A student who's just starting out on their instrument I don't think needs to
really be looking for hitting any sort of benchmark for how many hours or
minutes they need to be practicing every day
I think the most important thing for a young beginner is to make practice a habit.
So research tells us it's much better to practice over a number of
shorter sessions throughout the week whether it's for five minutes
or 50 minutes whatever you've got you have to put your hands on the instrument
every single day that's important from my experience students that might have a
one or two hour rehearsal during the day or their hour lesson at school maybe
they don't have to practice that evening and then maybe launch into the practice
for the next day again it's a really individual thing we need to look at the
stamina of the child whether their energy levels
whether their lips their mouth their hands their back the whole physicality
of playing a musical instrument because it really is a whole body experience to
play a musical instrument
players early on in their development might not even
be a really aware of the quality of the sound they're making your ears develop
along with your technique and so you know an adult who has a much more astute
sense of what is a pleasant sound and not so much might hear things that the
the student doesn't and if they react negatively to it it can be quite discouraging
beginner instrument and beginner students can make a range of
really interesting and strange sounds so it's important as a parent and family
members to really support the younger child with their music and with their
practice and whether they're making some really beginner sounds or some sounds it
really does that instrument make that sound it's really important to encourage
the students say wow I can hear making a sound well done for making that sound
one of my kids practice out in his garage out in the back his dad set it up
for him got a very supportive family I think it's healthy for the family it's
good for him because he doesn't feel self-conscious practicing in front of
these siblings that might be ribbing him about what he's doing you know it's
about making it work in the environment you're in
for some parents they'd like
to be 100 percent focus and supervising the student directly
regardless of what
Blatz and bleats you're hearing out of the instrument you know coming in with a
huge smile and you know giving a pat on the back is important rather than giving
them direct feedback on the sound or the product that the student is making we
want to really reward and give feedback for the effort and the persistence that
the child is doing in there
the parent who's most
supportive never really reacts negatively to mistakes
yes you need to
supervise you kid no matter what they're doing but I think if you're
bugging them every five minutes saying are you doing it? are you practicing?
then that might make them feel like they have to do it and you don't want to have
that environment you want them to be enjoying the experience
so one thing I always recommend to parents is to say I love to watch you play that means so
much to a child they may not say it to your face but deep down they really want
you at that concert
knowing that your own mistakes are happening in the sort
of safe environment where you know you're not really being judged is
empowering because you need to make those mistakes actually to improve
I think it's important for choosing the right instrument that you go to a
reputable retailer that you try the instrument out first that you go to your
teacher and see which brands that they recommend that of you know lasted the
test of time I would not recommend purchasing an instrument from a
supermarket go to a music shop that really supports great brands
you've got to try out a lot of different gear because what you might think from
looking at the picture of one of your rock heroes in a magazine you I want to
use this kind of guitar cos this person did that might not be what suits you
having a teacher there with you or having a teachers input prior to doing
the shopping is important you know you might go buy a fabulous Ferrari and it
might be the nicest car you've ever driven but if it's to be used for
off-roading you've just got the wrong you got the wrong equipment
so I think it's really important that parents and families develop that relationship with
their local retailer for musical instruments for not only just to try out
the instruments because rather than buying online going into a retail shop
you can actually try the instrument out try out the accessories and a lot of the
music staff will give you a mini lesson and some help to choose the right
instrument for you then ongoing you have that relationship for buying reeds of
valve oil, strings, tuners, all of those accessories and you've already got that
fantastic relationship with the retailer
over the course of your studies
particularly as a student gets more serious there's an an immense number of
accessories, tools, ways of you know having technology in the practice room
to help you achieve your goals in a more efficient and quicker manner
In my studio space I have little Tupperware containers full of
accessories I need a metronome I need Capo's I need a variety of
plectrums I need a whole bunch of different stuff I have a cleaning cloth
have a lemon oil I have this stuff within reach I have a tuning fork now
you won't need them on day one perhaps but as you are growing through your
learning experience you'll find you'll want to mess around with a capo and
play in a different position you'll find that a metronome is an excellent thing to have
to help you practice and your teacher will be saying to you you need to
practice these scales with a metronome get your picking technique correct up
and down strokes in time it's important stuff
my recommendation is to go to your
instrument teacher to see what accessories you need for your instrument
for all musical instruments you probably do need a great fold up music stand that
you can have the music at eye level so it's really ergonomic and safe for the
child to use in terms of other accessories like electronic tuners
metronomes there's some great apps you can get now for your phones or different
devices that do that or you can buy standalone accessories as well and
they're great little gifts for for practicing well or for birthdays or
other special occasions as well
how often an instrument should be serviced
really depends on how diligent you've been in taking care of it
piano, drum kit, guitar, woodwind, brass the whole works we all need to have our instruments
maintained and whether that's every six months every 12 months or when different
situations arise
all musical instruments are crafted by people who really know
how they work intimately both from the mechanics of it and the
musical aspect of it and it's it's common for a small perhaps not very
problematic issue to arise and have it go really badly from a well-intentioned
parent trying to resolve it the classic case for trumpet players is a stuck
valve or stuck valve cap trying to oil your valve valve cap is stuck can't
unscrew it parent takes out the pliers to unscrew it warps the metal and
suddenly what would have been a very very simple fix cost quite a lot of
money or perhaps isn't even repairable
I think the first port of call for
instrument maintenance is to go to your teacher they themselves will have their
preferred instrument repairs and services and they can also refer you on
to other ones as well
I recommend sticking with the official information
that comes from instrument manufacturers and from music shops the most important
thing when a parent isn't a musician themselves is really just being
interested in the students experience having an interest in what their their
child is doing being supportive attending their concerts a word of
encouragement when they hear them practice these types of things go a long
way so I think it's paramount that parents can attend the musical concerts
of their children whether it's one parent and one parents here and there we
understand that they can't 100% attend every concert but for the students to
know that they have someone there in the audience or it's being videoed or
there's some sort of feedback on the performance is really really important
to the child's
music and sport are interestingly quite similar in a lot of
ways research has shown that a lot of the benefits one gets from studying both
sport and music are similar so the discipline somebody needs to have to
study music is immense you have to sit in a room by yourself you have to remain
focused for a while you have to work on a task that's both physically and
intellectually demanding for an artistic outcome right so this is engaging the
brain in many different ways and then ultimately what you do is you perform
with other people so it has this wonderful social aspect to it that is
really the thing that draws people to music in the first place
you really do need to learn how to communicate nonverbal communication in a group you
really do need to get your ears going.
but at the outset really the key I think
students need to have is an instrument and some fun
so I'd like to say to all
parents and students congratulations you're about to embark on a wonderful
time in music and I wish you all the luck persistence and great time in music
thank you