Is Piano Practicing Ever Fun?

A humorous and thought-provoking article written by Dr. Joseph Line:

"As I scan Internet articles and blogs about piano practicing, I am always amazed at how many people write about and are searching for ways to make practicing fun. Speaking as a professional pianist and piano teacher, I've found practicing interesting, challenging, frustrating, thought-provoking, at times boring, often exhilarating, and enjoyable... but I've never thought of it as being fun.

What have I missed here? I've studied with several world-class (I mean truly world-class) teachers, and I can't remember them ever suggesting that practicing should or could be fun. They've definitely taught me about the joy of playing the piano... but fun? I don't remember that lesson. So why it is that so many people... teachers, students and parents... are putting out so much effort striving to make practicing fun?

To me, an activity is "fun" when there is instant gratification. It's fun to go to the beach and swim in the ocean. It's fun to play games. It's fun to talk with my friends. But practicing? It doesn't feel the same to me. With practicing, the gratification is usually delayed because I am striving for a goal that most often I will not reach immediately. I have learned through long experience that the reward... the gratification from piano practicing... will eventually come, but most often it will come tomorrow or the next week or month."

Read the full article here.

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