UR DOIN IT WRONG

Take a look at this awful/amazing blog! It's basically just a collection of all the ridiculous poses people contort themselves into, in an attempt to look like they know how to play violin.

"Talent"

This comic sums it up pretty nicely.

Big changes!

Hello again, everyone! Wilder Violin Studio's got some really exciting changes coming up this summer!

First, I'd like to officially announce that I will be accepting credit and debit payments starting July of 2013. Forgotten checkbooks and non-exact change will be a thing of the past, since I'll soon be able to swipe your card using my phone. Technology is the coolest!

Sadly, it is time for our partnership with Capitol Music to come to an end. However, this spells nothing but good news for students, parents, and even myself! Starting as soon as this week (!) I will be bringing my lessons to you! This means we'll have lots more flexibility with scheduling, tons fewer distractions (no more having to compete with those trombone lessons in the next room!), no more U-district rush-hour traffic, plus you won't even have to put shoes on for our lesson! It's a win-win-win...win!

Stay tuned for more big changes to the Wilder Violin Studio.

In the meantime, enjoy that sunshine!

How to Use Practice Logs: Part 2

Efficient problem-solving, in general terms, looks like this:

1) Identify- what exactly is the problem?

2) Isolate- narrow the focus to just one problem at a time

3) Experiment- find the best solution

4) Save- make sure the best solution happens from now on

Practicing is just like a problem-solving exercise: we find the tricky spots, figure out how to make them not-tricky, and then log the not-tricky version to memory. Here's a breakdown of the process we use in our lessons, and, hopefully, in practice sessions at home:

Identify Problem Spots:

It's a waste of limited time and energy to work on something that doesn't need work. If it comes easily, you don't need to practice it! Zoom in on smaller and smaller sections, and find exactly which measure is the tricky measure, or which two notes are the tricky notes. Be RIDICULOUSLY specific.

Why is it a Problem Spot?:

We can only knock down the tricky spots once we know WHY they're tricky. Otherwise, we're just mindlessly repeating the measure with no clear goal. As the teacher, it's my task to help identify those "whys" for the student, but soon, the student will be able to see the patterns, and will begin to identify them on their own.

The Whys include things like: rhythm (counting), fingerings, bowing/string crossing, articulation (slurs, staccato, etc.)

Sometimes, the spot will be tricky because of the intersection of two Whys, like rhythm AND fingering, or string-crossing AND slurs. The process is still the same: Isolate one Why, then the other, and try putting them together only once both are comfortable separately.

Build a Toolbox:

My job as the teacher is to come up with the tools to put into your toolbox. But my hope is that these tools will become familiar, and the student will become able, on their own, to identify the tools they need to use in the appropriate situation during practice sessions at home. The toolbox is populated by exercises that isolate only the problem-spot. If you've picked your "Why", now we need to use a tool that is designed just for that one purpose. We wouldn't use a screwdriver to hammer in a nail. Similarly, we don't need to use the bow, if we're having a rhythm problem.

Some examples of the tools in my toolbox are:

For Rhythm Problems: Ignore the notes, ignore the instrument

a) Write in the beats

b) “Ta” and “ti-ti” the rhythm

c) Shadow bow without instrument in hand

For Fingering Problems: Ignore the rhythm. Pretend all notes are quarter notes or half notes.

a) Say finger number out loud

b) Place fingers on instrument without making a sound

c) Pluck

For Articulation Problems: Ignore the notes. Focus on what your muscles need to do in order to achieve the proper articulation.

a) Drill articulation on an open note only

b) If possible, drill articulation without instrument in hand

Assess EACH Repetition:

Here's your new practice-mantra: NO MINDLESS REPS

Every time you've played the measure or the note, think: How was that? What will I change before repeating again?

Treat it like a science experiment-- keep all things constant, and change only one variable at a time, eg. the second beat in that measure was a little flat. I will slide my third finger up slightly, and check if that sounds better.

Save Often: 

Your brain remembers only what you repeat: If you do the measure wrong five times in a row, and right once... guess which one will stick.

Once you’ve found the perfect combo of variables to make the measure sound the way you want it to, you now have to guarantee that you’ll do it that same way every time. The only way to do that is by repetition. Ideally, 5-10 times in a row, exactly the way you want it to sound (If you get it 4 times right and one time wrong, start over).

Again: Assess EACH repetition. No mindless reps.


INPUT vs. OUTPUT

Your brain is like a computer: Uploading information to it and downloading information from it are two completely different processes. Trying to do both at once often leads to a computer crash. A practice session, similarly, is only productive when uploads and downloads are kept completely separate. Notice how, if you follow this worksheet, the sounds you’re making are not lovely and musical. You’re playing one note at a time, or bowing in the air, or counting out loud. This Input part of practicing shouldn't sound like anything. If it sounds like music, then you’re doing Output.

BUT: That’s not to say that Output has no place in a practice session, just that the two should be practiced separately. Your brain remembers only what you repeat: You still need to practice Output if you ever plan on performing. Set aside 5-10 minutes at the end of your practice session to practice switching to Output; It's important to learn (and practice!) how to turn off the self-critical voice, turn off the analytic voice, and just play.

So there you have it...

If we treat our practice sessions like any efficient problem-solving exercise, we're able to jam more information into our brains, and make sure it sticks. Even though it may seem like you're moving at a plodding pace, you'll soon see that, by focusing on only one problem at a time, you can absorb them faster. Practice sessions will feel more productive! Performing won't be as scary, because you'll feel more prepared! New music won't feel as intimidating!

...All because you focused on tackling the problem one bite at a time.

Hidden Agenda

Hello again, everyone!

Last month, I posted about the way I'd prefer my students to sequence their practice sessions (and the way I sequence my lessons). Today, I'd like to get even more specific than that. But first, I have to confess, I do have an agenda with all this:

Throughout my entire violin career, my teachers always expected me to practice, but never taught me how to practice. I thought I knew how to practice, because I was more or less successful, and because it seemed more respectable to spend 9 hours a day in your practice room. But every week, I'd show up to my lesson, and my teacher would say the same thing: Why didn't you practice this? By the time my senior recital rolled around, I was so nervous, and felt so unprepared, that I literally blocked out the entire recital. No, really. I remember walking up to the stage, and I remember walking away, but between those two, there's a great big blank.

Now, if I'd been practicing for so many hours of my day, why is it that I ended up so unprepared? The problem was that I had been practicing mindlessly. I had been spending my practice sessions on autopilot.

Many, many, many music students seem to think that, just by playing through their piece, or just by repeating a tricky phrase a couple times until it sounds right, their violin muscles will manage to absorb the right way, and discard the wrong way of its own volition. That kind of thinking will only get you stuck in your practice room for 9 hours a day, with nigh undetectable progress. Because of my experience, I'm on a mission--nay, a crusade!-- to teach students how to practice effectively, so they don't end up wasting precious time in the practice room. Tune in next time to see how we're achieving all that...


Until then, I'll leave you with this poem by Shel Silverstein:


Melinda Mae

Have you heard of tiny Melinda Mae, 
Who ate a monstrous whale? 
She thought she could, 
She said she would, 
So she started in right at the tail. 

And everyone said,'You're much too small,' 
But that didn't bother Melinda at all, 
She took little bites and she chewed very slow, 
Just like a little girl should... 

...and eighty-nine years later she ate that whale 
Because she said she would.

COOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

If you've got about 12 minutes to spare, I would absolutely recommend watching this video. Vi Hart has a whole bunch of really charming math-videos, but I just LOVE the way she explains the harmonic series. 

How to Use Practice Logs: Part 1

Hi, folks! Lately, we've been chatting a little bit about practice habits, and I figured I should follow up with that conversation with the resources that I've got. By now, I hope you've taken a look at those practice logs: This is the sequence that I'd like students to use in their practice sessions at home, and, incidentally, this is usually the same sequence that we use in our lessons. I figure it'll provide some insight into what we're doing in our lessons, and what an ideal practice session would look like during the week. Believe it or not, most of your learning doesn't happen in our lesson-- most of your learning happens when you're practicing at home! [Also! It helps to be able to practice at around the same time every day. I might suggest experimenting with which times of day your student feels most energetic and ready to focus. Just like brushing your teeth, it's something that you've gotta do every day, in order to turn it into a habit.]

My practice logs (and lessons) follow this sequence: 1) I'll assign a goal for the week. It'll be something REALLY specific. Something that focuses on just one muscle, or one group of muscles at a time (like violin yoga)!
(For example, lets say his or her goal is to practice moving her bow in a straight line, parallel to the bridge and fingerboard)

2) For 5 minutes, she'll do an exercise that specifically addresses that goal.
(For this example, she'd stand in front of a mirror, drawing long bows on the open D-string, watching her bow to make sure it stays in a straight line)

3) For the next 5 minutes, she'll use a song in the book to put that goal into context.
(No matter what the song is, she'll still stand in front of the mirror, watching that bow!)

4) For the last 5 minutes, she'll play for fun. This is a surprisingly important step: If there's time set aside for fun-playing, students have an easier time focusing during the first few steps. Also, it's an important skill for a musician to be able to switch your brain from Left-Brain Critical Practicing Mode to Right-Brain Expressive Performance Mode, and this is great practice for that.

With very young students, I find it very helpful if parents are part of the practice session. You may be able to communicate my assignment better than I can, or catch mistakes the student might not be able to catch on their own! Especially with those very young students, if you find that you're really struggling to get the student to commit to at least 15 minutes a day, then lets make it a goal for him or her to at least open the case once every day. If he student starts getting into the habit of looking at their instrument, thinking about playing it, experimenting with all the different kinds of sounds violins make, even if he or she's not using our practice sequences, they'll still be learning a lot, and, most importantly, fostering their love of music. Let me know if you've got any questions! Even if it's a mid-week what-does-that-symbol-mean kind of question, I'd be happy to hear from you!