Smart Practicing Below are a number of effective techniques from Thomas Bacon that can help you achieve your best results when practicing for your next audition, concert, or recital. Chunking - The technique of practicing small chunks, a couple of notes or a short passage, instead of always playing through an entire piece. Very often it will be only small parts of a musical work that make it seem difficult: an awkward slur, an odd interval, a quick rhythm, etc. Identify and fix those little chunks first, and you will learn the piece much faster. Apply Chunking with great results in The Metronome Game and One Note Practice. The Metronome Game - Working on a fast passage that always sounds sloppy when you play it up to tempo? Play The Metronome Game. Here are the rules: Turn on the metronome at a tempo that is somewhat slower than where you think you can play the passage easily and perfectly. It may be half the desired tempo, or slower, and that is fine! Play the passage with the metronome. Ask yourself the question: “Was that exactly the way I want it to be?” That is: did you play all the right notes with the right fingerings, dynamics, rhythms, etc. in every regard exactly the way you want to perform it, even though it’s slower? If “yes,” move the metronome up two numbers and repeat steps 2 through 4. If “no,” give yourself another attempt at the passage. If you get two “nos” in a row, move the metronome down two numbers and repeat steps 2 through 4. The metronome game can be very effective in working up fast passages quickly. But for this to be true, you must observe several things: First is honesty. You won’t get great results without it. If you allow a “yes” to get by that was sloppy, had a missed note, a “fluffed” attack, or other little discrepancy, you will end up with a fast, and consistently sloppy performance! Second, the question in step 3 is a simple “yes” or “no” question. There are no “maybes” or “almosts.” If it is a “yes” you will know it immediately. You will not have to analyze it. If you cannot say “yes” immediately and with conviction, simply say “no” and get back to work! Third, be patient. The metronome game can sometimes get you great results in one short practice sessions. Often though, if the piece is really challenging and has many difficult passages, it can take several weeks -or more-to work something up from half tempo to full tempo. But is it ever worth it! You will be amazed at how effective The Metronome Game can be in working up pieces that seem almost impossible when you first attempt them. But don’t cheat at this game. You may fool yourself and think you can get away with it, but you won’t fool your audience. One Note Practice - When you play a passage with inconsistencies like missed notes or different sounding attacks on each note, try One Note Practice. Here are the rules: Play the first note of the passage ten times in a row. Play it in measured time, with measured rests in between each repetition. For example, play the note at a moderate tempo for one quarter, then rest for three quarters. A metronome can be a big help! Each time you play it, ask yourself the question: “Was that exactly the way I want it to be?” That is: did you play the right note with the right fingering, dynamic, articulation, etc. in every regard exactly the way you want to perform it? Count the number of “yeses.” Repeat until you have achieved ten “yeses” in a row, resting briefly after each set of ten. NOTE: The question in step 2 is a simple “yes” or “no” question. There are no “maybes” or “almosts,” and there should never be debate. If it is a “yes” you will know it immediately. If you cannot say “yes” immediately and with conviction, simply say “no,” then get back to work. This technique also works with two notes, or short “chunks.” Mouthpiece Practice - Got a hard tonguing passage that’s leaving you tongue tied, or a rough slur that you just can’t get smooth? Many problems can be addressed with great success by practicing them on the mouthpiece until they become easy. Working on double or triple tonguing on the mouthpiece can be particularly beneficial. If you can make it sound even pretty good on just the mouthpiece, it will usually sound very good when you put the mouthpiece back into the horn. Some people devote a lot of their daily practice routine to mouthpiece exercises. Play it All - The technique of playing it through, in its entirety, counting rests, taking breaks in real time. Whatever “it” is, whether it be a concerto, concert, or an audition, it should be played through from start to finish, without any restarts, an no stops other than what would be part of the performance. It should be as close to a simulated performance as you can achieve in your practice room. During the practice make mental notes of passages that don’t go well, and address those specifically in Chunking later. In between movements or pieces, quickly jot down the mental notes in a practice log or diary so you will remember what you have to work on at your next practice session. Distorted Rhythm - This technique is especially useful when confronted by awkward passages of steady eighth or sixteenth notes. Try playing the passage at a much slower tempo, but with a very snappy dotted (almost double dotted) rhythm. Then reverse the dotted rhythm. For example: take a troublesome scale passage, set the metronome at half or maybe one third of the desired tempo and play the passage with dotted rhythms instead of even notes. Play the short notes very snappy. Repeat a few times, until it becomes easy and sounds good. Then reverse the rhythm so the notes that were dotted now become the short notes. Again play the short notes very snappy. Repeat a few times, until it becomes easy and sounds good. Then play the passage one way, followed by the reverse way. Repeat a few times until you can alternately play it dotted one way, then the other, and they both sound good. Then play it in normal rhythm. You will surely notice a difference. Take it to the Easy Place - If there is a passage -or a whole piece -that you play over and over, each time realizing that it is not what you want, but it just doesn’t get better...Take it to the Easy Place! For example, if the problem is that the range is too high, then take it down. Transpose it a fourth (or an octave) lower and practice it there until it sounds just the way you want it to, then do it a half step higher, and so on until you reach the desired range. If it is too low, then transpose it up and gradually work it down by half steps. If it is too fast, play it slower (see The Metronome Game). If the piece is too long, then practice smaller pieces of it (see Chunking and One Note Practice), gradually adding the chunks together until you have the whole piece. Other Thoughts - Other problems can be solved by taking it OUT of the practice room and INTO the listening room -listen to recordings of the piece, or pieces, performed by players you admire. Then go back to your practice room and try to emulate it, and ultimately make it your own! Practice makes perfect. But if you practice sloppy, you will perfect the art of sloppy performance. Only if you practice greatness will you perform great. Things take time. Patience is essential in achieving great practice. Approach each practice session with a specific goal and plan on how to achieve it. It’s okay to say “no.” In fact, it is essential if you want to achieve great practice habits. Say “no” whenever you hear something in your practice that is not exactly what you want it to be, then figure out how to turn it into a “yes.” Learn how to combine different practice techniques to achieve maximum results in minimum time. Back to the Education Page