discipline – Laurie Beth Frick

HOW MUCH PRACTICE TIME?

HOW MUCH SHOULD I/THEY PRACTICE?

I am often asked this question by parents or students. Practice amount is different for each student. When a parent of a beginning six-year-old piano student asks, I suggest that 10-12 minutes per day is reasonable. They should not practice alone but rather with a parent to help guide them. With most of my six-year-old students, I have a parent attend each lesson and work “along-side” them. In this way, they get to share the experience while their child is growing musically. The children gain reading and playing skills much more quickly and really enjoy the process. The parent also learns to play a little and so it is a win-win. Since the amount of music given is very compact and does not need intensive practice, the amount of practice time is quite short.

When a student is at about the 6th month mark and is 7-10 years old, increasing the time to 20 minutes is appropriate. Each student is different. Some can thoroughly learn the material in less time and others need more. I love when students break up these sessions into two practices as they retain more and learn faster. See my blog “Practice by Taking a Break.”

For pre-teens through adults, I recommend 30-60 minutes. Attention spans are longer and great work can be accomplished if practicing appropriately. Use your time well.

Really think about the music and work in small chunks or phrases. Adding vocal warmups, scales and/or finger exercises should start your practice session. This will add some time but will be extremely beneficial in the long run. Unless you are striving to be a concert pianist or professional singer there is no need to go beyond this. Some very talented students will want to spend a couple of hours per day if time permits. I practiced two-three hours in high school quite often. Sessions were longer in college.

Note: If you are a beginner adult, you should not be at the piano longer than 15 minutes at a time. Your hands need to build strength. If you over practice, your hands might ache. To avoid this, practice in small sessions until the little muscles in your hands get stronger.

Practicing should be enjoyable. If you are frustrated by a section, step back and study it. What is the key? How many beats per measure? Can you count the rhythm? Can you play separate hands or sing it a cappella? Do you have a command of all notes, dynamics, articulations, phrasing and fingering? In piano, it is more often than not, a fingering issue that causes the break down in the rhythm. Do not just try to sing or play through with mistakes. Your brain will remember the errors and those are difficult to break. Do not hold your breath.

Stand and take a break. Each time you come back to the passage it will be easier. Respect the process and you will become a wonderful musician.

Laurie Beth Frick

Music Practice & Discipline

When I think about discipline, I suppose what comes to mind is a routine that balances home life, family, job or school. In order to keep everything running smoothly, order is in place rather than chaos. Discipline is: following through with commitments; always be trustworthy; finding time to meet everyone’s needs; turning in homework or reports on time; not being lazy; establishing a time (routine) for everything important. I could go on and on. Most people struggle with this balance. However, study after study has shown that MPBD “music practice builds discipline.”

From my perspective, discipline for me happened organically. Day after day, year after year, I would practice and then start my homework. This became my routine. It became part of me. After I left for college at age 17, I had morphed into a disciplined person. I thank my mom for encouraging and supporting me. Without her gentle reminder to “go practice” and her always telling me how much she loved to hear me play or sing, I am not certain that I would have accomplished as much as I did. As a kid you are pulled in so many directions. I am glad that I was pulled toward the right one.

Practicing takes concentration and mental discipline. It is hard work that takes many, many hours of concerted effort. Learning to play or sing at a high level is a slow process. However, it gets easier and easier and more and more fun. You find that you can get your hands working together. You can figure out the rhythms. You can play or sing those triplets evenly. You can play those chordal patterns or sing those large jumps. Over and over, you chunk those musical sections. Over and over, you finger those passages hands alone, then together. Over and over, you practice your technique. They say it takes 2000 hours of practice to become an expert in a subject. Those 2000 hours of music practice also develops discipline. Every hour counts.

Discipline is built one day at a time, one song at a time. “MPBD”

To all parents of budding musicians, remember the best thing you can do is support and encourage your child. Music has so many positive effects on all of us. (Building self-esteem, increased mental acuity, math and reading skills, and of course, it builds discipline.) You can help magnify those effects by being involved. Listen, help and support your child’s music study. They need your encouragement!

To any adult reading this, continue to practice your craft. and/or start to grow as a musician. Dig that clarinet or trumpet out of the closet. Dust off your piano. Practice vocal warm ups and sing those songs that you love. Take lessons! It will help you de-stress and recharge. Not to mention that reading music keeps your brain healthy and active. My next T-shirt is going to read:

“Music Study is a Natural Alzheimer’s Deterrent”

Laurie Beth Frick