Wow, tuxes, sitting down with music stands. Our group has evolved quite a bit since these early touring years!

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HOW DO I GET MY CHILD TO PRACTICE?!
Tips for Parents

BY SEAN REUSCH

Do you ever get frustrated that your son or daughter rarely practices without you nagging them to get their instrument out? Are you bummed that you spent so much money purchasing an instrument that your child never touches? Are you upset that you got them lessons with a private instructor and they still won’t practice? Don’t fear – you are not alone! I find that all of the young musicians I teach love music, but most don’t love to practice. Remember, practicing is a skill and needs to be taught- it is not instinctual! Your child needs many reminders- just like brushing their teeth! Eventually, practicing will become a habit and you won’t need to put in a lot of time getting them to practice.

Here are some tips to help you get your child to practice more.

• Make practice fun! Kids are more likely to do something they enjoy. Purchase music that they love to play.
• Help your child practice by designating a special practice place in the house with few distractions. It’s very helpful to schedule a specific practice time each day for consistent practice. Remember, quality over quantity! A musician’s rate of improvement is directly proportionate to the amount of quality practice.
• Treat practicing like homework, kids need to do a little every day. It’s best to practice early in the day. Most people don’t want to hear loud noises late in the evening.
• Have your child perform for you, relatives, and friends regularly. This really helps kids get comfortable performing in front of people. Do this when they have an audition or a performance coming up!
• Encourage your child to play for people at church, hospitals, senior centers, and convalescent homes.
• Encourage classmates to come over and play together.
• Try to make practicing a reward, not a punishment! When you want to reward your child, buy them a recording, sheet music, or tickets to a concert.
• Listen to lots of great musicians as often as possible with your child. Talk about the music and how it makes you feel. Go to concerts to hear great live music.
• Get private lessons. Make short, medium, and long range playing goals with your child and their teacher.
• Make sure your child has good, working equipment. They should have the following:
• Music stand
• Tuner
• Metronome
• A recording device
• Notebook for their music
• Necessary supplies (brass players: valve oil, slide lubricant, mouthpiece brush
• Attend master classes with your child. These are often very inspirational and kids learn so much in a short amount of time.

Finally, I found a great quote on a piece of paper on the floor of a band room that sums up practicing perfectly. The author is unknown to me.

If you practice, you get better.

If you get better, you will play with better players.

If you play with better players, you play better music.

If you play better music, you have more fun.

If you have more fun, you practice more.

If you practice more, you get better…

We’ve updated our Free Sheet Music page to include a great collection of Daily Routines, Scale Exercises, Duets and more for all brass instruments. In the coming months we hope to expand this page much more, so keep an eye out for more updates. Until then, go to the Free Sheet Music Page and get practicing!!

BY SEAN REUSCH

Becoming a great musician requires a daily dose of Vitamin P – PRACTICE!  Remember that practice makes permanent.  One will improve quickly through correct repetition while practicing. Here are some great practice tips that will help you become a great practicer. Good luck!

• Practice things you don’t sound good on – we tend to play what we can already play well.
• Make short, medium, and long-range goals for yourself to help evaluate progress.
• Have a plan for practicing BEFORE you practice – you will be so much more efficient. Try to set time limits to keep your practice session varie
• Simplify! Focus on 1 or 2 things at a time such as tone, intonation, rhythm, articulations, dynamics, and phrasing.
• Relax! We perform at a much higher level and for a longer period when relaxed.
• Practice in smaller increments – take breaks! Set a clock. Playing straight for a long time usually leads to bad habits because of physical and mental fatigue.
• Always strive for better breath control and efficiency – blow constant and steady!
• Blow! Air is THE most important thing! Always strive for a deep, quiet, relaxed, constant inhale. Be sure to make your breath as natural as possible. What goes in, comes out! (Bad breath in – bad sound out. Great breath in – great sound out).
• Posture – sit tall! Bring your instrument up to your face, not your face down to your instrument.
• Practice in a place with as few distractions as possible (never practice in front of the TV or computer).
• Practice your entire range every time you practice. This should include dynamics (ppp-fff), tonguing (staccato, legato, marcato, tenuto), tonguing speed (slow-fast, double, triple) and range (low notes – high notes).
• Listen to as much as possible (live concerts, television, recordings, and movies), particularly of great musicians. Be sure to listen to singers and other instrumentalists (not just brass!). Always try to listen to live music!
• You should always have a small mirror (to watch your embouchure), pencil, metronome, tuner, timer, and something with which you can record yourself.
• End your practice session on a positive note – play something that you really like and that you play well.

Thanks for visiting our new website! We hope this will be a great source for all things Presidio Brass and in particular, a valuable resource for music students and educators with a library of articles, recordings and sheet music to aid their musical growth. Let us know what you think in the comment sections and be sure to “Like” us on Facebook so you can keep up on the latest updates and news!