Learning the violin is no easy feat, and smart practice habits are going to be essential. Good practice should involve close attention detail, and concentrated attention. While some musicians might have a natural instinct for how to play particular passages, all musicians have to work harder in order to improve.

The Best Practice Habits

The best way to begin developing good practice habits, surprisingly, is in your diet, making sure you have natural fuel during a practice session. Consuming food that gives you natural energy is going to be essential, since playing the violin involves stamina.

You also need to set aside a specific time of day when you have no distractions, and when you’re at your sharpest. The morning usually works best for many people, though not for all.

It’s important not worry about how long you practice, and instead focus on what you accomplish during your session. In this regard, smart practicing means taking on certain passages that are giving you trouble and honing those trouble spots.

Yes, it happens to all violinists and other musicians. They may have an overly difficult passage in a piece that they can’t quite grasp. Every time the piece is played in real time, they keep making the same mistake every time. In that scenario, your best practice time is taking this one passage and working it out every day until you fully understand it.

If you’re still stuck, try consulting a violinist, or someone who’s played the piece before.

Practice Habits to Avoid

When you go back to tackling those difficult passages, be sure to look for real solutions, or you may get stuck in that musical trap of making the same mistakes over and over. It’s easy to get stuck assimilating a passage wrong to a point where you keep doing it and can’t stop. This may be the worst habit in all of musical practice, no matter what instrument you play.

You also want to avoid practicing when you’re tired, which might be tempting if you’re working another job and don’t have other time to practice. When you’re tired, you start to fall into the above bad habit of learning passages incorrectly.

The positive connection between finding the right time and paying attention to what you’re doing is always your best plan in practicing the violin. With so many great violinists continuing to concertize here in Finland and around the world, it’s clear that practice sessions are becoming more effective when brought together with natural talent.

Visit us here at How Violins OY to learn more about the violin and how we service, sell, and restore all bowed stringed instruments. Keep reading our blog to learn more tips about how to become a better musician.

photo credit: jeremytarling via photopin cc

Learning the violin is no easy feat, and smart practice habits are going to be essential. Good practice should involve close attention detail, and concentrated attention. While some musicians might have a natural instinct for how to play particular passages, all musicians have to work harder in order to improve.

The Best Practice Habits

The best way to begin developing good practice habits, surprisingly, is in your diet, making sure you have natural fuel during a practice session. Consuming food that gives you natural energy is going to be essential, since playing the violin involves stamina.

You also need to set aside a specific time of day when you have no distractions, and when you’re at your sharpest. The morning usually works best for many people, though not for all.

It’s important not worry about how long you practice, and instead focus on what you accomplish during your session. In this regard, smart practicing means taking on certain passages that are giving you trouble and honing those trouble spots.

Yes, it happens to all violinists and other musicians. They may have an overly difficult passage in a piece that they can’t quite grasp. Every time the piece is played in real time, they keep making the same mistake every time. In that scenario, your best practice time is taking this one passage and working it out every day until you fully understand it.

If you’re still stuck, try consulting a violinist, or someone who’s played the piece before.

Practice Habits to Avoid

When you go back to tackling those difficult passages, be sure to look for real solutions, or you may get stuck in that musical trap of making the same mistakes over and over. It’s easy to get stuck assimilating a passage wrong to a point where you keep doing it and can’t stop. This may be the worst habit in all of musical practice, no matter what instrument you play.

You also want to avoid practicing when you’re tired, which might be tempting if you’re working another job and don’t have other time to practice. When you’re tired, you start to fall into the above bad habit of learning passages incorrectly.

The positive connection between finding the right time and paying attention to what you’re doing is always your best plan in practicing the violin. With so many great violinists continuing to concertize here in Finland and around the world, it’s clear that practice sessions are becoming more effective when brought together with natural talent.

Visit us here at How Violins OY to learn more about the violin and how we service, sell, and restore all bowed stringed instruments. Keep reading our blog to learn more tips about how to become a better musician.

photo credit: jeremytarling via photopin cc