August 4, 2016
Practicing an instrument isn’t most people’s idea of fun. But if you want to see any improvement it needs to be a daily ritual. These 10 tips should help you develop a regular routine that is efficient, effective, and hopefully even fun. Anyone can learn the piano, from kids to adults to grandparents – all it takes is regular practice.
Feel free to contact Pianoforte if you want to organise piano lessons in the Sydney area.
- Avoid Marathon Practice Sessions
No matter how long you want to practice in one day, be sure to break it up into manageable chunks. If you sit and practice for three hours straight, you may feel you’ve achieved a lot, but your results will be poor. - Maintain a Regular Practice Schedule
Practice daily, for the same amount of time, and ideally at the same time or times. This will create good discipline and be easier to maintain long term. - Exercise Away from the Piano Too!
Whatever exercises you decide to use, keep them simple. You should be concentrating on improving technique, not on struggling to remember the next note.
Ask your teacher for finger exercises you can do on a tabletop or your thigh. That way you can focus attention on finger independence and strength completely independent of notes.
- Learn New Music Slowly
Before you start learning a piece, analyse it a little to get a feel for its shape. Once you start learning, practice it slower than the marked tempo until you are completely sure you have it right. Barrelling ahead may lead you to memorise mistakes, and these are difficult to unlearn.
- Stick to the Music… Most of the Time
If you are called on to perform or record a piece, you may want to take creative liberties, but while learning its best to stick to what’s written.
You should also try to follow fingering markings wherever possible, but these can be changed if they really don’t work for your hands.
- Perfecting a Piece
Once you have memorised a piece of music, the real work begins. Don’t just play it over and over again, zero in on tricky spots, try new things, and stay flexible. Each time you play should be unique, not rote regurgitation.
- Stay Supple
When practising scales, play each hand with a different touch and try playing musical games where you vary exercises in unique and challenging ways. This will help to make each hand independent, keep you supple, and stop you falling into lazy habits. - Whole Body Playing
Remember that playing the piano involves the coordinated movement of your whole body, including arms, fingers, legs, posture – everything! Try slowing right down sometimes, so you can be mindful of each part of your body and how it is helping or hindering your playing. - Practice without the Pedals
Practising a little slower and without using pedals to smooth out the sound will force you to develop a more disciplined, legato finer style.
- The Power of Distractions
This one sounds strange, but try to practice with talk radio or a podcast on in the background. Studies have shown that a certain amount of background noise actually increases concentration and productivity!
If you’re interested in taking your piano playing to the next level, consider Piano lessons with Pianoforte. To find out more, simply get in touch with us today. Call 02 9411 8911.
