Lund Music Studio

Training a Musical Ear

As piano teachers, sometimes we may forget that we possibly didn’t always have the most magnificent ear for music, and so we may not understand when we have students who cannot “hear” their mistakes, or who feel they are playing something correctly when it is, to us, clearly wrong. I particularly have a hard time with this as I started music VERY early, and was trained to have a good listening ear from the start (I can still pick out notes and tell you what they are without looking at the piano.)

But sometimes, our students honestly think they are doing a good job, and don’t understand when they are not playing things correctly, either melodically or rhythmically. Where does this stem from? Well, it can come from many places. First, if a student has a piano that is vastly out of tune at home, it may be hard for them to hear and identify “wrong” pitches. Second, some young students have not developed a musical ear quite yet, and simply cannot distinguish between one note and another. This also may connect with the third problem, that they have read the music from the book incorrectly, and then practiced it that way all week, and so think their mistakes to be “right,” because they are doing what the book says. If they think they are playing the notes as they are in the book, and have not connected the written music to the heard music, then they will not think that what they are doing is incorrect, because they will think, “I’m just doing what the book said.”

So how do we correct these misadventures in pitch? Well, there are several options. The first is to demonstrate for them. If we are not playing the piano FOR our students every once in a while, we are doing them a grave disservice. They need not only to do, but to listen. Play for them what they just played you, and then play the “correct” way, and ask them not which one is right, but what the difference is. If they can tell you this, then they at least have the ear to hear, and are just confused on what is right. Parents who are vaguely familiar with the piano can do this with their children also. If you have the ability to follow a beginner, parents, then you should be in there helping them when you can (without being too intrusive, of course).

Secondly, it is important to get all piano students to be able to sing just a little bit. They don’t have to be the next Whitney Houston or anything, but see if they can match a pitch singing, and then connect it to the piano by having them sing the note and then play it on the piano. This again reinforces pitch accuracy and ear training, and helps them to develop the ability to hear and correct themselves. Parents, this is again something you can try at home. You don’t even need to know note names. Just play a note, and ask them to match it by singing.

Finally, something I think all piano teachers should be doing, is ear training and music theory with their students. Help them to learn the different musical symbols, and that just like in the alphabet, when different letters make different sounds, so in music, different notes make different and distinct sounds. Play melody and rhythm recognition games, and encourage the student through fun and interesting activities to discover the piano and the sounds it makes.

Through all of these activities, a student should be able to develop a “good ear.” If at first it seems difficult or doesn’t work, I would encourage all teachers and parents to give it time. Music doesn’t happen overnight, but it is a beautiful thing that anyone can learn given enough time and patience. Good luck!

Let’s face it. Everyone wants instant gratification. That’s why we have cell phones, text messaging, etc…But there is one major difference between adults and children: Adults know how to control this desire and have (ostensibly) developed the patience to wait and the understanding that not all things come immediately. Children have largely not yet reached this understanding. This comes into play with piano more so than with other activities.

Piano is seen as an “activity” much like sports or dance, but it is actually much more akin to learning a language. It takes time, focus, and devotion, and will not happen over night. Whereas in sports, you go to a few practices, then put on a uniform and you ARE an athlete, in piano you must spend months or even years learning the very basics of piano. Pushing notes down on a keyboard like you would push buttons in a video game is not playing music. Playing music comes with a detailed understanding that the notes you push can be combined in many different ways, and there is even a technique to how to push them. Not only that, but music words are in another language. So while a child has to learn the “language” of music (the music alphabet and so forth), and while they are still getting a firm grasp on English, we then ask them to learn and understand words in ITALIAN, too! Again, adults have developed the patience to understand that this will not happen overnight, but children just want to sit down and do it! And woefully, there is SO much to do.

That being said, how do we keep the young student’s interest? Can they actually have a full hour of piano? Definitely. The key to developing this lesson is to vary the activities greatly, and to make the student think that this is a game. (There is serious time, too, but it is interspersed with “fun” activities, and can actually be fun itself if instructed properly.)

You also want to cover a broad range of topics: technique, rhythm, artistry (dynamics and nuances), theory, history, other instruments, etc. Find a fun history book with some activities and a CD of composers’ popular works, and I guarantee the average child will be interested by the stories of composers and their lives. Use technique books that utilize cute and quirky metaphors to describe the exercises. Find not only theory books, but also activities and games. Teach them scales by having them improvise while you keep rhythm. Teach them rhythms that are causing them problems by allowing them to chose from a selection of percussion instruments and making it “hands-on” but away from the keyboard. Have a multimedia aspect of the lesson with computer music games. Teach them songs by memory by having them repeat a song after you, starting with two notes, and adding one until they get “stumped.” Doing these things makes for an interesting and engaging lesson.

All of this will lead to children finding music enjoyable and engaging and hopefully cause them to look forward to lessons. It does, however, require significant time to develop all of these aspects, so the child and parent have to be open to the idea of taking music for an hour. The hope is that what cannot be accomplished in a shorter time period (in which all that can be accomplished is making small strides in technique and lesson books), will be able to be put together in a way that makes students eager to come back. If all that is focused on is technique, and drilling practice, of course young students will have the, “I’m not sure I want to go,” attitude, but if one takes the time to present music as fun and engaging, that is exactly how it will be perceived. This is how we develop a high level of musicianship–not necessarily a concert pianist, but definitely a young person who enjoys and is excited by music.

Sadly enough, the arts are losing their place in more and more schools lately. My question is, how can we be so glib about letting this happen? It must be that parents, students, and teachers do not realize the full value that classes like music, dance and art can provide. If we recall the “Multiple Intelligences” chart, there is an entire section of “Intelligence” devoted to music. An entire part of our brain is wired to think musically, and will not get the exercise it needs if we pull music from schools. And yet we are not fighting, at least not hard enough, to keep music around in schools.

I would stipulate that music classes are even more important now, in today’s age of information technology. In an age where everything is computer and media driven, children tend to lose the need to be imaginative and creative. They tend to stay in front of TVs computers and video games, and do not exercise the parts of the brain involved in higher thinking skills. Involving a child in the arts cultivates something in them that they may no longer get at home. (Note: I am not saying that all video games are bad, as there are some educational games, and even those that are not can be alright, but largely, sitting in front of a television or game does not provide adequate stimulation.)

Involvement in the arts can do so much for a person that I cannot even adequately elaborate on it, but rather, I have listed below all of the additional benefits of arts education.

-> Increases imagination
-> Improves memory and retention
-> Provides learning through analogy
-> Builds discipline
-> Helps focus on long term goals
-> Develops problem solving skills
-> Increases attention to detail
-> Builds self-confidence
-> Causes students to strive for excellence
-> Cultivates responsibility
-> Develops good work-ethic
-> Helps students apply previously learned information to new scenarios
-> Develops both academic and expressive skills
-> Creates a passion for learning
-> Provides the opportunity to risk-take
-> Develops intuition and insight

Finally, arts competitions and festivals can be so rewarding for children, provide a goal to work toward, and prove to be a rewarding experience for the child no matter the outcome. For even in competition, there is no failure. Children are rewarded and complemented for making the effort not matter whether they have “won” or not. Also, they have gained new skills from their competitive experience, and a teacher would do well to remind them of this.

So we see that music and the other arts provide a vast pool of skills, and should not be neglected. If you are blessed with children, then the next time it is suggested in your child’s school that arts programs be done away with, I urge you to fight this with vigor, and remember some of the benefits that your child would be missing out on.

Chart of Multiple Intelligences

ALL CHILDREN ARE GIFTED AND TALENTED! WE JUST HAVE TO LOOK HARD ENOUGH!!!

Why, in the past, have we assigned labels (”gifted and talented,” “special needs”) to children? It is because we want an easy way out. We want children to be classifiable because it makes our job as teachers easier. Then we can teach the “gifted and talented” kids one thing and the “special needs” another. The problem with this? Intelligence is not black and white There are many areas of intelligence and all people are good at at least one. This means that as teachers we have to spend the time with each child to determine WHICH one. This has made the “Theory of Multiple Intelligences” very popular in the education world right now. I would like to briefly look at what this theory is, how it relates to the arts, and how it can help teachers to better connect with students and students to get more out of their education.

The theory of multiple intelligences divides methods of learning into different categories. Those are “Word Smart,” “Logic Smart,” “Picture Smart,” “Body Smart,” “Music Smart,” “People Smart,” and “Self Smart,” as shown in the chart. I have a few disclaimers to make about this chart. First of all, the theory of multiple intelligences says that different people have strengths in different areas, so everyone’s chart will look different, and have different sections appear larger depending on their individual strengths.

Second, you will notice that “Music Smart” is included in the chart. I do not believe that a child has to be largely music smart to benefit from music. That is the importance of this article. Music teachers should be encouraged by this theory to be attentive and discover each of their students points of greatest intelligence, and then play off of those to create the best possible learning environment. Also, music students should not be led to believe that their music lessons are about obtaining musical perfection. The arts should not be so much about a perfect finished product as they should be about a search for a higher quality of learning and of life through the joy of musicianship.

Though each person’s “Intelligence Pie” is cut differently, and teachers should recognize and play to a student’s strengths, they should also recognize and work on areas that are not as strong using music as the tool to accomplish this. Music can provide means of strengthening weaker areas, as it aids in higher thinking skills such as independent thought, creativity, analysis, and coordination. So, if you have a student who is not particularly strong in logic but is very creative, you should make sure you exercise BOTH the creativity and the logic. A teacher can also help a creative minded student by presenting logic and facts through story-telling, bringing fun and life to an otherwise dull subject.

My goal within this article is to establish the fact that teachers should be aware of and catering to their students’ areas of intelligence. This means that if you have 3 lessons in a row all with second graders, every lesson, upon observation, would be vastly different. For example, the logical minded student will be a very good listener, and can understand facts very easily. However, the bodily-kinesthetic learner will likely be much better at DOING than LISTENING. Rather than spouting facts at this student, the teacher should find a way for the student to actively participate in the learning, DOING something to learn the same information your first student could have gotten by listening.

In this way, a music teacher should be able to provide varied and interesting lessons for all of their students, featuring a unique and customized teaching style. This is what I hope to achieve for my own studio, and by making this information accessible, it is what I hope to encourage in others.

What is a piano teacher’s biggest burden? Tension, tension, tension……
For some reason, what comes naturally to us when we approach the piano is the idea that if we just grip and seize up enough, the notes will just come out. This could not be farther from the truth. What is really needed when one approaches the piano is total relaxation. I would even encourage students to start with some relaxing exercises before they approach the piano. In a previous post, I suggested doing either yoga or tai chi. This is excellent if you are dedicated enough and have time enough to learn and pursue these exercises. However, for the rest of us, here are some basic exercises we can do before approaching the piano:

1. Forward bend: Pretend there is a magnet in the tip-top of your head, and it is pulling you toward the ground. Bend over slowly, vertebrae by vertebrae, until you are hinged at the waist, and your arms are dangling as close to the ground as possible. Once you are bent over, consciously think about releasing the tension in your head, your neck, chest, arms, hands, fingers….wiggle around, shimmy your shoulders, swing your arms, and then slowly, without adding any tension back in, rise up as you came down, one vertebrae at a time.
2. Do a few slow head rolls to release tension in your neck. Go one way first, and then the other.
3. Swing your arms in circles, backward and forward.
4. Shake your hands as fast as you can. Make them really loose and floppy. Make sure not to tense up in your upper arms to accomplish this.
5. Open and close your hands rapidly. This gets the muscles in the palm working and starts to activate the fingers.
6. Wiggle your fingers. Once again, be aware of your whole body as you do this, and make sure you are not tensing up in your upper arms, especially around the shoulder joint. If you find that you have, shake out whatever feels tense again, until you regain that loose and floppy feeling. You should approach the piano feeling almost like a puppet, completely loose, and controlled by invisible strings attached to the elbow.
7. Something to remember: Your hands should never act independently. Just because it is your fingers doing the work, does not mean they should act alone. Fingers are connected to hands which are connected through the wrist to the forearms, which are connected by that loose, floppy elbow joint to the upper arms. The upper arms do not end at what we perceive as our shoulder, but rather at the shoulder bones, which are located in the middle of the back (those two big protrusions in your upper back). Therefore, in order to make your fingers play the piano, you should be thinking about one long, loose, relaxed line that extends all the way from your upper back, through your arms and hands to your fingers. If you are ever at the piano and lose that feeling, give yourself a good shake.
8. Finally, close your eyes and take some big deep breaths, thinking about filling your stomach up with air and releasing it slowly. Think about what you have to do for the day, and consciously think about being relaxed while you do it.

These exercises should lead to an easier, more enjoyable piano experience, and I would recommend starting every day’s practice with these or something similar.

I would first like to cover more of a topic I hinted on yesterday: how to effectively use method books. Some piano teachers swear by “Hanon.” I do not. I think it serves its purpose, but that purpose to me is to work out obvious tension issues and strengthen the fourth and fifth fingers. For those unfamiliar with Hanon, it features pages upon pages of sixteenth note exercises that focus on strengthening different fingers and finger patterns. This can be especially helpful for the student who struggles with fluidity and has a lot of tension developing in their arms. However, we as teachers must be extremely careful in how we assign and use finger strengtheners like Hanon, because if we do not coach ease and relaxation, these exercises will only cause more tension and frustration, not less. I would also not use these books for very beginning students. These are to be used once a student has a firm foundation in music, can read notes with ease, and understands and has the ability to play sixteenth notes. Until this point, these books will only cause great frustration.

This is why I am such a big fan of the “Dozen a Day” series by Edna Mae Burnam. It begins with what is called the “Mini Book” and proceeds up to a “Preparatory Book” followed by Books 1-4. This ensures that any student at any level can start with these books. They should be used as a warm-up to the day’s practice each day. They can be assigned a dozen at a time, as the book suggests, but I prefer to assign three or four at once and really focus in on the skills taught in these.
I also like these books more than Hanon because they cover such a broad range of subjects, including:
Quarter, Eighth, Triplet and Sixteenth Note Patterns
Legato and Staccato Lines
Contrary Motion
Chords
Basic Scale Fingering
Chromatic Scale Fingering
Octave Reaches and Jumps
Crossing of the Hands
Strenthening of the Fourth and Fifth Fingers (just like Hanon, only accessible and fun)
Etc…….
And these books do all of this in a very approachable manner, using the metaphor of bodily exercises to describe the finger exercises. My students tend to find it fun and interesting to try to decide why the writer chose to call a certain exercise something in particular. Also, though it begins at a level accessible even to the most beginning student, it reaches a high level of difficulty (I studied piano with a private teacher for 11 years before college, and we never even got to book four!)

I encourage anyone to pick up this series and try it out. I realize this has been largely an advertisement for “Dozen a Day” but this is because I really do find it a phenomenal series with great benefits for pianists of all ages. I think it is accessible enough to teach yourself, if you are working on your own, and does not necessarily need the guidance of a teacher. So for all of those self taught musicians out there, this is one that is worth the buy! Enjoy!

Plenty of piano teachers out there will insist on giving their students finger exercises, such as scales, Hanon exercises, or my personal favorite, the “A Dozen A Day” piano exercise series. While these are all well and good, and I will devote an entire post at a later date on how to effectively use piano technique and method books, there are so many other exercises that can be done away from the piano, which are vital to the success of a budding pianist.

I am a fan of developing extremely strong fingers, first of all. I also realize that technique exercises are…hmm…what’s the word??? Ah, yes….BORING! The Dozen a Day series does a little more to make exercises interesting by using metaphors involving bodily exercise to describe the skills learned. However, there are also plenty of other ways to increase finger dexterity. You can try picking up a very finger-heavy hobby such as knitting. You could decide to learn to use chopsticks. Finally, for all those looking for a fun game which improves concentration and finger precision, try the game “Operation.” This game was around when I was a kid, so this may date me a little, but I think it is still in stores. The object is to remove objects from inside a “person” lying down on an exam table, using a small pair of tweezers, without touching the sides at all. As I said, this would be a great tool for building finger strength, concentration, and precision, and can be a fun family game on a Friday night.

While it is definitely important to exercise your fingers, it is also important to remain physically fit, and exercise your body. This is the case because when we play piano, we need to have strong and relaxed arms all the way back to our shoulder bones. Tension can build up not just in the fingers, but also in wrists, forearms, and upper body, and so we must consciously think about loosening up our entire body. I feel this is best achieved through calming, focused exercise, such as Tai Chi or Yoga. These exercises serve a dual purpose, in that they loosen, stretch and exercise your muscles, and also calm and focus your thoughts, and so, they are a perfect precursor to a high quality practice session.

Finally, it is crucial to exercise your mind musically. What does this mean? Well, it refers mainly to theory and listening exercises. A good piano teacher will focus on theory for at least part of the lesson, working with pitch and interval recognition, and discussing musical symbols and terms as they appear in music. If you want something to do on your own aside from assigned theory work, try to find some interesting and fun recordings and see how many instruments you can identify. “Peter and the Wolf” is a great beginning orchestral work to use to identify instruments. There are also several music theory game websites, which you can reach simply by “Googleing” “Music Theory Games.” Finally, if you have purchased a Wii for yourself or your children, I highly recommend “Wii Music.” It comes complete with a very detailed and sophisticated theory game, as well as rhythm games, and “jam sessions” in which one can exercise one’s creativity.

So, as you can see, to get the very most out of your music lessons, you should be pursuing different courses of study and music related games during the week. Just as your teachers work hard to bring the very best they have to lessons every week, you can go above and beyond plain old practicing, and as a result, get so much more out of your music study.

Below, I have listed links to several music theory websites I recommend.

Music Tech Teacher

Piano Games

E-Music Theory

Depression is real.  Whatever your personal beliefs on how it is caused, or what sort of treatments should be encouraged or discouraged, I think it’s hard to make a logical argument against depression’s existence and prominence in today’s world.

Every year, nearly 10% of the U.S. population is affected by a depressive disorder, and most people will find their lives affected by depression at some point.

It seems universally accepted that treatments of depression need at their core behavioral and emotional changes.  A lot of the behaviors recommended to stave off depression are, at their core, distractions.

And that makes sense!  If you’re depressed, it’s not going to help to dwell on something that’s depressing you and obsess about how you can’t do anything about it.  A positive experience is needed.  And I can think of fewer things more positive than making music.  Consider:

Music is thought-provoking. If you’re making music, odds are that you are thinking about what you are doing.  I can think of very few times in my life that, while making music, I was thinking about anything other than the music at hand.

Music is emotionally satisfying. Surely everybody knows some music that makes them happy. Maybe it’s a favourite song from childhood, maybe it’s a meaningful hymn or praise song, maybe it’s the #1 song on the radio right now.

Music is a departure from the normal. There’s something about making music that can carry you away from your normal life and the hassles you cope with every day.

Have you broken into song lately? Do you sit down at the piano first thing when you come home? Many people don’t do either of these things. I would imagine it’s quite common for people to go entire days without singing, and I bet lots of folks sit down at the T.V. first thing when they come home. Try it the other way for a while, and see how you feel as a result.

Also consider the difference between “practicing” and “making music”:

• When you practice, you should have a fixed goal, and you should acknowledge flaws in your technique and work to correct them.
• When you make music, you should not do those things.  Work with music you already know or music that you make up in your head, and don’t pay attention to whether or not you’re doing anything “correctly”.

Practice is important for a learning musician, but making music is invaluable for everybody.

So you have decided to start your child in music lessons. You find a great teacher, get them all signed up, buy books, and take them to lessons week after week. Does that mean you’re done? NO! About the worst thing a parent trying to get their child involved in music can do is stop at the door of the studio. “I’ve brought them to their lessons. It’s their teacher’s job to make them love it…” will result in the child most likely wanting to stop lessons.

I don’t say this to make parents feel “bad” or fuss at anyone who has ever thought this, but rather to encourage you to do even more with your children to make music a one-of-a-kind experience for them. Because music is a wonderful thing, and can provide a lifetime of excitement and enrichment, but to appreciate it fully as an adult, you need to have positive musical experiences as a child. And those experiences start not necessarily in the studio, but in the home.

Sometimes I feel like parents are afraid to get involved musically with their musical children because they “have no talent of their own.” Maybe you are the parent of a budding pianist, but never studied piano yourself, or stopped at a young age. Sometimes I feel that can make parents a little bit intimidated, like they want to back off and listen from a distance. However, the less you know about piano, the more you can let your kids teach you. And they will LOVE this. Kids love getting to show mom and dad something they don’t already know!

For those still unsure of how to make the most out of their child’s musical experiences, I have created a five-step program to making the most of music in the home.

Step 1: Sit down with your child at the piano during practice time and ask them to show you what they are doing. Let them explain it. It will make them more excited about the material, and more connected to what they are doing. They not only have to do, they have to teach, too! Ask them to explain the “music words” (even if you DO already know) or teach you about rhythm. It will increase their proficiency, ability to be articulate about music, and hopefully their excitement in what they are doing.

Step 2: Have a family concert in which you let them show off whatever they are currently working on. Even if it is not quite done yet. Congratulate them and tell them how proud you are of their progress. We bring the whole family to the baseball field, so why not the piano room? Music is hard work! Hearing positive feedback only once a week from the teacher is often not enough to ward off frustration. A young musician needs support from their family. They need to know that what you think they’re doing is great!

Step 3: Actually come to a lesson every once in a while. Sit in and listen to what happens during lesson time. It will give you insight into what your child should be working on at home, as well as the dynamics of the relationship between your child and their teacher. No matter what happens during that time, you should at least have plenty to talk about when you get back in the car!

Step 4: Listen to classical music in your home, and talk about it! Listen to music that features only their instrument, as well as other types, solos and full symphonies. Sometimes this can seem dull, or like very hard work if you are not used to it. It definitely doesn’t have to be. If you are afraid that recordings will not be “attention getting” enough, use DVDs or something with more visual stimulation as well. Have them on during dinner occasionally, and try to steer the conversation toward the music. One thing that can be very fun to do is to try to come up with a story that goes with the music. This encourages thought and creativity, and is a whole lot of fun, and I think you will be surprised at how different everyone’s stories are!

If you are unsure where to start with this one, I recommend the following composers: Camille Saint-Saens, Sergei Prokofieff, and Karl Jenkins. The first two composed largely piano and symphonic works, and the third is a contemporary composer who works with a choir creating songs full of nonsense syllables that are full of interesting imagery. I think you will find that recordings by these composers provide a rich palette from which to derive “fun” stories. You can also try movies like “Fantasia” as a starting point for the imagination. These will at least reaffirm the fact that you are not crazy for coming up with “music stories” in your head, as actual movie producers have thought to do the same thing!

Step 5: Get out into the community and experience music live! While recordings are great, there is nothing like the experience of a live performance. There is so much going on visually and aurally, the music is richer than a recording can ever be, and it gets you out of the house! There is also no shortage of things to see musically right here in our neighborhood at very little cost. Kingwood supports its own chorale, big band, various jazz ensembles and other musical groups that have performances throughout the year. The internet is also a great resource to find out about various goings-on in music in your area.
Get out there and listen! You won’t be disappointed!

So there you have it! Being a part of your child’s musical experience is crucial to their success and happiness in music. I hope this has given you an idea of how best to get involved!

You have already learned how to break down practice time, giving an order and structure to practice that will yield the best results.  Now, within that time frame, what do you actually DO (or NOT DO, for that matter)?

DO take every assignment seriously.  Trust that your teacher has given you all this work for a reason.  Music teachers realize our time and yours is valuable.  We promise never to give you “busy work!”

DO NOT let your brain go to “autopilot” during warm-ups.  Warm-ups not only prevent injury, they also help you improve technically over time and make you more nimble and capable.  If your scales never improve to the point where you can begin to speed them up with accuracy, do not expect yourself to be able to achieve accuracy in difficult solo passages.  One leads directly to the other!  That being said, DO NOT spend your entire practice trying to perfect your scales and lamenting that you cannot.  With a little daily focused practice, you WILL improve over time!

DO refer to notes from your lesson while practicing.  It is my belief that a teacher should help you through the week by writing down specifically what you should be working on.  If your teacher does provide you with a notebook, REFER to it during practice.  They wrote it down for your benefit!  And remember, what they have written down should require thought and work on your part!  It is not enough to read through your notes right before your lesson and assume you can “think” those things into happening without practicing them.  (Trust me!  I’ve tried!)

DO use a metronome if your teacher has assigned it!  There…I’ve said it!  The dreaded “M” word.  But metronomes are there for a reason during practice.  They help you find and maintain a steady beat.  Your teacher should also help you learn how to use the metronome.  Begin at a low speed.  You must achieve mastery at this speed before you move even one “tick” up on the metronome.  If you cannot do it perfectly at a slower tempo, you cannot expect perfection when you speed up!

DO NOT, under ANY circumstances spend your entire time running through pieces from start to finish.  You may do so once at the beginning of your practice to target weaker areas in a particular piece.  But once you have found those areas, the key to making them stronger is not to practice the whole thing over and over and just expect it to get better.  Break it down.  Target the tiny bit that is giving you trouble.  Slow it down.  Is it the rhythm that is difficult?  Count it out loud, clap it, and then play it until you can do it at least five times in a row perfectly in just that one spot before you begin to put it back in context.  This method of breaking down and targeting small areas until they are better is absolutely, positively 100% guaranteed to work!!!

And last, but not least, DO always remember that if you are trying everything you can during practice and still struggling, ask your teacher!   That is what we are here for.  But practice should come first.  (This follows the old adage, we cannot help you if you have not first tried to help yourself.) It is always easier to answer specific questions once you have given it your all than to answer that general, “But I don’t get it!”

If you follow these guidelines for practice, and practice daily, you will see results, and so will your teacher!  You will feel a sense of confidence in your ability to practice and accomplishment in the work you have achieved, and you will be rewarded with the ability to challenge yourself to new and more difficult heights!

Now, stop reading and go practice!!!  With the confidence that you know how!!!!!