Faster progress comes from getting
all the notes right all the time!

If we want to make faster progress on musical instruments we need to follow Habit 1 carefully

it is essential to get the notes 100% correct at all times

This is because our brains learn patterns. When we learn to play pieces of music our brains are actually learning the patterns within them. Each time we play 100% correct notes the pattern is reinforced. Each time some (even one) of the notes are wrong, it isn’t. In fact, the more times we play something wrong, the more our brain learns the wrong pattern! Better not to play at all than to play incorrectly, at least that way you aren’t reinforcing the wrong notes!

Educational psychologists currently believe that a pattern is learned after it has been repeated 7 times correctly. If a pattern is learned incorrectly first it takes an average of 35 repetitions to unlearn and learn the correct way! So if you want to make faster progress let this be your encouragement for getting it right first time, and every time!

How to get it right every time

That’s it. Play slowly. One of the essential keys to slow practice is to make sure you are using the correct technique. Click here to read a page on slow practice which explains how to make it work for you, rather than against you. For maximum effectiveness use a metronome.

Stop if you find there is something you can’t play, or a note or fingering you don’t know. Work it out - don’t guess. Mark it on the music. Yes, this will interrupt the flow of the rhythm a few times as you stop to figure out what you are doing... but it means your brain is learning the correct pattern of notes and the stopping will stop very soon! You can even stop before a complex section and take it at a slower speed. As long as the notes are 100% correct at all times

If you make sure you have 100% correct notes all the time you will begin making faster progress almost overnight.

But I could play it at home

Getting notes 100% correct can also help with curing this problem. If you find you are getting things right at home and wrong in your lesson making sure you have 100% correct notes at all times can help.

Think about your practice. Does it follow this pattern?

Play something. Get it wrong. Play it again. Get it wrong. Play again, a few less mistakes this time. Play again. Same mistakes as last time. Play again a few less mistakes. Play again...almost there. Play it again...EXCELLENT! All notes correct. Got it! On to the next section.

Look back at the previous paragraph. Six times wrong. Once correct. And you wonder why things go wrong in your lesson? If that was each session for five days you’d think you had practiced 30 times... but you would have played the piece wrong 25 times and correctly 5 times! Something to think about?

When you’ve ‘got it’
you are beginning to practice it

There’s always a point when practising a section that we think... GOT IT and move on.

STOP!

This is when the most valuable practice is done. It is at this point you are strengthening the dendrite connections in your brain. Make the most of it. For faster progress, when you think ‘got it’ play through that section another five times. At least! Since you are playing it correctly it won’t take long and the small time investment here pays off hugely in terms of progress and the speed at which you learn pieces... and in the HQ (Happiness Quotient) of your teacher next lesson!

For more information on making your practice even more efficient, read my book Practice Makes Perfect. It tells you how to practice in an easy to understand format. Click here for more information on Practice Makes Perfect or for $14.97 through E-Junkie's 100% Secure server and receive a text only copy COMPLETELY FREE!