Keep Calm and Play Music

Some kids love to practice their instrument, be it voice, violin, guitar or piano.  Getting the most out of practicing can be tricky.

For singers, we don't want to strain and over use our voice.
For musicians, we don't want to rehearse poor posture and technique.

So how do we avoid these pitfalls?

(1) Keep practice sessions short 5- 10 minutes at a time.
(2) Ask yourself if you feel pain, pain is not good. Stop if you have discomfort.
(3) Keep notes of when you feel discomfort and tell your teacher. The discomfort may be due to posture or lack of a shoulder rest in violin etc.
(4) Stretch before and after a practice session to keep your body in alignment.
(5) Relax when you are playing or singing.  Tense muscles create strain, strain leads to pain.
(6) Invent your own practice games and incentives.  


In my next blog I will suggest some games too!