Help me find time to practice!!

[sary2106]

Hi! I am having difficulty finding time to practice. I was hoping some of you would have some tips...

Here's a little about my schedule, just so you can have an idea what I'm looking at: I have about 5 hours of school each day (I'm a homeschooled high school senior). This year I'll be working about 11 hours per week, some on the weekends. I'm part of a pretty normal family   so I have a few chores! And I'm applying to colleges and scholarships etc so that takes a little time.

I just need to get some practice in - preferably something around 4 hours or more because I plan to be a piano performance major next fall at a liberal arts college. I'm working on my audition stuff, plus some competition pieces.

Any advice would be very very very much appreciated!!

Sarah

[RhiAnne]

Sarah,

 I can sympathize you having a problem finding time to practice.

 Here is a suggestion, for a week keep a time log of what you do and how long it takes to do something.  I am sure you will find much free time or other time that could be spent practicing.

 With me, I dropped 11 hours worth of A's up here at TTU so I would have enough time to practice my audition pieces.  Yeah, sometimes you are going to have to let go of things that you wish not to let go of.  Majoring in music required that discipline and sacrifice.  It is a bitter yet sweet pill to swallow down.  I do not regret in giving up the classes, what hurts me most is the lack of social time, due to many hours of practice a day.

 I would make a goal to practice four hours a day, and say at x time I am going to practice, and do it.  It looks hard at first, but you will get the hang of it later on.

 What are your audition pieces?  Best of luck to you.

 Have a nice day and see you later.

[sary2106]

Hey! Thanks so much for the advice..... I think I will definitely try the time log thing. (I've already tried writing out a complex, detailed schedule for every day. That doesn't work too well at the moment. Maybe once I figure out how long it takes me to do stuff!)

My audition pieces are:

Bach: Prelude and Fugue 6, Book 1

Mozart: Sonata in A minor, K. 310
or
Beethoven: Sonata "pathetique" (Op. 13, I think)

Rachmaninoff: Elegie, Op. 3, No. 1
Liebermann: 3 Impromptus

I may do a Chopin etude if I get the time... =)

What is TTU? What pieces are you working on these days? And how much do you practice?

Thanks again! Talk to ya later!

[RhiAnne]

Sary2106,

 Hi, goodmorning.   Yes the time log will be a great way to gage how long activities are and where that time goes.  Sometimes I wish there were more than 24 hours in a day. I think 48 or 72 is a round number.  But, I believe if there were more hours, I would not get things done any better.  

 After you get your schedule or time log, I would be really glad to help you look at it, and try to figure out with your input, when are good times to practice.

 TTU is the abbrievation for Texas Tech University[sorry, I got lazy, I figured I had done enough of piano practice, I could get lazy.  ]

 The pieces that I am working on are the following:

 Haydn Sonata in D-major, number 37? - fall jury
 Bach Prelue and Fugue in c-minor - fall, auditions
 Beethoven Sonata opus 57, Appasionata
 Liszt - Hungarian Rhapsody No. 6
 Chopin Etude - "butterfly etude" - in f-minor
 Either the Barber Excursions or the
 Copeland - Four Blues for the piano

 The other pieces are for auditions

 Then on the side, I have Christams music to work on for accompayning, other assignemts for accompantning.

 For praivate study, there are always the Beethoeven 32 variations in c-minor and for concert next spring, the Tchaikowsky Seasons.

 And for excercised the painful Dohanyni excercies.  Those are cool.  

 AS for practice, somehwere on the order of 8-10 hours of practice a day.  They are not one hour after another hour, yet a frequented by breaks and things like that.  These hours are focused hours, for I quit and take a break when I get tired and begin to lose focus.  Of lately, I can make about 1 hour and half without needing to take a break.  That is also an important aspect.  I thought, that I would have to practice 10 hours in a row, my mistake, I did not schedule breaks.  And the breaks are about 10-15 minutes.  15 minutes for anything an hour or above, 10 minutes for less.  I try not to leave the practice room and stay focused for less than 40 minutes, but it gets hard as you get into the hours of say 8-10 hours.

 It really depends on the level of music how long you should practice.  I am auditioning for conservatories and music schools this next spring, so it behooves me to practice everyday.  My professor is great.

 My e-mail address that I respond from is either acmhttu01_2006@yahoo.com or Anne@pianomail.net
Go ahead and use the last one, since that e-mail will not be changing.  The acmhttu01_2006 will change soon.

 Anyways, have a great day and see you later.

 Good choice of rep, let me know which sonata you choose.

[frederic]

which is more important? school or piano?  

[tosca1]

They are both equally important and they are both essentially mind developing experiences. Do well at school and that will have a very positive spin-off for the piano. Sharper thinking skills and widened intellectual horizons can only help your piano playing. Reading musical scores and processing that input into music at the piano is highly demanding intellectually and will enhance our mental functions. The difference is that school is compulsory till 16 but piano practice isn't.  
Robert.

[BoliverAllmon]

I do not know how someone could find the time to practice 10 hrs. a day. I  can barely find time for 1 hour. My teacher says that I am very talented though (playing 6 months and can play Turkish March) I think that it is because of all the music that I methodically think out in my head. If you are short on time, I recommend doing the same. Think about the piece that you are practicing in your head over and over.

Boliver Allmon III

[amee]

About that school/piano importance thing, I guess it also depends on which one you enjoy more and what you want to do later in life, career-wise.

[sary2106]

Hi..... I just noticed that you pulled up my topic from a LONG time ago.... =) I feel special!!!!

School and practice are still craziness in my life right now. I no longer am even trying to cram 4 hours of practice into a day very much. Might I suggest that high schoolers do well to stick with 1 to 2 hours per day? I think that on a regular basis, that will accomplish a lot.

I survived my audition experience in February, and came out with a top scholarship, also just won 2nd place at a local piano competition. I regret not spending more time practicing over the last few months but I feel like I have greatly improved over the year.... so anyway.... =)

Cheers for every high schooler in the world that manages to practice more than me! =) [sigh.... oh well]

Sarah

[JPlush76]

hey Sarah,
what I did was buy a cheap yamaha keyboard to take to work and I play during my lunch break and whenever I can spare time at work. You could also use it anywhere since its battery powered.  Then I use my good piano to practice when I get home.

[BoliverAllmon]

this is good advice. I always try to find extra time to play. even if it is only a 10 minutes or so. For example, I get to church early to practice, or try to spend as much time in the music wing at school and play on the 9 ft. grand's (whoohoo). Just learn to be creative.

Boliver Allmon

[amee]

I'd just like to say congrats, Sarah, on getting the top scholarship!  You must be very happy!

[natasha]

about school/piano i reckon that if u want ur career in later life 2 b the piano, then u wud pick piano. but if u want 2 do say, medcine 4 example and still keep piano as a hobby then it wud b skool. i reckon it depends ur situation.
natasha