There have been all kinds of discussions on “how to practice.” I’ve tried many different approaches, but sooner or later it boils down to me getting frustrated or bored. Practice forward rolls, practice square rolls, practice with tabs, practice without tabs, practice with tef files, practice without looking at anything, one cluster of mistakes after another. Pretty soon all the fun gets sucked out, and a half hour of practice seems like 30 hours of tedium.
Yesterday, on a whim, I set the timer on my phone to 10 minutes and 10 seconds.
In those 10 minutes I would practice just one thing. Just as I was getting frustrated (or making progress), the timer would go off. Saved from the boredom! And tantalized by the progress.
Start the 10 minute timer again and do something completely different. And so on.
Much to my surprise, this has taken off a lot of self-imposed pressure to be “better.” 30 minutes of practice pass quickly, and it’s much easier to complete a full hour of practice. I only have to re-set my timer 3 times or 3 times twice.
And in 10 minutes today, I discovered if I move my left thumb a bit closer to my hand on the neck, it’s easier for me to get my pinky to work right.
“How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.”
Re-Inventing Practice
You have just realized a very important practice habit. When I was at the school of music (Armed Forces school of music) I was the fifth best bass player out of five. And wouldn’t you know it my roommate was the best player in the school. He was very arrogant, but he was very good. I finally got up the courage to ask him “why is it that we have the same instructor we are working out of the same textbook and we are taking the same lessons, yet every week you blow through the lessons and every week I struggle?“ His answer, though rude, was full of truth. He said “the way you practice is stupid. I listen to you practice and you do not focus on anything. You flipped from this thing to that thing and you just tip your hat to whatever it is our teacher wants us to practice. When I practice I take one concept and work that one concept for 10 minutes . Then I leave it. Then I go to another concept for 10 minutes. Then I’ll leave it. I never practice on any one thing longer than 10 minutes at a time. But during those 10 minutes that is the only thing I do. If it’s a scale or a pattern I’m learning or a Lick I’m learning - in 10 minutes time I can play that thing probably 100 times. I own that scale pattern or lick after 10 minutes.“ Smartest thing I have ever been told. And you discovered that on your own. I think you’ll find it will change your life “musically”. Get after it!
Wow! I had no idea, but I should have.
This would not be the first time I labored, struggled, sweated, cursed & bemoaned my fate, only to re-invent the wheel. 
Thank you very much for your positive reinforcement!
I’m going to try this!
“I’m going to try this!”
I’m doing it now as I make my way through Blackberry blossom. Let’s do some thinking here… here is why this form of practicing is so effective…
Here is the first A section for “Blackberry Blossom”:
If you were to split up a 30 minute practice session, you might think of practicing the kickoff through the end of the top line… four measures for the first 10 minutes. Play it slowly and deliberately - as slow as you need to in order to play it perfectly. Let’s say it takes me 8 seconds to play it… 10 seconds to play it and reset to play it again. That means I can play this section 6 times in a minute… or (get this) SIXTY times in my 10 minutes! After 10 minutes is up, I go do the same thing for the second A section for 10 minutes (playing it 60 times in the 10 minutes).The third 10 minutes, you put the two sections together… perhaps playing the two sections together 3 times in a minute or 30 times in the 10 minute period. If you did this four times a week, by the end of that week you will have played the each section alone (A1 and A2) 240 times, the two sections together (A1+A2) 120 times , with you having played EACH section a total of 360 times. Do you think you will have a pretty good handle on the first 16 bars of Blackberry blossom after that first week?
One last thought… the purpose of this method of practicing is that you can’t help but memorize this tune as you attack it this way. When this tune becomes internalized, speed starts to show up - because once you have internalized it, your brain won’t have to consciously think about it and slow you down. Just imagine what Blackberry blossom will sound like one month from now, after four weeks of practicing this way.
I know this sounds like alot of work… but there it is. Anything worth having is worth working for.
Mr G out!
