Anyone else studying other music stuff besides piano? Help!

[db05]

I'm taking a music course, and I'm trying to work out a good schedule. I have to study piano as major instrument, guitar as minor. Then solfeggio, ear training, theories, forms and analysis and music history.

Is there anyone here studying like this? How do you plan your work? Usually I tend to do more of one thing, and have not energy for the rest. That happens when I study an instrument, solfeggio or ear training, sometimes I go for an hour, and then my brain just shuts down. Sometimes I feel too tired physically (not hurting the hands, just overall tired), I go to sleep.

I've been making logs several months now, and changed schedule and format many times. It helps my study, but I still haven't made something that's really doable, i.e. that I followed my plan for a week straight. My mood and energy levels are unpredictable. Sometimes, I'm totally in the mood, but it's 3 am and there's class tomorrow morning and I can't get to the piano. Things like that. I find I'm more active in the evening, but I can't play or sing anything loud at that time.

[concerto_love]

my schdule, learn piano two hours and two hours again for the other one

[db05]

my schdule, learn piano two hours and two hours again for the other one

What other? Other instrument, or all the other stuff? Do you actually do 4 hours a day, everyday?

[danny elfboy]

Then solfeggio, ear training, theories, forms and analysis and music history.

Do a little of everything everyday.
When you're tired or feel that sensation of reading but not memorizing or understanding just stops. Some day you will tolerate 10 pages of theory while other day you'll tolerate just 1. The secret is never to exceed the threshold of fatigue and distraction, because once you're there it's very hard to recover.

[db05]

Do a little of everything everyday.
When you're tired or feel that sensation of reading but not memorizing or understanding just stops. Some day you will tolerate 10 pages of theory while other day you'll tolerate just 1. The secret is never to exceed the threshold of fatigue and distraction, because once you're there it's very hard to recover.

What do you suggest I do when I'm tired?

I felt really good today and practiced piano for an hour and a half. I was happy, am starting to make progress, but BAM! There it goes again. The notes make me dizzy now, and my brain is fried. So here I am on the computer again.

On second thought, maybe it's better if I just played finished pieces or Hanon exercises. But it's time for dinner.

No, wait, that might not be good since my brain is off...?

[danny elfboy]

What do you suggest I do when I'm tired?

Rest, unplug your mind and get distracted with something.
Have a walk, spend time with a friend or just relax.
When you feel recharged you can start again.
If you remain tired then your practice is over for that day.
What if you practice only lasted 5 minutes?
No problem. You'll then have enough energy for a very long practice the next time.
The body always balance itself out at the end, except when you push so hard that you create a stronger stress which requires a very long recovery.

Going to the computer is the worse solution though.
Have much time you spend on internet daily?

No, wait, that might not be good since my brain is off...?

Why not. Eat slowly, savour the food, try to relate with your sense of hunger and don't stuff yourself. Sometimes getting brain foggy is also a need for food.

[pianomom697]

I honestly know just what you're talking about. I find it frustrating in school that the requirements are so broad~ each one of the things that you mentioned requires a lot of focus and concentration in and of itself, and having to focus on all of them at once is REALLY overwhelming.

Is there a light at the end of the tunnel? How long is this intensive program going to be for you? Sometimes it helps to focus on the fact that the time WILL pass, and that you WILL get it done. Danny elfboy has some really great advice that would keep you sane. Personally, though, I have to just accept that fact that for the next three months (or however long it'll be), I'll be getting very little sleep and very few breaks. And I just push through. Once in a while I jog on a trampoline and pretend to box (I like to take jabs at certain professors), just to get some energy back. I know a lot of fellow students who sit in the lounge complaining about their work for hours, without getting any of it done. Just push through it.

This may sound obvious, but keep listening to the music you love! It's so easy to end up hating music when you're in school... try not to forget why you're there. I found that Forms and Analysis sucked all of the life out of music for me... I had to listen to NON-"Art Music" while doing the homework to get through it.

Just hang in there. So many of us are going through it right now... I JUST finished my last Forms class (20th century... eek...), and I thought several times that I'd never survive it. But those classes seem to be necessary evils in the academic world. Hang in there, db05!!!

~Gab

[concerto_love]

I play descant recorder, electone, and vocal study... Need a lot of time...

[db05]

Going to the computer is the worse solution though.
Have much time you spend on internet daily?

1-2 hours.
1/2- 1 hr - watch Nodame Cantabile
1/2- 1 hr - read bookmarked articles/ threads, organize notes for future printing

[db05]

This may sound obvious, but keep listening to the music you love! It's so easy to end up hating music when you're in school... try not to forget why you're there. I found that Forms and Analysis sucked all of the life out of music for me... I had to listen to NON-"Art Music" while doing the homework to get through it.

Just hang in there. So many of us are going through it right now... I JUST finished my last Forms class (20th century... eek...), and I thought several times that I'd never survive it. But those classes seem to be necessary evils in the academic world. Hang in there, db05!!!

~Gab

Wow, thanks!! I was thinking maybe I also lack exercise because piano + guitar = all of my physical exercise most of the time. I used to play arcade games (shooting basketballs or air hockey) or badminton with my dad every weekend, but now he'd be busy on his farm and I have no one to play with

Forms is amazing. At least so far. It's a break from all the hard theory. I'd drift back to my favorite pop music when I'm down, but it seems a bit odd now... Everything is out of tune and I'm not used to distortion anymore... 

Recently, I found myself trying to figure out the beats of one of these songs. I knew it was 4/4 but there was a background pattern of "triplets" that didn't fit in 4/4. That was most confusing LOL. I tried beating 3x4 but that wasn't it.

[Bob]

The best thing I ever found was to do things by time, just set a schedule for working on things.  And have goals. 

For me, most classes just had as much as you could handle packed into them.  You do a good job studying or practicing, there's always more you can do.  So just set how far you're willing to go, or can go, and how much time you can spend on it. 

And build up your endurance over time.  A little bit more often always beats a lot of intense but periodic effort.

Figure out what works for you.  How much you can handle or tolerate.  There will always be more sitting there waiting and there will always be a professor implying you should be doing more.  Just listen to yourself over that kind of thing.