How long should I practice?
Parents and students alike often ask me how long and how often they should be practicing. While I’d love to be able to give you a stock answer, it’s not that simple. I’ll likely break this down into a series by Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced student, but let’s start with the basics.
A better question than “how long should I practice?” is “how often should I practice?” There is no such thing as “cramming” for a lesson. Your brain will not retain an hour or even hours of practice the day before a lesson the way it will hold onto consistent practice, even at smaller intervals of time. No one expects you to be a concert pianist, but your teacher certainly expects commitment. Here are my tips for making it happen:
Schedule a time, preferably near something you do everyday: Be it after you brush your teeth, eat dinner, finish soccer practice, end of a cable show (does that happen anymore?). The more often practice is associated with something that happens regularly and often, the more likely it is to happen regularly and often. “After homework” isn’t as likely to happen.
Make a plan: Did Ms. Jackie recommend you practice backwards? Do you know your trouble spots? Are you sure Ms. Jackie is going to ask to hear that scale you’re supposed to review? Prioritize what you know needs work and what happens the most often. Scales are the beginning of every lesson. Yes, they can be boring. No, they’re not going away. Practice your scales first and they’re done. Practicing troubling spots of a piece is less satisfying, but way more likely to bring you a happy teacher. Play those troublesome two measures not until they’re right, but until you can’t get them wrong.
Know your attention span: Research suggests the human brain loses interest in about 7 minutes. That said, I’m not suggesting you practice for 7 minutes. Stay in tune with yourself and when you start to zone out. If you’re zoning it’s time to focus on a different page, different section, maybe even different piece. Ideally you have a “project” piece and some easier material. If you don’t, take a break by making up a melody, trying to memorize an old song, or sight-reading something new. After you take a break, come back to the original (more difficult) piece.
So all that said, how long should you practice? As long as you consistently can. A beginner who wants to progress should practice 5-7 days a week for 15-30 minutes depending on motivation and attention span. An intermediate to advanced student should practice 6-7 days a week for anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes depending on the piece.
