1. Always warm up using longtones. Slowly. No, slower. (Remember, you wouldn’t try to run a mile without stretching, right?) This is a great time to focus on air support, tone, hand and body position, breathing, dynamics, and just getting your head into the game. Don’t know what to warm up on? Check out my free stuff for a Longtones Sheet.
2. Play what you know. Practice what you don’t know. It’s always fun to play through stuff that you know how to play well. But that’s not practicing. When you practice you work on stuff that you don’t know. The challenges, the spots that trip you up, the blurps between notes, and you do it over and over and over and over and over…. (get the point?) But be patient. Learning to play an instrument well takes time.
3. The best way to practice is to break up the music into smaller more manageable chunks. This could mean 4 measures or just 2 notes. Practice the hard parts, out of context from the rest of the piece, at a slower tempo, with varied articulation and/or rhythms. When it’s ready (can you play it 5 times in a row without making a mistake?) then put it back into the context of the music.
4. Practice a little each day. Or better yet, a lot each day, but make sure it’s each day. You’ll get far more accomplished playing for 30 minutes 6 days a week, then you will trying to cram 3 hours in on Sunday.
5. Avoid “Eh, it’s close enough” *shrug*. This is the detriment to all musicians and music students. It’s not “close enough”, it’s black or white: either you can do it or you can’t. No jugdement, just fact. Be honest with yourself and if you can’t do something yet, figure out a way to work on it some more. You’ll get it eventually.
6. The metronome is your BFF. Always practice with a metronome. Find creative ways to use it so it’s doesn’t become boring and mundane.
7. Practice the way you perform, because you will perform the way you practice. This is true on so many levels – everything from using the correct posture (get off your bed and go sit in a chair) to practicing a performance so that you feel nervous. Have a big test coming up? Invited your family to listen to you take the test.
8. Record yourself. There’s nothing more eye opening then listening to a recording of yourself playing. Put yourself into the audience and critique your own playing. (Remember to be constructive!)
More coming soon! Please check back!
Thanks Monica, those are some solid tips for practicing saxophone. Recording yourself and critiquing can be painful sometimes though….