I have been playing musical instruments for over 28 years and I have learned alot in the process. I would like to take a little time and share something that I believe is very important to a musicians development. I think we have all experienced being in the practice room and not really knowing what to do in our practice time. You may find yourself just playing with an idea or just trying this or that. This approach to practicing does have it’s place because you can discover new things muscially that you can use in the future. Although this can be fun it’s not good to only practice this way.

It is best to have some sort of structure in your practice time if you truely want to improve. I have found it to be helpful to practice regularly rather than occasionally. You may be thinking well that’s common sense but most people don’t do it. You first have to practice regularly just to maintain your current level. You have to stay in shape to do what you do musically. Practicing is like exercise on your instrument. It helps to keep you in shape. You have muscles that have to be worked in order to stay on top of your game. If you don’t work these muscles regularly you will get rusty.

It helps to know how long you are going to practice and specify ahead of time what you are going to work on. For example if you are a horn player you may decide to practice for a hour and work on long tones for 20 minutes, sight reading 20 minutes, and improvising 20 minutes. You will accomplish more like this than just going in the practice room and playing around.

#1 identify what thing or things you need to improve on (your weakness)
#2 specifiy when and how long you will practice
#3 write out a practice schedule that states how long you will work on each individual thing
#4 follow your schedule
#5 if possible practice the same time everyday
#6 keep a log or journal of your progress
#7 adjust your practice shedule as you see progress
#8 Find a mentor whom you admire (someone who can give you tips or advice on what you do)
#9 Try to play with or hang out with people that are more advanced than you.
#10 Be patient because true growth is a process and not instant.