Most of us are time-poor, yet setting aside an hour or so to practise an instrument will always be time well spent. This article is full of actionable advice to help you make the most of what you love doing.

Music Is Therapy

Playing is quite literally good for you.

Did you know that when you make music, your brain releases happy-hormone endorphins? And also dopamine, which causes you to experience happiness, excitement, and joy? There’s more: playing can also reduce stress, even enabling better emotional control. It really is a form of therapy.

Which is why you’ll want to make the most of your time in the practice room, ensuring it’s as effective as possible. And, that you feel you’re making good progress.

Here are the THREE things you can start doing today. They’re not too tricky and could make all the difference. Plus of course, you can apply them to your piccolo as much as your piano.

Rather than blocked practice, where for instance you may spend half an hour on a really tricky scale, then another 30 minutes on sight-reading etc, try:

Interleaved Practice

It’s where you spend a short interval on a particular piece, then move to another task (eg arpeggios), then a different piece, and so on. Interleaved practice moves you away from repeating things on autopilot, whereby you focus on a single thing for a defined period. Blocked practising like this can be frustrating and quite frankly a bit boring. Ultimately, it’s not terribly useful.

Understandably, practising like this could demotivate you.

With interleaved practice, because you alternate between different “concepts,” your brain works harder, helping you recall and retain skills. Your brain has to rebuild the action plan, thus creating stronger neural pathways. Your mind is better engaged, and you’re less inclined mentally to check out of your practice session.

The human brain really is remarkable.

Here’s a good example of what it could look like. Think: 10 minutes on a Bach piece, then 10 minutes with Frédéric Chopin, followed by five minutes on minor scales.

Excellent.

Set Clear Goals

Goal setting is a good habit to acquire generally, and especially for the time you have available to practise your instrument.

Your practice goal could be longer-term, say three months plus, where you’re working towards an important exam or an audition. Or, shorter term: “by next week/my next lesson/the end of this month I want to be able to master…” Also, combining your goal with interleaved practice can be highly effective:

“In today’s session I want to achieve…”

Goals are your end destination, or where you want to be. Visualise getting there. What does it look and feel like?

Try writing down THREE goals and keeping them somewhere visible, like in your instrument case or, even better, on your fridge.

Bear in mind the difference between outcome goals and process goals. The former is a specific event. For instance, your audition. Maybe mastering a difficult section in a study without stopping. A process goal emphasises a certain habit or behaviour that, if done consistently, will help you move forward to your outcome goal. An illustration could be practising for half an hour each day regardless of how tired or out of sorts you may be.

It’s a cliché, but it really is all about showing up.

Don’t forget: you’ll need to ensure your goal is SPECIFIC, MEASURABLE, ACHIEVABLE, RELEVANT, and TIME-BOUND.

Keep a Practice Journal

The truth is, what gets documented gets measured.

Does a journal sound like a strange idea? Many professional musicians keep practice journals. Why? Because they feel, as I do, that writing down your goals and your journey towards them showcases your work – and it’s all exceptionally motivating and empowering.

Note down what practice you have done, how it went and what you want to do next. You’ll be able to plan and moderate your practising based on what you’ve noted down about your achievements.

Your practice journal will be a comprehensive record of your progress, offering exceptional insights into what you’ve done well and where there may be room for improvement. It’s all about intention, preventing you from wasting your valuable time on things that aren’t important: musicians refer to this as “noodling” – the musical equivalent of doodling, and you can see their point!

Your journal should be:

Extremely personalised. Don’t compare yourself to others. This is your unique journey, whatever that means to you.

Simple. Don’t over-complicate things.

Honest. Fess up about your lows (and celebrate your highs, of course)

What To Include in Your Practice Journal

First of all, choose the loveliest notebook and pen you can find. Or maybe that’s just me.

Perhaps you’d prefer an online version and that’s fine too, of course. Maybe search for an App; there are plenty to choose from, and most are free. Or, if you’re a spreadsheet ninja you’ll no doubt design your own. You’re going to use it to organise goals and track session times. Used consistently, it will become a go-to problem-solving tool while you develop your skills.

• Practice session details. Date, time, and how long you practised.
• What you did. Technical exercises, pieces and passages you worked on.
• Your challenges. What specific issues did you have that time?
• Your successes. What went really well?
• Goals. What will you do next time, or what objective do you want to reach within three months?
• Questions and reminders. Things to remember for next time.

You may think mindfulness has become somewhat overused. But, this is the ultimate in mindfulness: a way to be fully present in the moment – observing rather than reacting.

Documenting your practice empowers your memory. It holds onto problems and more importantly, how you solved them. In other words, the process you went through to get from one state to another.

With a good journal routine you’ll be building some powerful, positive habits. Why not start today?

Get in touch with me, Sarah Luong, for more information about my programmes.