hello,
after reading a post in the violin forum, I thought I`d write a post for people to share their practice tips with eachother.
My tips;

1. Break up your practice time into segments. Instead of one big practice, try three or four different practice times.

2. Don`t practice if you really, really don`t feel like it. You`ll accomplish nothing, and it will on end up depressing you.

3. Warm up with scales. These help intonation a lot, and get the mind and fingers ( and I geuss mouth or lips if you`re a wind player ) ready for playing.

4. Start of with pieces you know well, and then gradually move to the newer and/or harder ones.

5. If one piece is driving you nuts, switch to another one. You can always go back to the hard one later.

Add your own advice too!

These are some I thought of:

>Really listen when you`re playing.

>Take good care of your body. Lol, I used to tell my little sister that musicians don`t eat sugar. Hahaha.

>An important part of the above is getting a good amount of sleep.
Sleep is an investment in yourself;
of course it`s never wise to invest more than you can afford. };->

>Resonance is your friend; but only when you can control it well.

>METRONOMES! (Nuff said.)


Ok, now here`s the fun guessing game:
Which of these am I a hypocrit on?
Lol... I`m not answering any questions on that subject.

Peace,
Jonny

2 more I`d like to add:

-Practise regurarly at the same time everyday, at the time you feel the best in (some people are useless in the morning, like me, but feel good late in the evening) in a place where you`ll be left in peace to do your work

-Stop practising when you feel tired of it or if something hurts (like the wrist if you`re a violinist or violist), or you`ll end up feeling frustrated and useless. And rest in-between too!!

Have fun

Here are some of my practice tips. Being a reed woodwind player, there are several "rituals" that I go through whenever I practice.


1. The reed is very important to your playing. Soak it for at least a minute in warm to hot water before use. After each playing session, wipe the excess moisture off the reed, and put it in a reedgard case. This ensures that the reed stays flat, and doesn`t warp.

2. Always start with long tones. They may be boring and time-consuming, but they are worth it. Play long tones on notes throughout your entire range, starting at pianissimo, crescendoing to fortissimo, and then back to pianissimo.

3. Depending on your level of playing, it is also good to work on vibrato early on in your practice session. You have better control of your airstream when you just start playing, since your chops are usually completely blown after an intense practice session.

4. Scales are ultimately important to all musicians. I usually alternate each practice session between major and minor scales. For winds, do all 12 of one set of scales, with varying articulations, and then do the same with all scales in thirds. If you choose, you can also play them in fourths, fifths, sixths, etc., depending on how much time you have.

5. If you are working on a piece, play through it once without stopping. Then, identify the parts which you are having difficulty on and focus on those. I find that, especially in fast pieces with lots of 16th notes, 32nd notes, etc., it is good to practice them in small pieces, and gradually put them together. If you start small and gradually expand to the entire piece, you will have better success at mastery.


I may have overlooked something in writing this, so if you are a woodwind player, and you want any more detailed practice tips, then email me (click on my name next to the subject line). I`ll be happy to address any problems you may have in your playing.

Thomas