How often do you practice/play?

[Changeling01960]

How often do you practice or play? It can be straight practice time, band practice, gigs, or a combination of them all.

[miroslav]

Not enough. I go through phasesplay, play, playand then sometime nothing for days.

 

I think a couple of hours maybe 4-5 times per week would be a good amount once you have a decent foundation...or a little more if you are trying to take things to a different level or learning something totally new...a different playing style.

I also think practicing every single day for 6 hours can be somewhat counterproductive.

A couple of days on and then a day off may work better....otherwise it can all become rather "mechanical". It's a musical instrument...it's not an athletic competition.

I believe even athletes do the on/off thing instead of every day.

 

And maybe change up the practices so that one day you focus on technique by doing scales/exercises...and another day you focus on lines/licks/melody, etc.

Or split each practice and do a little of both.

 

Now if I can just get my ass on that schedule... :grin:

 

[picker]

Hardly at all, and it shows.

[Changeling01960]

I try to play at least 5 or 6 times a week, 45 minutes or so on week nights and an hour or so on the weekends. But I am a beginner so I need all the practice I can get. It doesn't feel like practice because it's fun, and I only put it down because I have stuff to do around the house.

 

Right now I start with warm up exercises then play blues scales and pentatonic scales and move on to chords & changes. After that I play some basic songs I've learned and on the weekends I'll go to a tab site and treat myself to a new tune after I am done with my routine. I wouldn't mind playing 3 or 4 hours a day if I had the time.

[AlChuck]

Baseline for me is approximately 1 hr. five days a week practicing, I get up at 5 to do that.

I try to do some when I get home from work, sometimes learning tunes for the new band I'm in, sometimes working on other stuff. I usually get in an hour or so.

Wednesday I either practice with the band for 2 to 2 1/2 hrs, or go sit in at a blues jam (which translates to about 20 minutes of playing time), and sometimes both.

Saturdays and Sundays I try to practice a bunch if I can, depends on what's going on.

Sunday nights I often go to another blues jam, which adds another half-hour plus.

 

[p90jr]

I find some chance to play at least a little every day. I'm usually playing at the same time I'm reading this board, like now. Gigs are pretty regular... practice with bands less so, these days...

[J. Dan]

I really don't practice unless we're learning new songs, which is maybe about once every 4-6 months. In which case, I'll spend a few hours here and there for maybe a week until practice. After that it's on the set list.

 

So basically - every Friday and Saturday, I play keys, Guitar, and Sax. Besides that, I play my piano at home maybe a few hours a week. I play my bass for a couple hours every once in a while whenever I'm thinking about how much I miss playing bass (maybe about every other week). I never play the sax at home. Guitar I rarely pickup besides gigs.

 

Of course I do a lot of travelling during the week, and when I am home, the kids are in bed by 8, which makes it tough.

[Larryz]

I try to work in an hour a day for practice...sometimes I go 2 hours and sometimes I miss a day...so it all works out...

[Changeling01960]

Does it make me a bad person because I came home from work today and grabbed my guitar before I said hello to my wife?

 

And is it a bad sign that I'm hoping it rains tomorrow so I can stay in and play rather than go out and do stuff?

[miroslav]

Does it make me a bad person because I came home from work today and grabbed my guitar before I said hello to my wife?

 

That's for you wife to decide. :grin:

 

And is it a bad sign that I'm hoping it rains tomorrow so I can stay in and play rather than go out and do stuff?

 

I do that all the time....only I try to put on a sad face about not being able to go out and to stuff.... until I get into my studio!

[Guitarzan]

i play every day, mostly unplugged for sure and regular headphone romps with modeling. if nobody is home then i massage my amp. but the headphone playing is more rewarding because i get to lay down rhythm to play over.

this is more productive to me as i develop more musical ideas with backing tracks i create.

[Eric Iverson]

I play mandolin every day, and am trying to discipline myself to get at least 30 mins. in on the flute - my teacher tells me that consistency is more important than anything else, so I can develop the "baby muscles" of my embouchure.

 

Guitar? I pick it up 2 or 3 times a week on my own, but I'm playing guitar in a church band, which keeps me active at least though it's not all that challenging. Good singers, though, and I get to help the up-and-coming young guitarists (when they show up that is!)

 

But playing "Willow Weep For Me" and a Bach Forlane on flute has inspired to start practicing jazz charts and simple classical pieces again on guitar.

[Larryz]

Got a gig coming up so it kinda get in the way of what I want to work on (ie. covers vs. jazz) but after the gig it's back to jazz and/or original stuff...and like guitarzan I've got to get back on playing over some rhythm grooves and just improvising...