Playing Guitar? How Should You Practice, How Often and How Long?
By Max on Aug 4, 2007 in Guitars
Are you an amateur guitarist? Or are you a beginner? Most often new guitarists are faced with this dilemma of how often and how long should they practice? Yes, we all know that its practice that makes you the perfect guitarist. But how do you plan your perfect practice routine? How much can be too much? Or how much can be too little? There are dozens of different questions that can pop up in your mind when it comes to guitar practice.
The answer is pretty simple. You need to understand yourself and your ability to grasp the guitar. The need to practice differs from person to person. If you have a good grasp over music then you might not need to practice too much. On the other hand if you are finding it difficult to master the basics like finger positions and playing basic chords then you might have to practice a lot more. It’s also important to know what you want to achieve. Do you just want to learn a few simple songs so you can play along with your friends at a campfire, or do you want to completely master the guitar and want to become the next famous guitar virtuoso? Learning a few simple songs is not that difficult, on the other hand becoming a true guitar virtuoso takes years and years of dedicated practice and discipline.
Personal goals
The best thing to start with is to set personal goals. When we speak about setting personal goals, it is equally important that the goals be realistic ones. If you set unrealistic goals like mastering all the chords within a week, then you are going to be disappointed. So go slow as a beginner and devote equal time to each and every aspect of the guitar. You can also set long term, short term and medium term goals. If you are learning under the guidance of a teacher then the teacher will set your goals for you. Your teacher will also be able to analyze your strengths and weaknesses better than anyone else. You can also ask your teacher for a timely analysis of your skills and about the goals that she has set for you.
Setting time and sticking to it
It is very important that you set a certain time for practice everyday. You can once again ask your teacher for the duration of the time that you should practice. If you are self learning then you can stick to a time duration that gives you maximum concentration. It shouldn’t be too much or too less. If you practice too much, then it becomes very difficult for you to concentrate and as a result your technique suffers. You also need to ensure that you stick to your practice routines. Although skipping practice occasionally wont matters that much, make sure that you don’t skip it often. If you do not have enough time to practice everyday then make sure that you at least do your warm ups. It’s better than skipping practice completely.
The importance of warm up
Like any other physical activity, playing the guitar also needs warm up. Warming up is extremely important for the musician. Although these might seem like a total waste of time, these can in turn be the most productive time of your practice sessions. If you are unaware of the warm up exercises then you can always look for help on the internet. There is of course nothing like it if your teacher can guide you to a few warm up exercises. You also need to start off with the easy stuff while warming up. It is very easy to get distracted and start playing the hardest songs during warm up, but please stick to the easy stuff and keep the hard stuff for the later part when you are all warmed up.
