Practicing?

[brendan765]

I have really bad practicing habits.

My problems

1) I go through times where I will be practicing very well for a few weeks and then bad habits set in and I messup stuff, mindless repetitions of phrases, bad technique..which ultimately frustrates I me and I end up practicing less until I hit a few mornings in a row where I can practice and that'll get me back on the right path. I practice very well in the mornings. Terrible on the school days.

2) Playing through stuff just to play it really (I know it's bad)

3) Not sticking to my practice schedule

When I practice good I practice good and do well but im trying to get rid of this swingy "practice good 1 week and bad the next" kind of thing


Any ideas on how to fix my issue?

[chopin2015]

Pffft atleast you have a schedule. What am I gonna do tomorrow? Play etudes and beethoven and chopin and liszt? No. You need to commit to 3 to 4 pieces a day, max. 4 to 6 hours max. Record them, then move on. You wont forget them. What are you working on playing?

[brendan765]

Pffft atleast you have a schedule. What am I gonna do tomorrow? Play etudes and beethoven and chopin and liszt? No. You need to commit to 3 to 4 pieces a day, max. 4 to 6 hours max. Record them, then move on. You wont forget them. What are you working on playing?

Your right. I'm working on way too much, and if I just work on 3 or 4 pieces... that's good.

I'll limit my focus to:

1st priority) learning these pieces good!
Beethoven Sonata Pathetique
Liszt Etude Wilde Jagd
Chopin Scherzo no. 2
Chopin Ballade No. 1
Chopin Etude A min

2nd priority) Compositions, Theory, Transposing for Orchestra

3rd priority) sight reading, technique studies, modern music covers, getting name out there, and performing/accompanying  with other musicians

[chopin2015]

Ive worked atleast 3 of those pieces. Pick one of the chopin pieces and you might be able to finish soon. Learn the sonata movement by movement.

[catherinezng]

When I get stuck, I look for inspirations on youtube. Then I feel the motivation to practice.

I am also a victim of mindless practicing. However, I've listening to my playing more and being able to appreciate the musical phrases rather than just notes gives an endless enjoyable feeling not to mention extremely efficient practice session as my fingers are constantly trying to produce the most pleasing sound.
On the day where my mind is completely off though, I usually sightread, mindlessly practice etudes, or just skip practice all together. Thank god this doesn't much.

[danhuyle]

I used to practice a piece repeatedly just to not forget it. I'd play it once, then play it more times just to not forget it, then the more I play, the more I forget it.

The question is - how do you retain what you learned?

[catherinezng]

I retain what I learned best not by muscle memory, but by mentally learning the piece. Usually taking the music away from the piano and just reading it helps me the most.