My Best Tips On How To Practice Piano Part 1

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Photo by Jenny Leigh Hodgins

By Jenny Leigh Hodgins

This is Part 1 of a series offering my best tips on how to practice piano.

• Do you want to make more significant progress with your piano practice?

 

• Do you want to eliminate repeated mistakes in your piano playing?

 

• Are you just starting piano lessons?

 

• Have you always wanted to learn piano?

 

• Do you want your child to learn piano?

 

• Did you have a prior negative experience as a piano student, but still want to learn to play piano?

For all these scenarios, I have some useful suggestions.

Why Should You Believe I Know How To Make Piano Progress?
I’ve taught piano for more than half my life. Piano is a way that I best express myself, whether through performance or my original compositions.

I performed as a pianist (and vocalist) and owned a private piano teaching studio for 25 years. I taught group piano (Musikgarten methodology) to kids from 5 to 11, too!

If you’re interested in checking out my piano-based original music, or looking for proof to believe me when I say I know how to make piano progress, go to:  JLMusicStudio.com

Or have a listen to: My Piano Performance of Clair De Lune.

Why Does Your Piano Practice Make You Feel Like A Loser?
I know from my early piano practice sessions what it feels like to be overwhelmed, or stuck, or frustrated by a particular musical challenge. I was familiar with spending chunks of fruitless time at piano, not being able to accomplish something.

I’d practice musical passages, scales, etudes, fingering, rhythmic patterns, or dynamics relentlessly and repetitively, only to hear myself play the same mistake after mistake.

I’ve had some great piano teachers, though, and one of them was quite instrumental (What? A musical pun here?) in teaching me how to make progress with learning piano. I finally learned how to practice piano effectively.

I’ve seen this dilemma from both sides. Having taught piano and music for 25+ years, I’ve met many piano students who felt overwhelmed by piano practice.

I’ve had students come to me with angst from their lack of progress with former piano teachers.

I’ve had adults come to me with feeble hopes after quitting piano lessons as a child.

I’ve had teenagers joining my studio initially complain that piano was boring and they couldn’t get any better at it.

How To Practice Piano With Confidence
I learned to practice piano effectively. My private piano students overcame issues with getting stuck or insufficient progress, too. They succeeded because the driving point I taught in each piano lesson was how to practice piano effectively.

Do You Know Where The Musical Magic Really Happens?
First, you need to know that the magic never happens in the piano lesson. You will not be illuminated musically by exposure to the brilliance of your piano teacher. Sorry, no unicorns here.

Piano improvement comes directly from the student.


So…


You.

You, as the piano student, or you as the parent of the piano student, are the key to continuous piano progress. The piano student has full responsibility for developing piano skills. Having that self-motivation is 90% of the musical betterment battle.

Of course, a quality piano instructor will be critically helpful as an experienced guide on your musical journey. A good piano teacher can inspire your consistent piano progress. Your piano teacher can help you avoid mistakes or break habits that stunt your piano development.

Your piano teacher can use your strengths to help you advance more dynamically, or help you polish your weaknesses into tools for improvement. But the real result is up to the piano student. Not the teacher.

If that has fully sunk into your brain, now you are ready for my piano practice tips!

Please first take a look at these blogs if you are just beginning piano:

What Do You Need To Know, Have, Or Do To Begin Piano?

What Keyboard Do I Need For Successful Piano Lessons?

How To Find A Good Piano Teacher


Necessary Steps To Achieve Your Most Effective Piano Practice
Having read through the blogs above, hopefully you’ve found a great piano teacher, have a quality instrument or a plan to upgrade to one, and have sorted out a regular practice routine that is supported by those in your home. Now you must begin to establish an effective piano practice strategy that produces progress within your regular practice sessions.

In my next blogs of this series, My Best Tips On How To Practice Piano Part 2 & 3 (posting July 30/August 6), I walk you through my effective piano practice strategy in detail.  

Why You Need To Choose A Goal Relevant For Your Level 
Before you begin toward your daily piano practice routine, you will need to define the goals you will concentrate on. As you read through these piano practice tips, it will become evident that your goals will change and develop as you practice. Choosing and changing goals helps keep your interest and promotes the greatest progress while practicing piano.

The most critical part that will vary from student to student, or from one practice session to the next, is choosing relevant practice goals. The goals you select depend on your level of musicianship, and will vary from beginner to advanced levels of piano skill. 

Beginner to intermediate level piano students will typically have a few piano goals assigned by their piano teacher to achieve before the next piano lesson. As you advance in piano proficiency, you’ll be able to use more self-volition in selecting appropriate piano goals. 

As you advance, and with the guidance from your piano teacher, you’ll learn the art of narrowing your focus to what goals are necessary for your current piano playing level. 

Before you begin, you must determine your specific goals for each piano practice session. You’ll need to break your weekly goals down into smaller, digestible chunks. Either using what your piano teacher has offered, or devising your own, make a list of targeted piano practice goals you will work on during your piano practice session. 

In the next blog, I will offer a few examples of relevant piano practice goals. 



Stay tuned for the next steps in my effective piano practice strategy in My Best Tips On How To Practice Piano Part 2, posting July 30 & My Best Tips On How To Practice Piano Part 3, posting August 6.


I’d love to hear from you. It means a lot to me that my content is helpful and empowers you. Please take a moment to join the conversation below to let me know if this blog is helpful to you, or if you have questions or suggestions! 


If you’re a piano teacher, feel free to leave one of your favorite piano practice tips in the comment section!

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Recommended articles:
What Do You Need To Know, Have, Or Do To Begin Piano?

Find A Good Piano Teacher

Your Top 5 Best Tips From A Piano Teacher

What’s The Best Way For A Busy Adult To Learn Piano?

What Keyboard Do I Need For Successful Piano Lessons?

How Learning Piano Benefits Aging Adults

What To Do About Piano Practice When You Have An Injury

LEARNING TO BE CREATIVE
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