12. Identify your roadblocks & outsmart them There are plenty of roadblocks as we travel through life. Our musical life is no different. The trick is to identify them as quickly as possible and make the necessary adjustments. Are you being held back by musical symbols or terminology that you don’t understand? Make a step …
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11. For the multi-taskers: stick with the stuff you already know Multi-tasking is tempting (who doesn’t want more time in their day?) If it’s your thing, multi-tasking is best reserved for times when you are doing routine activities that are easy and repetitive, for example: household tasks (cooking, washing dishes, hanging washing), driving, gardening, colouring-in …
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10. Know your learning style Are you dominantly a visual, aural or kinesthetic learner? Or are you a combination? Ideally you want to use all three, where and when they work best. Your best learning style, in any moment, is the one that helps you remember (and repeat) new information most efficiently. Look for ways …
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9. What you start with matters. Are you having a great day where things are fun and flowing? These are the times where you need to challenge yourself, so, after your warm-up, go straight to the difficult part of the song that needs work and get stuck into it while you have the mental energy. …
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8. Get a routine. Decide when you are going to practice and turn up on time. Don’t wait until you’re ‘in the mood’. If you’re having difficulty finding the time, schedule shorter bursts of practice (eg: 5 mins) so you don’t feel burdened. For those of you who love to do your practice first thing …
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7. Be geographically flexible. You can practice music at any time, in any place just by thinking about it or imagining yourself doing it. Your brain still ‘lights up’. One of my students went on holidays during the week prior to her concert. She took her sheet music and imagined herself playing through her piano …
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6. Make it easy to practice This one is simple, but often overlooked. Have a comfortable space in which to practice. Make sure it’s warm (eg: pre- heated), has plenty of light, privacy, insulation, and is away from distractions. Solve any issues as they arise, for example: if you get cold fingers, wear fingerless gloves. …
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5. If it’s fun, you’ll learn faster If you want to fast-track your learning, try injecting some fun, imaginative play into your approach. According to research, when we learn through play we develop skills WAY faster than by rote repetition. Creating a new synapse in the brain may only require 10 to 20 repetitions if …
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4. Practice more frequently, in shorter blocks of time It’s not about how much you practice, it’s about how frequently you practice. Training your brain to make long-term memories doesn’t require an enormous amount of time. What it does require is that you regularly go to the ‘filing cabinet’ (the place where your brain stored …
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3. Break it down into small, achievable steps. Once you have identified your goals you can then determine WHAT you need to practice. If you’re unsure, ask your music teacher or a musician friend to help you get some ideas. The next step is breaking that down into smaller chunks (building blocks), so that you …
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