Practice Well, Play Well

Live from Los Angeles, California
YouTube Playlist:Jazz Piano

It is infinitely better to practice SMART, not HARD.

After many years of teaching I have observed countless piano students try their best and spend a ton of time WORKING at the piano, with slow progress and a lot of frustration. Certainly this is not fun! It can end up feeling like wasted time, and a disatisfying experience.

However by pivoting in the WAY that you practice – by optimizingyour time at the piano, things can work much much better. You could be be on track to spend fewer practice hours but still making better progress by being more strategic in the way you approach your practice.

For many people, practicing efficiently and optimizing time during practice does not come naturally. In my teaching experience, I would venture to say that I spend about 25% of my time in jazz piano lessons guiding students on HOW to work on jazz piano, not WHAT specifically to work on. I’ve seen this greatly improve the success rate in many students, not to mention mitigating their frustration!

This MichMusic now video outlines 10 specific ways to seriously beef up progress during practice, achieving more in less time and having a better experience! Be sure to get the PRACTICE WELL, PLAY WELL PDF DOWNLOAD above.

_____________________
LINKS

JAZZ PIANO HANDBOOK
by Michele Weir (Alfred Music)

This book covers Voicings and Patterns in detail with recorded examples, exercises and etudes. Specifics include Voicings and Patterns P1, P2, P3, P4, how to play a walking bass line, bossa nova patterns, extensions, textures (such as arpeggios, broken chords, passing notes,) a Glossary that lists virtually all chord symbols (with all common variations) you may come across and what they mean, and more.