how long/often do you practice on average?

[chopincat]

Just curious.

[iansinclair]

Before I smashed two fingers on my right hand -- typically 2 hours a day, in two separate 1 hour sessions.  Even when I was an employed (!) minister of music, I rarely played more thn three hours a day.  I get stale on things, and after that the practicing doesn't help much.

The catastrophe was at the end of November.

I'm just starting to play again, working about an hour a day which is all the fingers can take.  I'll build it up again, though!

[ted]

No technical practice aside from a few minutes night and morning on the Virgil Practice Clavier. It is highly debatable whether "practice" improvisation actually exists. I now tend to think it does, so I suppose when I invent new ways of idea generation while not recording, I am "practising". As I never perform, "practice" has little meaning for me as it is all "the real thing".

Pleased to hear you are recovering, Ian. Injuries are such frustrating things because sooner or later complete rest has to recede in favour of bringing the horse to the fence again, so to speak. This inevitably results in temporary overwork and setback, and the graph of recovery is like a slowly ascending sine curve.

[cwjalex]

3-5 hours a day the first year.  maybe 1-3 hours a day now.

[stevensk]

Three or four houres piano practice per day and one or two hour violin playing. 

[bronnestam]

Typically one hour. Sometimes more, sometimes less. Real Life does not permit more playing time at the moment, unfortunately. But I've got more and more efficient practice routines over the past 2 years.

[pianoman53]

Not less than 4, not more than 7, hours a day.Except like 2 weeks during summer, and one day every week, where I take a day off. I practice about 15 minutes, then a very short break, and repeat until I feel it's not focused practicing anymore. Then I take a longer break, and do something completely different, that doesn't demand any real thinking... Then I go back to the piano.

[verqueue]

I practice about 2-3 hours a day, in weekends more - about 4-5. It is sometimes very hard to focus for me, because I've full-time job and I can practice only at evenings, when I'm usually tired. But still there is some progress .

[thalbergmad]

30 minutes piano, 1 hour banjo.

Thal

[chopincat]

3-5?? 4-7??? How do you people have that kind of time in your lives?? High school never allows for that. I feel accomplished if I manage to fit 2 hours in! You guys make the working life sound fun and easy!

[pianoman53]

3-5?? 4-7??? How do you people have that kind of time in your lives?? High school never allows for that. I feel accomplished if I manage to fit 2 hours in! You guys make the working life sound fun and easy!

I managed 4-6 hours in High school too. I woke up, so that I could practice at least 2 hours before school. Then, I practiced at least one hour when I came home, before diner and homework, then one more hour, before everyone went to bed... then I did all the homework... then up at 6 the morning after again...

[verqueue]

Being no-life really helps...
When I was in high school I practiced 4-7 hours every day and I studied other subjects at night - it's a matter of commitment. I had more time when I was at your age (15 if I remember correctly?) than I've now - I can't be sleeping-zombie at work .

[chopincat]

But for me that just isn't mathematically possible. I have school from 8-3:30 excluding commute time, and anywhere between 3-6 hours of homework per night, and I have other extra curricular activities that I have to do as well, and I have to eat and sleep and shower at some point...4-6/7 hours is simply not doable.

[perprocrastinate]

As of late, I practice about 1.5 hours a day. I miss those days when I was able to fit in 2 or more hours of practice a day. Oh well, life happens.

[bronnestam]

3-5?? 4-7??? How do you people have that kind of time in your lives?? High school never allows for that. I feel accomplished if I manage to fit 2 hours in! You guys make the working life sound fun and easy!

Yeah. And when I read about those diligent students who practice 7 hours a day (when they are not in school) I always wonder: when do they cook the meals for the whole family, when do they do the grocery shopping for the whole family, do the dishes, when do they pay their bills, taking care of the laundry, clean the house (after the whole family ...) and drive their kids to this place and that place, walk the dogs, go to school meetings, talk to their spouse ...? Except work to get an income AND practice some piano?

You might think I could ask the rest of the family to assist me in the household work? Naah, nagging and asking and begging and yelling take far more time and energy than do it yourself. Besides, I work from a home office - which is my sheer luck, because I don't have to waste time on commuting, at least ... on the other hand I have to drive half an hour to reach the grocery shop - and everybody thinks I have all the time in the world because of that. "You are at home anyway". Well, yes. And my solution to the equation is to let it be dirty and messy instead of spending time on house-cleaning, and to skip everything that is called social life except family life. I have to rely on Facebook ...

OK, so I'm fine. But I envy those of you who obviously don't lift a finger to make the household work and are proud of how much time you practice. Well, I was there too, once in a while. And I did not use my time wisely, I admit that. Perhaps things will get better when the kids have moved out. If they ever do, that is.
I just want to point out that those of us who DO NOT have the time to practice that much, may not be lazy or unambitious.

[stevensk]

"And when I read about those diligent students who practice 7 hours a day .. I always wonder: when do they cook the meals for the whole family, when do they do the grocery shopping for the whole family, do the dishes, when do they pay their bills, taking care of the laundry, clean the house"

1) I practice 1 hour in the morning before any one in the family wake up, and 3 hours in the evning after they went to bed. -Never look at TV


2) If students stopped playing computor games, surfing on internet or looked at crappy TV serials they could practise piano playing for HOURES 

[chopincat]

2) If students stopped playing computor games, surfing on internet or looked at crappy TV serials they could practise piano playing for HOURES  

I don't waste my precious time with computer games or crappy TV serials - or any TV for that matter. I do admit that I spend time on the internet, but so do you if you're on this forum!!

[bronnestam]

I don't waste my precious time with computer games or crappy TV serials - or any TV for that matter. I do admit that I spend time on the internet, but so do you if you're on this forum!!

That could have been written by me as well. 

[stevensk]

I don't waste my precious time with computer games or crappy TV serials - or any TV for that matter. I do admit that I spend time on the internet, but so do you if you're on this forum!!

That sounds fine! It sounds that you have lots of time available for  piano playing! 

[chopincat]

That sounds fine! It sounds that you have lots of time available for  piano playing! 

Maybe I would if school, homework and commuting didn't take up almost all of my time.

[cwjalex]

how long does commuting take ?  in highschool i took all AP classes and still had plenty of time to practice instruments.  it's all about priorities.  the first year i played guitar i was in highschool and practiced 3-5 maybe 4-6 hours a day but it's virtually all i did for that first year.  it paid off though.  you get out pretty much what you put in to something.

[stevensk]

Yes, as cwjaex said it's all about priorities! 

[chopincat]

Let's break it down math wise. On average, I wake up at 6:30 and get home by 4:30. Let's say I have 4 hours of homework (though like I said earlier, it varies a lot and is often more than that). Then I'd be done with work by 8:30, and done eating dinner around 9. Then I could practice for 2 and a half hours so that I could shower/get ready for bed (11:30) and go to bed by 12:30 (it's not so easy to function on less than 6 hours of sleep). So that would allow for 2.5 hours of practicing, and this is assuming it's a night when I have a reasonable amount of homework, no extra traffic on my commute, no other extracurriculars, and absolutely no procrastination. So as you can see, practicing for 3+ hours is not humanly possible in my situation, and that of many other high school students. "You get out what you put in" may be true, but my school and schoolwork seriously limit what I'm able to put in.

I hope that doesn't sound defensive. I'm just really frustrated with the way my school is set up and the amount of homework that they give us and the effect that it's had on my life.

[cwjalex]

you average 4 hours of homework a night?  that sounds very high to me.  with all AP classes i don't think i averaged more than 2 hours of homework a night.  what kind of classes do you take?  where do you go to school?

[chopincat]

I go to a very competitive high school (7% acceptance rate) that's notorious for giving a lot of work. (I'm not going to say what school it is on a public forum but you can message me about it if you're curious).

AP classes aren't necessarily more work than regular classes. They just follow the AP curriculum. In terms of how they compare to normal classes, it really depends on the school and the the level of its "normal" classes. I know at my school, APs aren't considered to be very different in workload than non-AP classes. To answer your question, I currently do not take any APs because my school doesn't allow sophomores to take electives, but I plan to take some next year.

[cwjalex]

i see. every highschool that i am familiar with AP classes are boatloads more work than regular classes because you have to actually pass an exam that you have to pay for at the end of the year. all my friends in highschool who weren't in AP classes had practically no homework while i had a ton.  i remember having to complete a 40 page paper in 11th grade in my ap u.s. history class.  that really sucked.  i didn't go to the most prestigious college but i had much more work in my highschool AP classes than i did in college.  

it sounds like your highschool is really tough which is good in the sense that it will make college much easier. 

[outin]

You kids should understand that 6 hours of sleep is really not enough for most people's brain. And sleep is a requirement for learning. So one should question whether it is more useful to practice less and sleep more.

But 4 hours of homework sounds grazy. I am not sure it's teaching anything else but learning how to be diligent and not complain when exploited...My youth in the 80's was so different... In school I practically never did any homework, did what was required on breaks at school and prepared for tests for a couple of evenings. Still did well enough to get where I wanted. Most of my time outside school I read books and LIVED. Ok, in hindsight I could have spent less time studying the use of alcohol and more time learning skills like playing an instrument but no regrets really. I learned a lot about people and the world around me and that has proven to be the most important skill for work life.

[j_menz]

But 4 hours of homework sounds crazy.

Nonsense. Over the course of an entire schooling it seems fine. Slightly more than I did, but they were simpler times.

[outin]

Nonsense. Over the course of an entire schooling it seems fine. Slightly more than I did, but they were simpler times.

They were indeed 

[chopincat]

You kids should understand that 6 hours of sleep is really not enough for most people's brain.

But 4 hours of homework sounds grazy. I am not sure it's teaching anything else but learning how to be diligent and not complain when exploited.

Could not agree more! Unfortunately it's out of my control.

[verqueue]

chopincat, do you have good grades from every subject? Maybe you don't have to do all homework...

[chopincat]

chopincat, do you have good grades from every subject? Maybe you don't have to do all homework...

I currently have good grades in every subject but math. But the reason I've managed to do that is because I do most to all of my homework. I'd like to go to college at a place where I can study high level academics and high level music. So I need to keep my grades up in order to do that.

[cwjalex]

what math course are you taking?  also what do you plan on majoring in college/choosing as a career? 

[chopincat]

what math course are you taking?  also what do you plan on majoring in college/choosing as a career? 

My school doesn't follow the regular public school curriculum. So our math courses don't have names like "Algebra II" or "Geometry." Instead each grade is split into Honors and Extended Honors (but it's really just like normal and honors, don't know why they call it that). So my class is called 10E (10th grade extended honors). From what I can tell the course is a mix of Algebra II and Pre-Calc. I was kind of exaggerating when I said that I have bad grades in math - I just have a B instead of an A. I realize it probably sounds ridiculous to call a B a bad grade (this is what my hyper-competitve school atmosphere has done to me!!)

As for majors, I'm not entirely sure yet. I've thought a lot about majoring in music, so I want to make sure I go somewhere with a strong academic music department. But I also like the humanities could see myself majoring in things like sociology or psychology or gender studies. I'm just not sure yet. That's why I'd like to go to a really good school where I'll have options to try lots of things. As for careers, I have absolutely no idea.

But I didn't mean to make this all about my personal qualms about school - sorry if I've derailed the conversation!

[outin]

Unfortunately it's out of my control.

You should not take that as a granted. They do not actually tell you "here's your 4 hours of homework" do they? It's the same as with piano, sometimes you must work smarter, not more. Learning to use your time more economically is an important skill that you will need even more in the future.

[verqueue]

I did exactly opposite - I had best grades in math and piano . The rest courses I just passed with an average grades, not the worst ones, but not good ones. There is no point in being the best in every field, it's just impossible and impractical in adult life.

The piano was more important for me than grades from other courses, so I practiced more and did less homework (1-2 hour it was my maximum and I had to do everything I could to make that sufficient). I was in the second ranked high-school in my country, so the pressure was very high, all courses were extended. But I always follow my own path and don't care about others and their expectations. It's a matter of choice.

There is no shame in that piano isn't the most important thing in your life - you still can play very well, but it'll take you more years. I wouldn't recommend you majoring in music, if you can't fully dedicate to it - you just don't understand the taste of waking up as early as possible and running to practice piano for even half an hour.

[j_menz]

I had best grades in math and piano . The rest courses I just passed with an average grades

Presumably with a rather less than average one in grammar. 

[verqueue]

Presumably with a rather less than average one in grammar. 

This forum isn't restricted for native speakers. Your comment is so smart! I'm sure you had the best grades from all your courses, because your grammar is just perfect.

[bronnestam]

If you really want to do some time-managment, that is, you suspect that you waste your time and want to see if you can become more effective, I can give you two little tips.
(Yes, I use them myself!)

One is CompoundTime, freeware for your computer (also an app on your phone) specifically designed for music students, where you can log your practice time. You can re-design it for other purposes too, of course. I was a bit surprised to see that I actually practiced more than I thought. But, as have been said here already, it is not just the practice time that counts, but how you use it.

The other is RescueTime, which logs all your computer- and phone activities. The freeware works fine for me, but it cannot log off-computer time. The Premium version, though, is a bit too expensive for my purposes, even though it looks useful. 

Try them out if you wonder what you are doing with your time ...  An old-fashioned journal will work too, of course, but then you have to remember to update ...

[chopincat]

There is no point in being the best in every field, it's just impossible and impractical in adult life.

You want to tell that to my parents?? Please remember that I'm fifteen, and my parents basically have all the control in my life. They payed for my piano and they pay for my lessons. They've made it clear to me that if I don't keep my grades up, they'll stop doing that. I literally get yelled at if I try to practice before I've finished my work. I do happen to care about my grades, but I think that has a lot to do with the way I've been raised and the environment I've been placed in. Regardless, they care more, and they basically own me, so that's what I have to do.

There is no shame in that piano isn't the most important thing in your life - you still can play very well, but it'll take you more years. I wouldn't recommend you majoring in music, if you can't fully dedicate to it - you just don't understand the taste of waking up as early as possible and running to practice piano for even half an hour.

Don't remember ever saying that I want to major in piano performance. (I would have nothing against it, but I know that it's not realistic, but not for the reasons you seem to be suggesting...) I said I wanted to major in music, which at college is more often than not an academic field. Of course I'll always play piano and I'll always sing, and college will have lessons for me to take and choirs for me to sing in. But I think it would be much more useful and better for me to major in general music. Currently I spend all of my free time playing/singing/listening to/writing/teaching myself/learning as much as I can about music. So please don't tell me what I am and am not dedicated to  . (Also: as for your claim that I'm clearly not devoted enough because I don't wake up early to practice, I wouldn't be able to that once again because of my parents, who I already wake up a full 2 hours earlier than in order to get to school, and who love to scream at me whenever I attempt to play the piano while they're asleep. Waking up early to play more actually sounds wonderful to me - it would make my mornings a lot more pleasant. But not everything in life is a choice, especially when you're 15).

If you really want to do some time-managment, that is, you suspect that you waste your time and want to see if you can become more effective, I can give you two little tips.

Don't remember ever saying that either! Thanks for the advice, but I really am fine and I don't feel like I need it. Just because I don't practice 6 hours a day doesn't mean that I have a time management issue.

This thread wasn't supposed to be about me or my habits, which I'm sure a lot of people don't really want to hear about anyway. So how about we stop making assumptions about my life and criticizing how I spend my time?

[bronnestam]

Don't remember ever saying that either! Thanks for the advice, but I really am fine and I don't feel like I need it. Just because I don't practice 6 hours a day doesn't mean that I have a time management issue.

This thread wasn't supposed to be about me or my habits, which I'm sure a lot of people don't really want to hear about anyway. So how about we stop making assumptions about my life and criticizing how I spend my time?

No, exactly, it wasn't about YOU at all. It was a general tip for anyone who reads the thread! If you want to assume you, and you alone, are in focus here, then fine, but please don't complain about it then. I thought my tip could be of help to whoever is interested, do you have a problem with that?

[cwjalex]

i say just ditch all the work and...

1) marry a rich guy
2) murder him
3) get PAID

[chopincat]

No, exactly, it wasn't about YOU at all. It was a general tip for anyone who reads the thread! If you want to assume you, and you alone, are in focus here, then fine, but please don't complain about it then. I thought my tip could be of help to whoever is interested, do you have a problem with that?

Sorry. In context to me it seemed like you were specifically talking to me, because some other people were telling me that I must have bad time management skills if my homework takes me 4 hours. I misunderstood you.

i say just ditch all the work and...

1) marry a rich guy
2) murder him
3) get PAID

ahahahaaa

[j_menz]

This forum isn't restricted for native speakers. Your comment is so smart! I'm sure you had the best grades from all your courses, because your grammar is just perfect.

For some reason I had taken you to be American. My apologies on both counts.