WHAT IS THE IMPORTANCE OF DAILY PRACTICE ON A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT?
Learning an instrument can be a challenging, yet rewarding experience. To get the most out of your music-learning journey, it is essential to develop good habits that will help you progress quickly and efficiently. Practicing a musical instrument daily is essential for learning and mastering it. Practice helps in developing skills, increasing confidence, and building a strong foundation for further growth. Daily practice also helps in improving technique, building procedural memory, and developing better sound quality.
For each student, at every skill level, it is important to have an effective practice routine that includes setting goals and tracking progress. In addition to developing and refining physical technique, regular practice gives you the opportunity to see how the patterns of music apply in novel ways, reinforcing the basics of applied music theory such as scales, chords, intervals, etc. Moreover, daily practice encourages consistency which is the only way to reliably improve over time.
With regular practice of a musical instrument comes an increased perspective and sense of accomplishment that not only boosts morale but also motivates the player to continue learning and improving their skills.
TIPS TO HELP YOU STAY MOTIVATED & CONSISTENT IN YOUR MUSIC PRACTICE SESSIONS
It is easy to get discouraged or overwhelmed when attempting to learn an instrument or hone your skills. Practicing music can be a challenging and sometimes daunting task, especially when you’re trying to stay consistent and motivated. Fortunately, there are several tips you can use to help you stay focused and make progress with your musical goals.
Schedule a consistent, daily practice time.
Have a dedicated practice space that is always set up to make daily practice easier to begin.
Have what you are going to practice clearly defined before you begin your daily practice session.
How long should you practice each day? Thirty minutes a day is the minimum amount of time required to perceive actual growth. If you want to grow faster, better, stronger, you repeat your half-an-hour as many times throughout the day as possible.
Choose 3 exercises, and no more than 3, to focus on during your half-hour practice. Why do you focus on only 3 things? If you try to concentrate on more, you fail to achieve depth in learning. If you do only 1 exercise, you will inevitably become burnt out and fail to practice - variety is vital in maintaining focus.
By following the above steps, you will make every minute of your practice time count!
CREATING A PLAN & SCHEDULE THAT WORKS FOR YOU AND HELPS ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS FASTER
Creating a plan and schedule that works for you is essential to help you achieve your goals. It allows you to stay focused on what matters most, prioritize tasks, and manage your time more efficiently. A good plan should include specific objectives, milestones, and deadlines that you can use to measure progress. A proficient instructor is invaluable in helping you determine your most effective approach. With a well-crafted plan in place, you can make sure that your efforts are directed towards achieving the desired outcome as quickly as possible.
HOW TO DETERMINE WHAT TO PRACTICE
Studying music is a vast, functionally-endless, and potentially overwhelming endeavor. To clearly define and refine what to practice requires determining your goals and assessing where you are, and systemizing the gap inbetween with discreet, stackable steps. As if that weren’t enough - we don’t know what we don’t know until we know it. Your best effort, without a qualified instructor, is a guess. Teachers help you stay accountable. They help you determine when it is time to move on from an exercise, or when it is necessary to repeat the same exercise further even if you cannot perceive any additional value in doing so. Instructors offer an important perspective in determining what to practice and realistically gauging your progress.
REMEMBER, GROWTH ISN’T LINEAR
You won’t feel growth during or after each practice session. It takes a great deal of repetition to establish the critical mass necessary for growth to occur.
The usual cycle is:
Nothing happens
Foreboding feeling of regression
Satisfied, sometimes exuberant, feeling of growth
Repeat
Fifty percent of the time you will feel nothing has changed, thirty percent of the time you feel as if you have regressed, and twenty percent of the time you will feel you have gotten better. If you abandon your practice when you feel you have not made any improvement, or things have gotten worse, you will not experience the inevitable growth. There are very few immediate rewards to practicing. But, for fulfilling, long-term improvement, it is important to remain diligent and show up and practice every day. So get to it!
