When to practice.

[becky8898]

Im looking for feedback for when everyone likes to practice.  It seems very difficult to always find enough time. Or do people split up there practice time.  How do you manage to get in your practice time and do you manage to avoid missing practice sometimes due to other obligations. 

Any feelings if morning or evening or middle of the day is better. Just looking for any ideas to see how other people cope with busy lives.

Here is my current schedule now

Wake up at 4:30 AM. Get 2 hours of practice in before School.
Try and get an hour of practice in at school, but either ditching study hall, or sneaking out of the cafeteria at lunch. 
Get home and try and get my home work done and then 2 more hours of practice. 
Finally Dinner and then Rehersal with my Parents and brother in our family String quartet.

on days with my piano lesson ( twice a week ) or if im playing in a recital no afternoon practice.

Weekends are even busier. 

Dont get the idea im complaining. Im not. I love playing the piano.  I just looking for ways to better manage my time and wonder how other people handle it.

Cheers , Becky

[m1469]

Personally, I definitely prefer the mornings, no doubt about it.   I know some people who will begin practice in the later evening and go until 2AM or so, and that is very much not me.  At least it definitely has not been so far.  Obviously it's different for everybody regarding when we feel most awake and energized and if I were to have a rigorous exercise schedule, for example, I'd still choose mornings.  So, I've purposely built my life around that, and it just so happens that private teaching is generally a pretty good fit with that if I want it to be.    

Since you seem fairly serious about your paino study, have you ever considered home schooling?  It might be a reasonable option if you aren't too attached to your current situation.  I don't recall reading about where you live in the world, but in the US there are becoming some interesting ways to home school through a public school, actually, and still earn your official state diploma.  Just FYI.    

[marioshand]

Hie becky!
Do you work the same way and same things when it's 4.30 AM or after your home work?
To me, early in the morning, I prefer working technics and repetitive stuff (scales....). At night, I prefer improvising or working on a piece.
What about you?

(you play a lot!!! I'm impressed! You work hard!)

[littletune]

Wow you sound so grownup!! You must be a lot more grownup than I am  And you practice so much more than I do!!  Have you always been practicing this much? 
I practice in the afternoon or in the evening... but I only practice about 1 to 2 hours a day for now    But I'll start practicing more! (I am practicing more than last year when I first started learning piano)... well... I'll just go practice now!!!     

[jimbo320]

Becky,
You get in more practice than I do! I commend you on your ambitious approach. Setting up a certain schedule has been my downfall. Partly due to being lazy and partly due to figuring at my age personal achievement is all I hope for. It really doesn't matter how or what drives us. The important thing is that we keep going.
Having said that. I find it easier to play when the mood strikes. As far as a certain set of practicing goes, I've done it at all times. I find my fingers to be the most limber and agile in early evening.

Best of luck....
Musically, Jimbo
 

[musical_petal]

Hello Becky,
I am very impressed by how much you practise!! I started playing the piano about 5 years ago and I absolutely love it. The thing is that I only practise 30-60 minutes a day. Is that too little. I have my piano lesson once a week and am playing Bach Prelude and Beethovens Fur Elise along with some scales etc. Please reply!

Thnk You.

[omar_roy]

My class schedule allows for a lot of practice time.

Monday/Wednesday/Friday
11am-2pm (throw a short lunch break in there)

I usually spend that time working on technique and non-solo rep, and starting some work on my solo rep if I have time.

After 4pm I practice my solo rep until I've accomplished all that I can for the day.  I usually lose my ability to focus once I hit the 6 hour mark.

Tuesdays: 4pm until I'm done

Thursdays: 6pm until I'm done

Saturday/Sunday: I usually take one of these days off and practice all day the other.

Becky,
I suggest you practice for about 30 minutes right after your lesson and do some short focused work on anything your teacher addressed in the lesson.  I've found that this helps me consolidate the "information" better and it makes it even easier to work on the next day.

Also consider taking one day off of practice.  I find that taking a day off completely from any practicing/playing lets me come back the next day completely refreshed and with better focus and I accomplish more.

At the end of the day, it's all about practicing as much as you need to.  If you only need to practice for 2 hours a day, then do that.  If you need to do 4 or 5 hours a day, then do that.  Also, being efficient with your practice time is more important than the actual hours.  You'd be surprised at how much time you simply waste at the piano just playing through sections rather than focusing on the work to be done.

[thinkgreenlovepiano]

I agree, its hard for me to find time to practise.
Usually I practise right when I come home from school. No one else is home and I can practise in peace.
I don't practise later than 9 pm or earlier than 8am,... don't want family and neighbours to complain!! Right now I can only squeeze about 1/2 hour   hours of practise during weekdays (weekends, I can practise more, yay!!!!)... and focus on small sections of pieces rather than playing entire pieces, when I don't have time. And scales are a must too... I focus on one key per week.

[jimbo320]

Thinkgreen,
Good idea of focusing on one key a week of the scales. I always have trouble remembering all the notes on the fly. I'm gonna give this a try.

Thanks, Jimbo

[omar_roy]

Thinkgreen,
Good idea of focusing on one key a week of the scales. I always have trouble remembering all the notes on the fly. I'm gonna give this a try.

Thanks, Jimbo

Try remembering shapes rather than individual notes.  This is my approach to scales:

1.  Figure out what key you're in, note the sharps or flats.
2.  Look at what keys are sharp/flat on the piano for this particular scale.
3.  Look at the shape of the scale.

After you do that, it's really just about knowing the right fingering and then you're done.

[fleetfingers]

Becky, you obviously love the piano and are dedicated to improving your skill. While I admire your hard work and envy your musical family, I can't help but wonder if you ever have time to spend watching a movie with your friends...or playing sports, or learning how to cook, or enjoying a good novel, etc, etc...anything else besides piano??? I love to play the piano, too, but there is something to be said of enjoying a balanced life. Do you really need more than the four hours you're already squeezing into your day? Continue to practice hard, but remember to make time for other things! 

[becky8898]

Hey all - thanks for all these neat responses.  I was asked a few questions so here are a few responses. 


1. Yes - my parents are considering home schooling for me - Soon.

2.  I havent got a clue on how much someone else should practice. 

3. I have no set practice plan anymore. Mostly what I do is learn repertoire and learn it in such away as to give me an individual sound. A signature that is all my own. 

4. My favorite things to do other than piano is sewing, ( My Grandma just bought me a sewing machine) Horseback riding and swimming. Oh and my most favorite thing of all is composing.  I Spend an hour before bed, Doing that.  I have written two string quartets and am working on my own first piano concerto.  Though I dont know enough about woodwinds and brass to orchestrate it. So far its just a Piano score.

Thanks again for all your answers. 

Cheers, Becky

[asianpianoer]

wow that is so impressive
but apparently practicing more than 4-5 hours a day is no use anyway because the muscles are too worn out.

how old are you? what grade are you in? at highschool i assume

[doryanne]

Hi,
This discussion thread gave me a good idea: in the evening I am very tired and in the morning I have the liberty to start working at 10 AM, so from now on I will practice in the morning before going to work. It is much more efficient especially for the new, difficult parts that require more focus.
In the evening I will play the parts I already know and improve them.   It will be a relaxation 
Thanks!

[omar_roy]

wow that is so impressive
but apparently practicing more than 4-5 hours a day is no use anyway because the muscles are too worn out.

how old are you? what grade are you in? at highschool i assume

It has less to do with the muscles and more to do with your mind.  4-6 hours of real practice is mentally very exhausting.  I practice 4-6 hours a day on weekdays, and anywhere from 6-10 hours a day on weekends and my muscles never feel worn out but mentally, I'm absolutely spent by the end.

It's easier for me to do the longer hours on weekends because I can come and go from the practice rooms as I please.

I don't recommend doing 6-10 hours a day, obviously.  And if I didn't have to, I wouldn't.  I'm playing the "catch up" game right now so I don't really have a choice.

[asianpianoer]

catch UP GAME? WHy
you sound like you're a prodigy already....

THIS is so depressing... i have no chance

[jimbo320]

Chance for what?

[omar_roy]

catch UP GAME? WHy
you sound like you're a prodigy already....

THIS is so depressing... i have no chance

A prodigy?  Certainly not.  I played the violin from 5-8 years of age, before we moved.  I began piano at 10 years old, and played until I was 12.  That's when I decided I'd much rather be outside playing with my friends than couped up inside a house playing the dumb piano.  I continued to play very sporadically for the next 4 years (not taking lessons or practicing regularly) until I had a musical awakening when I was 16 and that is when I began to study seriously.  During my freshman year of college, I was a BM-Piano Performance Major, then during the summer before my sophomore year I thought I didn't want to be poor (along with other things that I won't discuss), so I started a BS in Biology studying to get into Medical School.

I realized at the beginning of this school year (my Junior/3rd year) that I'd rather be a poor starving pianist than a rich comfortable doctor, so I recently switched back to music, only this time under a BA in Piano rather than the BM.  It's just more convenient.

So what does this story tell you?  That I'm certainly no prodigy, and that I certainly DO need to play "catch up."  Unfortunately, that entails lots of practice.

I'll never be a Richter, but I'm okay with that.  What I'm concerned with, and what you should be concerned with, is developing to the maximum potential that you're capable of.  If everyone developed a monster ability just by starting piano when they were 5, we would have thousands of Richters and Hamelins.

They're genetic freaks (in the best sense of the word) whose brains are wired in such a way that it made them perfect for piano.

If you do the math, I've only been playing for about 6 years (I'm 20 years old), and yet I have a better technique than some of my friends who have been playing twice as long as that, if not longer.  It's about work ethic and dedication above all else.

And hefty dose of patience and humility.

[becky8898]

Hey Omar. remember you told me that I sounded mature for my age.  Well guess what. You sound older than you are.  You come across like you have your stuff together . Thats a good thing and im glad to hear your only 20 , I though you where much older like maybe 25 or something. People respect your opinion. At least I do. Anyway as one overly mature person to another keep giving out the good advice.

Hey asianpianoer. No chance at what? To be a horowitz or Agerich or Richter.  Welcome to the other 6 billion people on the planet. Give yourself a break.  im trying to say this in a nice way.  I have no idea how far my studies will take me and life doesnt come with any certainty. Do your best , see where it leads you and enjoy the trip. 

Hey anyway everyone im opening a new topic on a seperate post.  Look for me there.

Cheers, Becky

[jimbo320]

Hey Omar,
You got a lot more going for you than you realize. At least you got the right idea about just being the best that you can be. Life is a crap shoot when it comes to "being discovered" anyways. We all would love to make a living at music. It does take diligent work.
I used to play bass for a guy that was working on his masters in music. He was awesome on the keys and he's still making a living at it. He's not famous but he works all the time.
If you use the crap game as a reference, be ready to roll when it's your turn....

Musically, Jimbo

[gradedpiano]

I tend to practise when ever i have any free time. I do like doing other activities but Playing piano is the most enjoyable for me as i just got one for christmas

[countrymath]

Very nice topic .

I started piano about 1 year and 7 months ago. On the begging, i didnt have support by my parents. For the first 7 months, i was making computer class at morning, working at afternoon and going to school at evening. I was practcing about 15~30 minutes a day. On weekends, i was helping my grandma on her boutique, and i was practcing abount 2 hours on weekends. On last year, i moved to live with my brother, so i had all day to practice. I started practcing on 6~7 am and stoped beetween 10pm, and guess, i was losing something about 90% of that time. I lived this way for 2 months, then a came back to my parents house, for more 2 months. Then, i started studing Music Production on an university on a next town. Now i have 4 hours on the morning and 4 hours on the evening to practice. I was spliting this on something like this:

8~10 - Scales, arpeggios, theory
10~12 - One classical piece and one popular
12 ~6pm - University
6 ~8 - Popular studies (now, im studing country piano, cause i have a band )
8 ~10 - Learn a country tune by ear, work on it, transpose, etc...

Unfortunaly, i have to leave my DP at home to rehearse with my band, so i will have only 4 hours to practice until a buy a new keyboard. I think i will do this:

6~7 - Scales, arpeggio
7 ~9 - Classical and popular music
9 ~10 - Country.

Then i will hear some music until i fall to sleep. On the morning, i will study some theory and music production things, like mixing, read manuals, etc...

Well...i thik thats it. I usually dont do reading/technical practice for more then 4 hours now, i think its a waste of time. And as they say, spend some time on other things you like. I love to play eletronic games and watch movies. Somedays, i wake up with an *** mood, and i go play all day long(of couse, hearing some piano/orchestra music). I plan to study orchestration, composition and regency when i get better on piano. Yes, i want to do this for living. Im 18 years old.

Good luck for you,

Math \o

[asianpianoer]

haha yeah
stupid 36million kids in china learning piano -.-

oh well it's a dream i guess
main thing is enjoyment

but most likely just end up as a teacher
gahhhh

[omar_roy]

haha yeah
stupid 36million kids in china learning piano -.-

oh well it's a dream i guess
main thing is enjoyment

but most likely just end up as a teacher
gahhhh

What's wrong with teaching?

[jimbo320]

36 million kids learning the piano. Wish I was selling pianos. lol

[asianpianoer]

what's wrong with teaching...
not much unless u teach beginners all day
or ppl who dont practice

and selling pianos...urrrrrr not really... maybe in china but not anywhere else

[omar_roy]

what's wrong with teaching...
not much unless u teach beginners all day
or ppl who dont practice

and selling pianos...urrrrrr not really... maybe in china but not anywhere else

I understand not wanting to teach people who don't practice, but what's wrong with teaching beginners?  I know a couple of teachers who specialize only in teaching young children to build a solid foundation for future study.  Many of their students have gone on to study at the best schools of music in the US.

Don't discount the teaching.  Without a good teacher, you wouldn't have had the mind to pursue piano.  I can't think of any greater reward than revealing to a student their own intense passion for music, regardless of whether it takes them to a conservatory, or simply remains a very serious part of their life. 

[ladypianist]

Several points. To the topic at hand, the question is not when to practice but when not to practice. Do not practice when you cannot think clearly, or properly . The thinking is everything. 20 Minutes of practice when your mind is thinking correctly is better than 3 hours of banging at the keyboard blindy.  Do not practice when your muscles are fatigued. This teaches you nothing. In fact less than nothing.

Second point.  All artists teach.  Sometimes we teach by simply playing the piano and let others listen. Other times we give instruction so that others can also learn to play the piano. Some teachers take only advanced students. Others only beginners. It is in the taste of what ones skills and tastes lean to. 

With regards, Ladypianist

[musicluvr49]

Sadly I only get, at the most, about an hour and a half of practice a day. I wish it could be more, but I am so busy with highschool, and homework, and working, and everything else. Plus I have little kids in the house, so I cant practice after 9.
 

[omar_roy]

Sadly I only get, at the most, about an hour and a half of practice a day. I wish it could be more, but I am so busy with highschool, and homework, and working, and everything else. Plus I have little kids in the house, so I cant practice after 9.
 

Being pressed for time isn't necessarily all bad. It forces you to develop efficient practice techniques in order to get the greatest amount of work done in the time available.

[musicluvr49]

Very true Omar_Roy.
But the bad thing is that I sometimes skip, or do very little of scales and exercises and things.

[asianpianoer]

@omar roy

how i wish i had a good teacher when i was younger