Summer flute practice: accountability and motivation - who are they?
Tell me if this sounds familiar:
You play the flute. For school, or for band, or just for fun. Summer rolls around…I call that the “off season”. Rehearsals slow down, there’s no class, no structure, the world is your oyster. You can do as many creative things and practice as much as you want and whenever you want. It’s great.
Suddenly it’s the middle of August, and that entire summer was spent thinking about all the stuff you can get done in your free or more flexible time.
Whoops.
How to learn difficult parts in music easily - break it down!
This is my most suggested practice strategy that I go over with students, and also one that I think we tend to forget about the most when we’re faced with a difficult passage in our music:
Disassemble the passage to its most basic form, and then build it back up piece by piece.
Thoughts from a recovering perfectionist: commit to the bit
You may have heard of the phrase “commit to the bit” here and there, but maybe haven’t put much thought into it. But whenever I end up in a situation reflecting on performance anxiety as well as finding joy in performing music, or even every day life (in the joy of being), I always come back to that phrase - commit to the bit.
It means completely committing your whole self to whatever thing it is you’re doing, and trusting. No half-measures, no apologies - just your full self. Even when everything inside is going “no, let’s go back to what’s normal, comfortable, what we’re used to and hiding away.”
Practice Tips: Trills versus Counting - who will win? (spoiler alert: it’s you!)
You’re playing in band, on a really long trill, but suddenly you’ve completely lost count as to where you are in the long high note wiggle - oh no. OH NO.
Keep reading to get some helpful tips to combat this!
Thoughts from a recovering perfectionist: self-recording
Recording my own playing…just the thought gave me the heebie jeebies for a long time. Everyone says we should do it for a whole host of reasons, but sometimes the thought of it gives the eugh.
Well…I hate to say it, but they’re right.
“But I don’t like the way I sound on a recording, the minute I hit record all my skill goes out the window, it makes me nervous, what if someone else hears it, what if someone else hears it and gives unsolicited advice, but I know it’s for practice and improving but I just can’t stop doing takes until it’s perfect.”
Does that sound familiar? I see you (unless you don’t wish to be perceived, I totally get it.)
I too was once very put off by recording my own playing and listening back. Sometimes I still am…but I feel the eugh an do it anyway.
Here’s why…
Progress is wibbly-wobbly, and sometimes a surprise
Progress isn’t linear and it doesn’t always show up where or when you expect.
Pre-practice prompts (and things to try)
Some pre-practice prompts and some things to try for today.
How to fix your mistakes faster with the three I's
📚It's Saturday so I'm in teacher mode - LET'S GO!! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
This is what I've started to call ✨The Three I's✨ (or my version of variations on "chunking")
5 pieces of advice I would tell my younger self going into music school.
🏫Wait a minute, Doc. You're telling me...you built a time machine...? Out of a DeLorean?!
Fine, that's all fiction, BUT I was thinking as I see back to school commercials everywhere - what kind of advice would I tell my younger self just starting music school?