good to play consistently but the idea of having a fixed schedule makes it seem more like a chore. It should be a pleasure and something you enjoy doing - it’s also fine to have a break if you feel like it. Sometimes, you can come back refreshed and playing better than before.
It depends what your goals are. When I was getting ready for and working my way through university, I was practicing many hours with great diligence every chance I got. It was many hours per week. I wanted to be excellent and it took a lot of work. That doesn’t mean I didn’t love it, but it was hard work and lots of it. Even now as a professional, I have routines and goals and have to work on areas of weakness so I can be the best performer possible. If you want to be great, it’s a lot of time and a lot of work.
@@BradHarrison I’m always looking to get better and perform to a pretty high level. I also practice consistently, but the idea of a rigid routine every day would take it into the ‘chore’ category for me. I guess each person should choose a routine that works for them! I do agree that it’s good to always seek improvement so as not to get stuck in a rut.
I guess it’s just a matter of perspective. Is practicing every day on your lunch, or first thing in the morning, or after school/work a rigid routine? Or just part of your day? Some people have variable schedules and others are more regular. And if you take a day off, that’s your choice. It really depends on your goals and how competitive the space you occupy is. There’s a big difference between jamming with friends for fun and following a career path. When I was cutting my teeth, I had to find time whenever possible, and my peers were all similar.
Not trying to make assumptions! I’m just speaking from my own experience and all the musicians I’ve worked with including beginner, amateur, advanced, and professionals. Some had a more rigid routine, others were more free form in their habits, but the best ones had all racked up serious practice time one way or another.
I practiced 6 hours a day (the recommended amount advocated by virtuoso players) and my speed and accuracy improved immensely. To make this feasible I had to get up early and practice for 3 hours early in the morning then 3 hours after work. Then one day I got carried away and did 10 hours. I ended up with a sprained wrist. Consequently I think 6 hours should be the maximum.
Don’t call it practice. Call it playing. Practice is dedicated, repeated sections to fix or learn a part. Play as much as possible. Play everyday, for short periods. I saw an interview of a kid who was very good. The interviewer asked how much did he practice, he said he hardly ever practices but he plays every day.
Sure! Just racking up hours has it’s value as far and strength, muscle memory and familiarity. But if you want to move forward, practice is key. Based on your comment, I think you might enjoy this one if you have seen it yet… Get better at music by practicing less ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-bsd1b4iF5S8.html
My mind, while watching this video, was stuck in pool (billiards). I can't say that I agree with your statement. In pool, you need to be proficient in a lot of situations. If I just rack & break and start playing, the situation(s) I need practice in may come up only once, if at all. I need to practice for various situations, playing the same (or similar) shot over and over. As far as that self-trickery ("Call it this instead of that"), I say call it "pool solitaire" instead of "drills." In fact, put a point system on it and actually make those drills into solitaire! That makes the drills fun, instead of boring. There are many skills involved in each of the things we do in our endeavors. (Think of all the skills needed in football.) Each of those skills need to be honed.
Yeah, that’s the difference between just playing and learning/practice. One is casual and the other is more structured. For a beginner, I’d say there’s a lot of value to just playing and building strength and familiarity in a very general and low level way. But soon, if you want to improve, you’ve got to be a bit more structured, focus on technique and specific situations, as you said.
@@BradHarrison I'm sure what we're talking about varies from one field to another. It is important to just play so that you actually enjoy it, but if you play too much as a beginner, you may be developing habits of poor technique. Bad habits that come easily can be hard to unlearn.
It’s true. You want to avoid bad habits but sometimes they’re inevitable. and if you care, you’ll get over them eventually. I remember bad habits from my first few months of playing, and my first few years. But I eventually worked things out. It’s a balance between fun, hard work, and self reflection/awareness. I’ve spent a lot of time working with beginners for many years and the vast majority of benefit in the beginning just comes from getting the instrument out of the case and caring what you sound like. I try to instill as many good habits and routines as possible but kids are gonna do what they’re gonna do. And hopefully they start digging into the details after a while.
If only, but sometimes videos or clinics really inspire me to reevaluate my practice. Like, does new gear make you better? Maybe. But if it inspires you to practice more, absolutely!
Hey there, thank you so much for these videos.. Little jokes and puns make the valuable content even more fun to follow!! :)) Do you think studying music theory should always go hand in hand with physically practicing the instrument?
Thanks for the support! I do think theory is really helpful. It’s just a part of communication and can be really powerful in “chunking” information together and can really unlock a lot of understanding and connections.
Two days a week, right? Hopefully not two days after every session! I know a lot of brass players also like to take at least one day off a week to rest and recover. Some instruments really take a lot out of you!
So let me get this straight….if I practice more and do it properly, then I should improve faster? This is revolutionary stuff here. Who would have ever thought that?
Shocking, isn’t it? Yet so many of my students don’t just take my word for it. So I did a 10 minute deep dive to hopefully convince a few more of them of how to best spend their time.
More days is probably more important than more hours. But balance is important. And breaks in general. Don't want to burn out, but you've definitely got to make peace with the grind if you want to be good.
If you're really seriously trying to become a musician, you're probably practicing multiple hours a day, nearly every single day. There will be challenges and frustrations. Things don't always come easy as they do in that middle/intermediate/"I love everything about this" stage. It doesn't mean you don't love it just because it's sometimes frustrating and you need a break or a reset. Your relationship with your art may not be that different from a personal relationship in that way. Hope that helps! @@ibrahimismail5625
Je suis Canadien. Je parle francais tres mal! I had assistance avec le translations. Mais, j’adore Easter oeuf dans la background of the video. Merci pour watching!
