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Can it?
Let's include YouTube and time spent talking and writing about playing jazz.
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03-04-2024 04:57 PM
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Funny thing about this idea.
I agree with it in general.
But as I get older, I realize I can't practice (effectively) for hours at a time.
So I play a couple hours in the morning and then play chess online or scroll through X (Twitter). Then later I go back to practicing or songwriting.
I find that I need to do SOMETHING (-other than practice) in order to recharge FOR (the next) practice.
Nonetheless, I'm glad social media wasn't around when I was a kid---I might be an even worse guitar player now!
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Truer words have never been said
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My motivation fluctuates with my gig schedule.
Originally Posted by MarkRhodes
When I have a gig coming up, I can practice until I physically can't. I'll literally sit and play until my legs go numb. But, if there's no gig, there's no reason to try that hard, so I'll plunk through a new song and then go watch tv.
The forum though, is a great place for me to take little breaks. Like the Howard Roberts Superchops technique, 10 minutes focused practice, small break, repeat.
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Hmmm, I'm wondering if it's time to do another cycle, with more seasoned tips and guiding thoughts. Maybe I'll just put together a program with different tunes... Originally Posted by AllanAllen
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I would participate this time. I know enough to start. Originally Posted by Jimmy blue note
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Yeah, I forum when I'm passed out on my bed too tired to practice.
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I sold out and have a project going with another guitar player. Our main focus is techno. It's not about chops on guitar so I don't practice very much.
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Yeah, I wonder if Wes would have put in so much practice after coming home from work if he had our modern distractions (youtube, facebook, instagram, twitter, as well as JGO !)
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I've been playing the guitar for 32 years. Jazz for about 20.
I can't prove this, but I think I could get a highly motivated student who could devote 2-3 hours of practice time a day to be able to do everything I can do (and more) in 5 years. Whether or not that should ever be anybody's goal, to play like me, is another story.
But that's how lazy and distracted I was. Am. How lazy and distracted I am.
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I have one protege. She's driving everyone in Japan crazy with her singing bowls now.
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I'm probably not a good example of the value of practicing, but I do it in fits and starts.
At least in my old age, I find spending hours at a time playing both tiring and unproductive.
I DO think about how to play songs a lot though, even when I'm driving, cooking, lying down to sleep. I KNOW that this helps me play better the next day, as I've "worked through" some problems during the downtime. (I do this for all kinds of activities, not just music. Woodworking ESPECIALLY--some days I do my best work when I'm not actually in the shop.)
My son is a great example of economy in practicing. He was and still is a talented pianist. He was working his way up the repertoire at about age 15 or 16 and had a recital coming up with some difficult pieces--a Beethoven Sonata being one of them as I recall. He also played the famous Chopin Fantasy Impromptu in C#m. I know he wasn't practicing much, didn't seem like even an hour a day. But he told me he was on top of it.
That recital, held at a state college in WI, was one of the more tense moments I remember, as I nervously waited to see if he could play the piece without embarassing mistakes. He played it...flawlessly, emotionally, to the point I got teary-eyed. He has always had a sense for how much effort to put into something.
As an aside I miss his recitals and band performances immensely. That was a special time, and unfortunately not to happen again in this lifetime. (Though he still plays and records music.)
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As an aside, I just came across this beautiful young woman playing the Chopin Fantasy Impromptu. She does a great job--not as brilliant as early Martha Argerich, but very nice playing.
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At this point in my life, I don't really care about getting any better as a player. I'm too old for that. I just want to enjoy music. Some of that involves playing, practicing, learning. Some of it listening. Some of it is just shooting the shit with other players. Heresy? So be it. ;-)
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Practise? I am not trying to perform at Carnegie Hall. How about having fun, dropping clams, for my own pleasure? Perfect is the enemy of the good (enough).
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If I put in more than 4 or 5 hours daily, all week long, my forearm tries to tell me it's time to find something else to do. I find lots of playing HIGHLY productive. Read: razor sharp chops at the gig.
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Practicing might be finding a way to find the zone and enjoying being in it. It doesn't need to be an athletic event nor should it be one.
I practice so my guitar doesn't feel like an enemy. Once I'm there, I lose track of time.
It begins by pausing YouTube, heh heh.
(That first step is not an easy one. ;-) )
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Already wary of distractions (some are welcome!), nearing retirement age and looking forward to it, I’m in the play for joy camp. Whatever and whenever I practice guitar, it’s to spark joy, and keep it aflame.
There were surely times when I practiced more, in the simpler days before so many media, etc., choices, but at that time I was also a work-a-day musician and practice was part of the job.
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Some years ago (-don't recall which one or what prompted this 'moment of clarity') I realized I don't want to write songs every day. I tend to do that in fits and starts and would often set the guitar aside after a bout of songwriting and home recording. But laying off the guitar during the fits hurt my playing. So, I decided, "I will play guitar, every day, regardless."
I don't get paid for this, but I see it as my job.
It's what I have to show up and do every day.
It doesn't have to be good, and it doesn't have to be for hours, but I have to put time in every single day.
It grounds my being. The rest is gravy.
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I normally practice for an hour or so in my lunch break and again after work. This lunchtime was metronome practice and I could barely wait to get back to work
. Sometimes it's hard to motivate yourself to do the tough practice when you're just playing guitar for fun, as a hobby.
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