“Use a Metronome”

If you’re wondering what a metronome is, check out the tuners and metronomes page for more information. Basically, it’s a device that keeps a steady beat for you. They can be found at music stores, in your phone’s app store and online. Using this device in your practice is the mother of all practice tips. Why? Because rhythm accuracy is the #1 problem in learning musicians, and it is also one of the most important skills a musician should have. The more you use a metronome and stop relying on your foot for timing, the more settled your inner rhythm will become. You will begin to establish a sense of timing that comes from the consistent use of a metronome, which is always right. Use it in your warmup, routine, scale work, solo and band music, and you will see yourself become more and more confident in your rhythmic skills.[/iconbox]

Micro Chaining Slowly or at Full Tempo

Have you ever played a piece of music that has this one part with bunch of notes going really fast and you just can’t get it right? Yea me too, and I’m going to tell you how I fixed it. Chaining comes from the idea of an actual metal chain, which is made of single links put together. Once the links are welded in place it is impossible to pull the chain apart. In practice, we can do the same thing. Take the measure that is causing you trouble, turn on your metronome to something slow like 60, and play the first two notes. Play those two notes three times. If, and only if, you got it right all three times, add another note. See how it works? Once you complete the measure or section you can speed it up slowly. Another way to chain is to do the same thing but with the metronome at full tempo, an approach I recommend for intermediate and advanced players.[/iconbox]

Don’t Start at the Beginning

The best way for me to show you how silly it is to always start at the beginning of your solo is this; when you read a book, do you restart it every time you pick it up? No! That sounds crazy, right? It makes no sense. Why start at the beginning of your solo, at the part you already know, if what you need to work on is actually half way through the page? Avoid wasting time and start where you need the most work. My students say it’s just easier to start at the beginning because you can “get into it” better. My response is always the same; you must be able to start anywhere. Imagine a dancer rehearsing for a ballet solo. Do you think she dances the piece from the beginning every time she needs to work on measure 32? Of course not! If she did, she would end up exhausted by the time she arrives where she needs the most work. This is often what happens to musicians too. Practice smart and see the progress that is possible.[/iconbox]

Record Yourself

Recording yourself playing is an incredibly effective practice technique that many professional musicians around the world use. You see, what we hear when we play is not always what is actually coming out of the bell. It’s not until you listen back to yourself that your realize the problems that need fixing. Sometimes hearing yourself can be a little down-putting as it is never easy to accept that we need more work, but accepting our flaws is the first step towards fixing them. You can use your phone, a computer or an actual microphone to record yourself. I highly recommend this![/iconbox]

Visualize Your Success

This is a great practice technique for solo and recital preparation. Visualization is closing your eyes and imagining yourself not just playing the piece beautifully, but imagining everything around you as well. The audience, the room, what you’re wearing, how you walk onto the stage, the stand and sheet music, the entire performance in detail and the applause afterward. Imagining the entire situation can be very helpful to battle nerves and to prepare you to face the performance as if you’d already done it before. Your mind’s power can be used to imagine perfect performances, so that when you actually play you will feel as though you’ve played it perfectly already.[/iconbox]