Playing/Practicing Time

[Jon]

I was wondering how long you play/practice per day, on average. It always fascinates me when I hear that players like SRV, John Petrucci, Zakk Wylde, etc. play more than 6 hours a day. I guess that is just what it takes to be amazing. Anyway, humour me.

[jhm-614]

I play / practice 8-9 hours a week, but the time is weighted more towards the weekend. 4-5 hours (combined) on Saturday and Sunday and 3 or 4 hours during the week. It always amazes me how time can slip past, just playing little pieces of songs I'm trying to learn

[ricks]

On the average, under "normal" conditions, I would guess one to two hours per night, or on the weekends maybe a little more.
Since hurricane Charley, and on through Frances, my picking time has been WAY reduced. Only wood I seem to spend any time with is what I have left of the pines and oaks on my property. I'm spending at least three hours per day with that wood, cutting and hauling out.
Some day soon, maybe back to "normal". Right now, my hands and wrists hurt all the time from sawing and hauling, I can hardly play at all.

[bagelsgirl]

I'm in school studying music right now, so I am practicing between 2 and 3 hours most days. It's all I can manage. Classical guitar. Tough stuff.

I also do pop and rock and folk stuff and perform professionally, pretty often, so I used to only practice by learning new tunes. Before starting back to school, I did most of my playing at gigs, and since I did 5 gigs or so a week, that was enough to keep my chops up... Still doing a l;ot of gigs, not as many right now though...

[wthurman]

It's a matter of time and space. I need to consult Stephen Hawking.

[EasilyAmused]

I guess I'm the odd one out thus far. I just finished studying music in a very intense program that required me to practice around 8 hours a day (let a lone rehersals, and the million of other playing times I had in a day) just to be able to pass...

I'm done that, but still keep up over 6 hours a day... It's amazing how quickly you can improve when you are disciplined like that...

[Serenity]

If you mean real structured practice, I'd say about 30 to 45 a day. If you include any dinking around then it's closer to 2 hours a day or more on a good day. When I'm home in the evenings the guitar is rarely off of my lap.

[beatlenut]

I'm lucking if I can fit in an hour a WEEK sometimes. Wish I had the free time, but with job, kids, church, etc. It's 9 o'clock during the week before I can take a break. Too tired by then and would rather relax with the wife. Even then, it's the stuff for sunday as the worship band leader I have to practice. My free time is spent doing the research, reading, charting songs for the worship band.

[Hondo]

About an hour a day. I love playing guitar.

[sc morris]

It varies for me. There are times that I hardly, if at all, pick up a guitar all week. Then there are times when I hardly put it down all week. I'm lucky though....my wife and I sing together and would rather do that than watch tv or something. My guitar playing is more of a backup for my voice, so I don't really "practice" parts....unless it's a really strange progression or something. I'd say most of the folks on this board are out of my league when it comes to playing guitar. I just play what feels/sounds good to me, and I don't really worry about acheiving some specific goal. I just play. I'm not the best, but I'm not the worst either.

This thread reminds me of the words of EVH, "when I pick up the guitar, I play. There's no such thing as practice..."

[Robert1]

I grab a 1/2 hour before I leave for work in the morning, usually about and hour or so in the evening. Sometimes depends on teenager issues

[4Gtrs]

Originally Posted by beatlenut

It's 9 o'clock during the week before I can take a break. Too tired by then and would rather relax with the wife. Even then, it's the stuff for sunday as the worship band leader I have to practice. My free time is spent doing the research, reading, charting songs for the worship band.

Hey hey hey...There are others in the same boat. My only practice is late at night trying to get the rhythm for Sunday's P&W songs. I've forgotten how to fingerpick!

[Stixx]

Perhaps, and interesting adjunct to this thread is what do you consider real practice. Sitting around noodling I'm told is not practice. A recent Clinic with Chris Proctor revealed some very interesting concepts about practice and how 20 minutes of real practice can accomplish a lot . The reverse is true of course but then Honey Do lists can really take precidence at times can they not?

LOL

[Joost Assink]

Stixx,

I would really like to hear those tips. Since I have been working on the Tommy Emmanuel songs, I play and practice harder. I try to really focus the practice time on certain songs, techniques or passages and I try to play all songs at least once. Also, I have set myself to the habit of playing every day. Since then I really notice more of an improvement in my playing. Both the focus and the steady frequency make a lot of difference. Even though my playing time hasn't increased greatly, the results have!

Any tips to improve it more?

PS: Al Petteway (in his masterclass DVD) suggests that noodling in front of the TV (aside from the practice I just described) is very useful to practice techniques like fast rolls and stuff. So now I really sit down to practice and occasionally I pick up the guitar when I'm in front of the tv (if my wife isn't there of course) and do nothing but rolls for a while.

PPS: The motto I go by for practice nowadays is from a famous Chellist. He says: "If you don't practice for one day, you will hear it. If you don't practice for two days, everyone will hear it."
Works for me!

[flaggerphil]

I usually play about an hour a day...but most of the time it's not "practice". I'm either playing or noodling just because. I WILL practice when I'm learning a new song or getting ready to play for someone. But I rarely do that these days. I play just for fun.