“Create meaning in everything that you practice.”
–The Musician’s Way, p. 312
Have you ever started a music practice session and felt that your abilities were out of alignment?
Maybe your mind was restless, your control tenuous, or your tone iffy.
It’s easy for us to get misaligned, but the following techniques help us be ready to practice effectively anytime.
7 Ways to Be Prepared for Music Practice
1. Document Goals
Writing down goals, marking scores, and otherwise pinpointing objectives primes our minds to focus. The free downloads on this site make it easy to organize our practice aims.
2. Practice Early
When we tackle creative tasks as soon as we rise, even if only for a few minutes, we orient ourselves to practice, which helps us stay in touch with our musical selves all day long. And we don’t need to actually play or sing – mental practice and score study can be comparably effective.
3. Have Scores & Practice Notes Handy
Throughout the day, when time allows, a few minutes of score study or a concise review of practice notes mobilizes our mental faculties so that, when our practice time arrives, we’re brimming with ideas and motivation.
4. Mentally Image
The processes involved in precise mental imaging activate our brains in ways so similar to actual practice that we can use imaging anytime to accomplish small practice goals.
5. Microcreate
One of the benefits of mental imaging is that at times such as when we’re riding public transport, we can mentally image playing a passage or two and, in the process, memorize, go over technical details, or try out interpretive ideas. Such microcreating keeps our artistic energies flowing and our intentions directed toward music making.
6. Conclude Practice with Precise Objectives
We should consistently wrap up practice sessions with clear aims for our next ones. Whether we’re practicing alone or in groups, articulating practice plans focuses our objectives and puts us and any group members on the same tracks.
7. Affirm Your Creative Commitment
Creative work challenges us in countless ways, and we need to be ready for difficulties so that they don’t sap our energies. When creative problems or turbulent life circumstances arise, habits of positivity fuel our creative spirits. One of the most potent habits is to employ affirmations, such as, “I’m grateful to be able to make music.”
The Musician’s Way presents comprehensive practice and performance guidelines that musicians worldwide have embraced. Read reviews.
Related posts
10 Affirmations that Energize Music Practice
Starting Practice with Intention
The Twin Aims of Deliberate Practice
Upgrading Your Practice Habits
© 2014 Gerald Klickstein
Photo © T. Pinter, licensed from Shutterstock.com