Practice is a crucial part of a musician's development. It allows us to refine our skills and improve our weaknesses. However, practice is personal to each musician: we practice with our own methods and routines.
In this blog post, I interviewed colleagues of mine from Mannes School of Music and asked them to share their practice schedules and what they believe is the most important aspect of their practice.
Yu-Cheng Chang
Percussionist, Second Year Master's Student
I practice at least 2 hours a day. Sometimes I'll do 4 hours but it depend on my body's condition.
I think warm-up is the most important thing in my practice. Also I spend a lot of time thinking about what should I do and what can I do better in either repertoire or solo pieces.
William Desbiens
Baritone, Senior Year Bachelor's Student
I practice about 1h a day minimum. Throughout the day, I also intermittently think about singing, such as thinking about passages and memorizing the text of the music. I like a more free-flowing organic approach to practice, which is better than a set and organized practice, but that’s how I work!
I believe the most important thing to work on when practicing a piece of music is sound production. That means, working on vowels in certain ranges of a given piece to make the line and sound as beautiful and as often as possible. Unless you want to put in effects, which is also part of the sound production work.
Francesca Gray
Clarinetist, Master's Graduate (2020)
Efficient practicing is having a specific goal in mind and strategizing an effective learning sequence to achieve the desired result. When first entering the practice room, the mind and body need to be focused and the instrument or voice needs to be warmed up. Being ready emotionally, mentally and physically sets the foundation for a productive practice session. Practice sessions are like science lab experiments, where a number of hypotheses are tested out to achieve the sought-out product. Activities involve listening to recordings, trying new ideas, assessing the playing, and evaluating the effectiveness of a particular strategy. Those steps contribute to finding what individually works. Once the desired result is obtained, multiple successful repetitions can be done to gain consistency to form a habit and become second nature. Process over product is key. Concentrating on the process and putting time, effort, and careful attention to detail will create a solid foundation that inherently leads to success.
**In addition to Francesca's work as an educator and a performer, she is also an entrepreneur who founded The Collaborative Clarinet in Concert Exhibition: a collaboration between composers at Mannes School of Music and New York Youth Orchestra, with artists from Parsons School of Design. Click here to learn more about The Collaborative Clarinet in Concert Exhibition.**
Linus Ip
Composer, Sophmore Year Bachelor's Student
I compose 12 - 24 hours a week, usually from Sunday to Tuesday, and Wednesday before my lesson. There are a lot of things to think about regarding composition, so walking alone and meditation can help. I like to read biographies of past and living composers because it is very useful to understand how composers face their challenges in their lives. I also take an hour everyday to listen to contemporary music, so that I can catch up with the most recent music productions.
In general, I think composition and conducting share similar approaches to practice. I study scores for at least 2 hours per day. Before my private conducting lesson on Sunday, I would analyze scores and sing through different melodic lines in the music with a metronome.
Other than studying scores, I might try to conduct a piano piece twice a month to practice my techniques.
Techniques are important, but I think it is more important to think about the composer's intention beyond what is written in the score and to consider the bigger picture: Why did the composer compose in the way that he/she wanted, how can we use our techniques to express what we want in the music without betraying the composer's intention.
Jess Lo
Violinist, Master's Graduate (2020)
For me the quality of practice is more important than the actual hours I put in every day. My practice schedule heavily depends on what I am preparing for. In my opinion it is important to listen to your body and know how many hours you can do physically. For me 4 hours of good practice is about my limit. My ideal practice day is 45 min of scales and double-stops, then I spend the rest of my time on my repertoire (around 2-4 hours.)
It is crucial to always keep a positive mindset approaching music and your instrument. Sometimes one can feel mentally drained while working on details. You need to love what you do and do not develop any negative relationship with your craft.
The process of practicing involves identifying and solving problems. It is a little bit like solving many little puzzles and then piecing everything together. Don't get bogged down or crucify yourself for mistakes, embrace the challenges you face, and enjoy the process like you would when you are solving a Sudoku puzzle. Always keep your mind engaged in the music, because the real joy is to bring all the notes and clefs to life in your own voice.
Matthew Mantione
Trombonist, Master's Graduate (2020)
At the time I was in school, my schedule was much more rigid than it is now. I would get to school by 8am (school opened at 7:30) to warm up and do my fundamentals for 45 minutes.
I try to separate my practice schedule into 3 sections. The first, always being fundamentals and a warm-up. Always diagnose yourself in the morning. What things are working, what things aren’t working, how am I going to make them work?
In the middle of the day I will practice repertoire assigned by my classes such as orchestra, chamber, etc. It’s a good idea to always have the school rep prepared and out of the way. Just do it. The more time you allocate to preparation in the practice room, the better off you’ll be in the rehearsal. No excuse to be unprepared.
My third and typically final practice session will encompass solo repertoire and/or orchestral excerpts. Depending on the day, I will do either or. Not both. That I found to be unhealthy for my playing. (Although there have been instances where I practice excerpts in the middle of the day. Depends on my schedule). My solo rep will require me to spend about an hour really dissecting and analyzing what I’m preparing and playing.
All in all, I’d say that brings us to a total of about 3-4 hours a day of sheer trombone shed. That doesn’t include the emergency chamber rehearsals and other anomalies that often happen during the week. I do try to write out a weekly routine. I find that extremely important. Always have a plan and time yourself!
One of most important things for me to think about while I’m practicing is, will someone pay to hear this..? Will someone pay to hear me play this? At the end of the day, the goal is to perform and make a living, no? Whether it’s in an orchestra or chamber group, performing will require us to be the best there is. SO, will someone pay to hear YOU? Now, that of course is not the only thing I think about while I practice. I practice being in the moment as well. That hour or two stretch of time is priceless. Make every minute count. The most crucial thing I often think about is how prepared I am to perform whatever it is I am working on. I always try to put myself “there” and in the moment. My practice room is sacred, and it should be for everyone.
**Matt kindly asks anyone who is interested in his work to donate to USDAN, a summer camp that fosters artistic expression and creativity for youths in New York City and Long Island.**
Ethan Osman
Orchestral Conductor, Freshman Year Bachelor's Student
It differs from week to week depending on my projects, assignments, personal interests. If I have to prepare a score, I like to read it several times at the keyboard, which may take anywhere from an hour to two or three depending on what I'm studying and what I want to highlight on any given day. During the school year, that amounts to a few days of a little under an hour each over the course of a week.
That said, lots of my practice is away from the piano, where I sing (out-loud or in my head), read the score in my head, or make conceptual decisions. As a conductor, I need to be really well-rounded, so I spend several hours a day on language study, listen to new repertoire, read, and take long walks or bike rides to work on physical endurance on top of my standard gestural exercises. Over the summer and on school breaks, I tend to play a great deal more piano, but it's anything but solo practice -- lots and lots of sight-reading (solo piano rep, figured-bass exercises, score reading and transposition, chorale-reading, vocal score reading) and lately a great deal of improvisation.
I think the most important thing about practice is to practice well. To always be 100% present is difficult, so getting lots of sleep, eating well, and staying hydrated is key, and not forcing oneself to practice tons on a given day is important. Motivation is so precious, so keeping it as strong as possible is essential. Taking short but steady (and conscious) strides is the best way to work on long-term projects; Rome wasn't built in a day. Practice should also be flexible; every project requires a different approach. Last but certainly not least, remembering why we play music and how lucky we are to make lifestyles out of this passion is crucial; that fuels everything else.
I am truly humbled by my talented friends and I thank each of them for sharing their practice secrets.
The discipline that Francesca and Matt demonstrate in their practice is admirable. We cannot depend on motivation to make us practice because it is fleeting. To implement discipline into one's musical practice, creating a schedule and a practice plan may help.
However, taking discipline too far may ruin your enjoyment for practice. I agree with Jess and Ethan that practice should be enjoyable. Don't punish yourself over mistakes in the practice room or be fixated with perfection. When musical practice becomes a dreadful activity, no amount of practice can make your music feel alive.
Yu-Cheng, William, and Linus, shared important practice routines that are unique for their own instruments. Yu-Cheng revealed that warm-ups are important because playing percussion is a physical activity. William shared that sound production and language work are crucial for singers. Linus highlighted the importance of studying the composers' intention. Each craft has its own challenge, and as unique as we are, we each have our own issues to work on.
After reading about other musicians' practice routines, how would you schedule your own practice? How should you practice?
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