Summer Practice Tips

For many of us, school’s OUT for the summer! That means long, sunny days filled with outdoor fun, vacations, hanging out with family and friends, and letting ourselves relax a bit. But, we don’t want to fall behind on our musical studies while we are playing. Summer practice can be rewarding and fun!

• Now is a great time to explore music genres that you aren’t very familiar with. Open yourself up to a bit of classical or jazz, country or bluegrass.

• Even in the summer, consistency is key for our music studies. Set aside a set time each day for your practice. I promise that you will have plenty of time left over for fun and games! Give yourself some grace in your practice. You don’t have to have a perfect practice session. If all you do one day is work on a few measures of music over and over until you are happy with them, that is valuable practice!

• Scales and finger exercises, breathing exercises and warm-up vocalizations and running chords on the guitar are all valuable warm-ups that shouldn’t be skipped!

• Record yourself so you can listen back and figure out where you may need more work.

• Look for concerts and musicals to attend.

• Have fun! Music is fun, so try to keep the fun in your practice!