Practice makes perfect

[FThomas]

Very, very well stated!

A couple of nights ago sleep was not going to be easy. So, instead of tossing and turning out came the Bose 35cII's, my tablet and Little Toby Walker on Tidal for two hours. I ordered a couple of lessons from Toby and though I enjoyed the music my initial foray into fingerstyle Blues allowed me to listen critically. Here are a few thing I learned:

Toby Walker is a masterful musician and performer
Timing - every beat was in the groove
Clarity and tone of every note is excellent
Dynamics - expressive and exciting
Toby keeps your attention and it never bores
All of this is done at blistering speeds.

He is an example of what years of focused practice looks like on stage. He knows his chosen musical genre and executes it with perfection. A true professional.

I am fortunate to have the time to practice hours on end. Literally! I am easily irritated with myself because I'm not reaching my goals as quickly as I would like. But, I am making steady progress. Which is a reward in and of itself. Perfect practice makes for perfect performance. We all need to put in the time making sure we are executing a well planned practice regimen. For me, it may just take more time than for someone else. I cherish the journey.

[PetesaHut]

Originally Posted by guitar george

There is an old saying that "Practice makes perfect" which is intended to mean that if you practice something over and over enough times you will eventually be able to do it perfectly. Is a lot of practice all that's needed to become a great guitar player?

Before proceeding, we need an accurate definition of what constitutes effective practice.

[PetesaHut]

Originally Posted by reeve21

George,

You might be interested in this book.

What I got from it--start young, very young. But you can continue to improve specific talents as you age, even as more general abilities begin to decline. Immerse yourself completely in your area of interest, and build up as much specialized knowledge about it as possible.

And practice "deliberately," always pushing to improve in areas of deficiency. Running through what you know pretty well isn't going to stretch you to get better in areas where you are weak. The type of practice that makes perfect isn't much fun, according to the author.

This book is broader than music and sports, and takes many examples from the business and academic worlds.

Thank you for the heads up about this book, I have purchased the Kindle version and am enjoying it.

[beninma]

Originally Posted by michaelnel

One tip I heard and believe in... when you practice, spend most of your time practicing what you DON'T know and what you DON'T do well.

Sure, spend some time on the stuff you know too, but working on what you don't do well is most productive for me.

This is really important and something I take to heart. It is often said to never end a practice in a tough/frustrating spot though as well. I like to try and play something at the end of a practice session that I'm already playing comfortably so I finish up with a smile.

Finishing up with a good performance of something you know well will leave you feeling good about the whole thing even if you were struggling with the main thing you were practicing.

[rick-slo]

A combination of innate ability and intense practice will carry one further than one without the other.
Some parts of musicality I'm not sure can be taught. One just has to be able to absorb it via ear.

[Woolbury]

Originally Posted by beninma

This is really important and something I take to heart. It is often said to never end a practice in a tough/frustrating spot though as well. I like to try and play something at the end of a practice session that I'm already playing comfortably so I finish up with a smile.

Finishing up with a good performance of something you know well will leave you feeling good about the whole thing even if you were struggling with the main thing you were practicing.

I agree, work on something difficult, then also play something you're comfortable with that allows you to feel the timing and expression. I do the same with skiing, I'll do runs on very hard terrain, pushing my limits, but like to finish with some easier stuff that just lets me flow and not have to work/concentrate as much.

[gmruegg]

What the last poster has brought up indirectly is the importance of a good teacher. Having a good teacher is a good motivator to practice and can help with technique that moves practice forward. Doing practice as a lone effort is not only difficult but not as productive as working with a good teacher. Just saying... It is difficult to overcome lack of talent, but I keep trying.

[Hasbro]

Christopher parkening wrote a fascinating autobiography about his upbringing and practice in the home. It is called Grace like a river and I would highly recommend it. In that book he sheds light on the fact that he was taught to practice as if every session was a performance and to execute everything with beauty and not in a mechanical way and therefore it would come out in performance. So.... a nuts and bolts question, what do readers of this post to think about : is playing something ( you are working on having at a performance level) twice a week enough to be able to play it under pressure?

[TBman]

Unfortunately, the less talent someone has, like me, the longer it takes to learn a particular fingerstyle piece. So while I practice something slow and diligently so that I will be able play to play it flawlessly when completed, getting it completed before becoming bored with it is the problem. I have a lot of pieces that I can play maybe 80% of what I'm actually able to produce and many 50 to 75% through very well, but never finish them because I get sick of hearing them and never perfect the others as well for the same reason,

So while some may say playing an instrument is 90% practice and 10% talent, somewhere buried in there is a lot of patience..... Maybe its more like 90% patience

[Blueshoes]

Practice guitar for hours every day. Do that for years on end and one day you will make it look so easy that people who have never done any of that will say you are blessed with talent.

[Slothead56]

[QUOTE=...George Leonard says native ability can often get in the way of success[/QUOTE]

Finally! My life in music explained!

[misterlutherman]

Its a mix of WHAT you practise, HOW you practise, and the amount of TIME you practise. (CAN YOU FEEL THE HEAT WITH CAPS)

I mean, anyone can sit there for 5 hours a day practising. You can develop some amazing technical skills, but learn nothing about the feeling of playing.

If you don't practise what you love to play, what you really enjoy playing, then even if you practise loads, you won't be a truly amazing player.

Amazing players, in my eyes, combine advanced skills whilst embodying their authentic style. Its not that subtle of a difference either; you see it when players really get in the groove of a song, as their whole body moves, they make facial expressions, and watching them play is fascinating and energising, because they are feeling energised playing. Thats what makes an amazing player.

Also, having an open mind with guitar playing and playing because they enjoy doing so, more so than for the money - which is important, however playing for enjoyment draws out your soul, which makes you an amazing player.

A little rant! I hope this helps

[BobbyMocha]

I started very late in life playing guitar and my instructor HARPED on the issue of deliberate practice- specifically doing new or difficult chords or fingerings at an extremely slow speed. Something about the way the brain is forced to process the movements at this speed creates the muscle memory better than anything else. And doing it over and over solidifies it. It helped me improve so much more that what I'd previously tried.

[SprintBob]

Originally Posted by reeve21

George,

You might be interested in this book.

What I got from it--start young, very young. But you can continue to improve specific talents as you age, even as more general abilities begin to decline. Immerse yourself completely in your area of interest, and build up as much specialized knowledge about it as possible.

And practice "deliberately," always pushing to improve in areas of deficiency. Running through what you know pretty well isn't going to stretch you to get better in areas where you are weak. The type of practice that makes perfect isn't much fun, according to the author.

This book is broader than music and sports, and takes many examples from the business and academic worlds.

Oh my, I guess I should just sell my guitars since I started playing at age 55 ☹️.