Micek Music

This book is an excellent and inexpensive resource for helping students get the most out of their time between music lessons.  Spending a mere $2.99 could go a long way toward improving the practice mindset for parents. Specific chapters discuss how to create the right home environment, attitude, and tips on making practice fun. Written by Tracy Selle, a veteran piano teacher.

The most valuable piece of advice that anyone gave me was a high school friend who was a more advanced player than I was. He said, "If you want to get better, play at least an hour a day, every day." At the time we would jam on the weekend for six hours, and I might practice some chords once or twice after I had done my homework. I said, "I'm going to try that," and I really felt my playing rise. It gave me confidence that this works, and that encouraged me. The other thing is that it has to be playing. While I was very committed to developing technique, when I was doing eight hours a day it was like two hours of technique, it was two hours of theory, it was two hours of improvisation, and then it was two hours of "free swim," where I could either do more technique or I'd work on some funny sounds or whatever. Some of that felt like work, but a lot of it was really fun. The third thing is you get better when you play with other people, an...

From an article by Corinna Da Fonseca-Wollheim, published in the Wall Street Journal 9/29/11: Performance psychologists are invited into music departments nation-wide, as educators recognize the need to prepare musicians for the competitive, high-stakes world of classical music. In the past, performance anxiety was rarely discussed; if anything, it was seen as a Darwinian way of separating those fit for a solo career from those doomed to teach. Today, performance psychologists advertise their services as coaches, not shrinks, providing musicians the same concrete tools and drills offered athletes and CEOs. ----- Fear is not the problem: If you want to do well, you will probably experience fear. [The newer approach] is to build up the mental skills needed in a performance, like courage, trust and a focus on higher-order qualities: artistry and expression for musicians, strategy for athletes. Much of this involves [mental training] ... In addition, [performance psychologists coax] tea...

I am attending the annual Music Teachers Association of CA (MTAC) convention at the Marriott hotel in downtown Oakland this weekend. The city of Oakland is a great tease. It seduces you with its grand history, cultural diversity, and urban attitude. But just as soon as you let your guard down it buffets you with some harsh reality. For many Oakland residents I'm sure the first blow is a personal encounter with crime. I can attest to this sensation from my years living in Oakland: when my car was stolen, I experienced a loss of innocence coupled with a feeling of violation. I love Oakland, but now that I'm almost two years removed from living there I understand better why it's best for me to reside elsewhere. On my lunch break today I was saddened at the number of homeless people sleeping on the ground in Ogawa Plaza at midday. Adding to my melancholy was the amount of rubbish on the ground in the plaza. Trash was everywhere and it was not a pretty sight. My Jamba Juice sm...

Here's another outstanding offering from Australian music educator Nicole Murphy. Her postings on the Music Teacher's blog are always insightful, and her compilation of "20 Practice Tips" for musicians is no exception: 1. Warm Up 2. Practise often Small, frequent practice sessions are more effective than one or two longer sessions each week. 3. Have a plan Have immediate, short and long-term goals. 4. Develop a practise routine that works for you 5. Practise at your instrument and away from it Next time you’re on a bus, plane or train, try practising without your instrument. Study the score, analyse the harmony, think through the phrasing. You will be amazed at how easy it is to become familiar with a piece when you don’t have your technique distracting you. 6. Listen Enough said. 7. Make notes Keep a pencil with your instrument and scribble as often as you need to in a practice journal or on your music. As you become more familiar with a piece you can start to rem...

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...

Here's another article on the ever-vital topic of how to get your child to practice their instrument. This piece is written by J. Dean, published at the Piano Teachers Federation website, 12/7/10: "When I was a child, there was not as much competition for my time as there is for kids now. I realize that, but I believe that practicing the piano should be a habit. A habit like brushing your teeth everyday, exercising, doing homework. In the beginning having a child practice Monday through Friday at least 15 minutes a day not only shows consistent advancement but also decreases anxiety over practicing. For example, every parent expects their child to do their homework every night and every child accepts that and it is worked in as part of their daily routine. When piano lessons are started your child should add piano practicing as part of their daily routine. If you plan exactly when and what time the piano practice will take place, then anxiety and fighting over practicing is ...

Practice suggestions from musician and author Gerald Klickstein: Six ways to enjoy detailed practice 1.   Bring meaning to every gesture.  You might be working on a scale or a masterpiece, but, regardless, shoot sparks of imagination through every sound you make. 2.   Isolate problem spots in context.  When you tackle troublesome passages, sense the dramatic framework from which they’re extracted. For example, if a string player practices a 3-note segment with a tricky left-hand shift, she should still express the emotional energy of the larger phrase. 3.   Take pleasure in excellence.  In my book  The Musician’s Way , I highlight seven Habits of Excellence: ease, expressiveness, accuracy, rhythmic vitality, beautiful tone, focused attention, and positive attitude (p. 20-23). To be meticulous in practice, we have to enjoy embodying these qualities. So choose accessible music, set high standards for yourself, and revel in meetin...

"Do not dissipate your formative years. Deal with problems and solutions NOW. Do not take shortcuts. Be scrupulous in your learning of details, especially fingering and phrasing. Listen to yourself and others. Practice creatively, with joy and expectation and the fullest brain activity. Be open and flexible. Learn to focus and concentrate. Build a reliable technique. Do not merely recreate the music, experience it! Form stylistic understanding by listening to the operas of Mozart, the string quartets of Beethoven, the symphonies of Brahms, the Schubert  lieder , the Brandenburg Concerti of Bach, etc. It will give you greater insight into their piano works."

Here is an excerpt from an article written by a music teacher in Bakersfield, CA. She entitled it " Why Music? ": I often hear from parents about your frustration in having to constantly remind your children to practice.  As my Mom says, here you are trying to steer these young lives into beneficial directions, but they all have their own motors!  So it’s easy to begin to question if it’s all worth it.  Well, here are some things to consider. Diligent practice of music will make your children prosperous…successful in life.  To support this idea, think for a moment about the requirements of successful music practice.  To be successful you must: 1. Be willing to work hard. 2. Be faithful on a consistent basis, even when you don’t feel like it. 3. Pay attention to details - not skipping over things. 4. Have the ability to work on your own and not rely on others. 5. Use your creativity to solve problems (i.e. tricky fingerings or new interpretations) 6. Be pers...

From a 9/6/10 post on a Music Teachers' blog by Chris Foley entitled " Building Practice Habits That Work ": As music teachers, how can we help our students to take advantage of these techniques and create more effective practice habits? 1.  Changing locations . This might be a bit difficult for piano students, but is remarkably easy for just about every other instrument. Getting students to practice in different locations within their house might be a way to create a constantly changing learning environment, whether they’re in the living room, basement or their bedroom. The effectiveness of this technique will come as no surprise to university students, who are used to constantly changing quarters in their frantic daily quest for a practice room. 2.  Alternating activities within one session . Most teachers probably teach this way already, carefully budgeting their teaching time between repertoire, technique, ear training, sight reading, and theory. However, it would ...

I came across an excellent article written by pianist & teacher Jennifer Thomas regarding that essential element in musical progression: practice . Here is an excerpt: I recently asked a group of parents what was the one thing they needed help with regarding their children’s music lessons, as well as something that the teacher could be working on as well.  The answer:   Motivating children to practice. I’ve had this discussion with my own students’ parents many times.  Some parents really push their kids, and some have little to no involvement at all.  What are they doing wrong? What are they doing right? These are things they ask me.  I personally do not think that there is one right answer because every person is unique.  For example, I was a very self-motivated child and never had to be told to practice.  I just did it, and excelled at it. However, I know that some of my students don’t progress with this type of method in the home and pra...

"I never practice; I always play." - Wanda Landowska

"Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best." - Tim Duncan , quoting his mother

"Talent is only a starting point." - Irving Berlin

"There are no shortcuts to any place worth going." - Beverly Sills

There's a teacher who posts videos of her students on Youtube who goes by the name " BelCantoV ". I subscribe to her video posts. One of her students is a young lad named Andrei who seems like a very cool and precocious little dude. Though he's young, he's already begun composing his own music (examples: ">here and ">here ). Anyway, his latest video performance is an excellent microcosm of the typical music student's experience. At first one tries and does not succeed, but if one is willing to persist and remain patient the joy of music and the thoughtfulness of its great artists will gradually unfold. Or, as BelCantoV puts it, "Everyone can see how hard we try and how many passions in music we have...". That sounds like Yoda to me, but at this moment I'll buy it. Here's Andrei taking Tim Gunn's advice and "making it work":

"If I've learned nothing else, it's that time and practice equal achievement." - Andre Agassi

I just read an excellent blog post by one Chris Foley. Read the full post here . Below are his suggestions for improving one's musicianship this year (or any year): 1. Define your goals 2. Stick to a regular practice schedule 3. Refine your practice process 4. Take it to the people 5. Go on a diet – of listening 6. Spend time on ear training 7. Get technical 8. Learn the theory 9. Learn the history 10. Learn to sight read Becoming accomplished at an instrument ought to be a life-long journey. If you don't accomplish all your goals as soon as you'd like, don't despair! Give yourself ample time to grow and mature into musical understanding. Playing a musical instrument can provide joy for a lifetime.

By concert pianist Susan Tomes, published in The Guardian, 4/20/07: "I recently went to a party where our host regaled us with a compilation of concert recordings in which famous pianists had suffered from horrible memory lapses. Everyone fell about with laughter at the sound of celebrities going hideously off the rails, but, as a pianist, I found it an uncomfortable experience. The struggles of Curzon, Richter and Rubinstein with memorisation had become a spectator sport. Playing from memory in public is a fairly recent fashion. Before the late 19th century, playing without the score was often considered a sign of casualness, even of arrogance. The custom of playing from memory developed along with the growth of a body of classics that everyone agreed were worth preserving exactly as their composers had intended. Teachers encouraged students to memorise them. Many young players memorise easily, but it gets harder as time goes on. As the pianist Charles Rosen put it: 'With adv...