I am often asked by my students about the best ways to practice: How long do I practice for? How often? How do I approach a new piece of music?
Here are my top tips:
1) Practice daily - Daily repetition will build up muscle memory in the hands, as well as strength in the wrist and fingers.
2) 30 mins to 1 hour practice sessions - smaller, regular practice sessions are ideal for effective practice. Even 10-15 mins per day if you can. Avoid long sessions of 2-3 hours!
3) Practice using phrases - Try and practice a piece in phrases, short blocks of music that will focus your practice rather than a whole piece in one go. Look for natural breaks in the music such as repeat signs, verse, chorus, etc
4) Practice the challenging parts - Focus your practice on parts you find difficult, such as a specific chord change or position change. Do not spend too long on the parts you know well
5) Speed - The major challenge for every player is the speed they practice. This has to be slow and deliberate, making sure the rhythm, fingers, etc are correct. Then build up the speed to performance level
6) Setting goals - Try and set goals for daily or weekly goals on what you want to achieve and the techniques you want to work on
7) Use a metronome to establishing good timing
Any more tips please reply below and let other players know!!
