How to Practice:

1.) Practice a little EVERY day; this is far better than two
long practices a week.

2.) Have a certain time set aside each day specifically for practice; make it part of
your daily routine. If needed, split your daily practice into two short sessions.

3.) Start at the beginning of your pieces and play all the way through them
slowly one time each day. Then learn it a few measures at a time being
careful to practice notes, fingerings, rhythms, dynamics, etc. accurately.

4.) Do not worry about how fast you play through your piece; instead, focus on
practicing your piece VERY SLOWLY and correctly. Practicing pieces correctly
means you will perform them correctly. In time, speed will come.

5.) Do NOT practice mistakes! Perfect practice makes for perfect performance. If you
struggle with a certain passage in your music, STOP and work on just that spot until you play
it perfectly 10 times in a row. After that, every time you miss it, stop and work on it again until
you get it perfect 10 times in a row. It will eventually come perfectly and easily every time you
play it.

6.) Sometimes start in the middle of your piece and work through it until the end.

7.) Record yourself and listen and critique your playing.

8.) Practice the hard spots – not just the parts that you like.

9.) Listen to your piece being played by great players.

10.) Write down your goals for your practice each day and work towards them.

11.) Practice away from the piano; think through your music, hear it in your head
and “feel” yourself playing it. Think through the difficult parts and “play”
through them in your mind. If you’re memorizing, this is an excellent way to
test your memory skills – can you name each note or chord?

12.) Think positive thoughts! You CAN do it! Focus on your accomplishments
and let those encourage you when you think you can’t do it; you can do
anything you put your mind to.

Copyright © 2016 Jennifer Shambaugh May not be sold or redistributed