Practicing

Everyone loves music, and it seems as though everyone wants to have the ability to play music. Anyone can play music but there is really only one thing that stands in the way.

Practice.

That dreaded activity that every student is guilty of not doing!

Why do we hate practicing so much? Why is it so difficult to incorporate practice into our daily routine? Is it because your music teacher is usually pretty nice about it, so its not a big deal if you don't? Is it because you're not being given a national assessment on how much you've practiced the last 3 months? Is it because you simply have other, more important, things to do? Is it because there's that one key on your keyboard/piano that doesn't work right - so pretty much you can't practice... ?

There really isn't an answer to your problem if you're having a hard time finding the time to practice, or encouraging your little one to practice. The bottom line is however - it MUST be done - or else you are wasting your valuable "music lesson" money.

Practice is as effective as regular lessons. They go hand-in-hand. The teacher can only teach so much - the student must develop the skill through persistent, consistent repetition. Trust your teacher - that's how he/she became your teacher!

Since I don't have an easy answer to your problem, I will try and provide some support.
Justin Coletti outlines 6 Science-Supported Steps to Great Musicianship. Read the article by clicking on the link if you have the time, or else continue reading and I will give you the 'Coles Notes' version.

1) Commit in writing.
- Write down your goals. These should be SMART. (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely.) This means, if you want to learn to play "La donne e Mobil", write your goal like this:

Goal: Learn to play "La donna e Mobil" fluently with both hands by February 28, 2017. I will do this by practicing it 10 minutes a day, 5 days a week. (Resting on Sundays and Thursdays.) I will record my practice sessions in my notebook each day.

2) Start Small.
- Start by practicing 5 minutes a day. Once you have been able to do that successfully for a while, then bump up to 10 minutes.

3) Know Your Trigger.
- This means that you need to know when is the best time to schedule practice. Don't set yourself up for failure. Don't decide to wake up an extra 15 minutes earlier in the morning to practice -when in reality you know you'll be pressing the snooze button come that time. Set your practice time to fit in well with your daily routine.

4) Reward Yourself.
- If you met your practice goal for the week, give yourself a nice reward. You can use smaller rewards for smaller accomplishments and larger rewards for more work.

5) Commit Publicly.
- Let some of your family or friends in on your goals!

6) Track your success.
- If you have all the days outlined in a calendar, it is so satisfying to see all those crossed-out days of successful practice - you'll be less likely to miss a day when its right there screaming at you in plain ink! Here's a sample organizer to help you keep track!

I hope this helps. It is extremely difficult to "unlearn" habits or to incorporate new more positive ones. But in order to be a great musician, practice needs to take place. Find a way to make it work! Your music teacher has your back!

Workshop Review!

The guitar workshop was inspiring to say the least. Stefan Roach is simply inspirational and plays such complex music with ease and fluidity.

For those that missed out - you missed a great opportunity. Everyone at the workshop came from a different and unique musical background and had different goals but because of Stefan's musical fluency, he was able to tailer to more advanced players while still tending to those who needed a slower pace.


We perfected our scales, major and harmonic minors as well as some popular flamenco progressions and applied new fingerpicking techniques and arpeggios to these progressions.

We attempted new strumming patterns known as Rasgueado and Golpe which include releasing your fingers like a slingshot while strumming, and tapping the guitar as you strum to give a more percussive feel.

We concluded with the Rumba Strum which was a combination of the strumming patterns we had learned incorporating the tapping with the slingshot fingers and playing a continuous strum at the same time! Stefan made it look so easy!

Everyone who attended the workshop left feeling inspired and ready to go home and practice our new techniques added to our repertoire.

Special thank you to all who attended, to Island Academy for providing the space for this musical education to take place, and most of all for Stefan for inspiring us to be better musicians and giving us the stepping stones to do so!

Guitar Workshop!

Friday, September 23rd, Bell's Studio will be hosting a guitar workshop at The Music Room at Island Academy featuring classical guitarist Stefan Roach!

Come and take advantage of his skills, knowledge and expertise whether you are a beginner guitarist or if you are a professional looking to expand your style! 

Stefan Roach is a talented classical and flamenco guitarist from Trinidad. He runs his own music academy in Trinidad called Stefan’s Guitar Academy. He began his studies of classical guitar in 2001 and has excelled in its study successfully completing the grade 8 – the final grade – of the Associated Board of the Royal School of Music (ABRSM) exam and subsequently obtaining a Diploma in Performance Guitar. He is an avid teacher and performer of guitar always leaving his audience wanting more. To read more of his bio visit Stefan's Bio. 

Who is this for?

·      If you are learning guitar and want to learn more tips and tricks

·      If you are a professional guitarist looking for an opportunity to expand your style of playing

·      If you are interested in guitar and would like to learn some of the techniques a professional uses in classical and flamenco playing

·      If you are doing an ABRSM classical guitar exam anytime in the near future

When?

            Friday, September 23 from 3:00 – 4:30 pm.

Where?

            The Music Room at Island Academy International School, 
                                                                                        Buckley’s Estate

How much?

            $20.00 USD per person at the door.

Where can I pre-register?

            Click this link to pre-register and save your spot! 

Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity! 
Bring your guitar if you have one!

The Silent Rehearsal

I absolutely love this idea. Imagine that after you have been constantly exposed to something you eventually become numb to it. Imagine how numb we have become to noise. Even in a perfect classroom environment its still uncommon that the room will ever be silent - and when it is - such peace!

Imagine how much better students would be able to hear the music they are making - really absorb and understand it - if it isn't cluttered by chatter?

This is definitely something a music teacher should carefully and meticulously plan before trying to execute - going through all the symbols, having a structured rehearsal plan (imagine how much time you will save), and then of course how you will ensure the students really, actually don't talk during the class.

Here is the blogpost from Mrs. Stouffers Music Room Blog where she discusses the benefits of using The Silent Rehearsal with her band students.

Hope you music teachers feel inspired!

J.

Something's Happening!

Bell's Studio has great potential. Imagine a forum for music teachers and students to connect with the end result being quality private music education. Antigua is loaded with an incredible amount of talent and music education is key in tapping into this talent!

Let's give students the opportunity to find the instruction they need and not from just anyone - but the best! This is a shout out to all aspiring musicians, AND to accomplished musicians who teach - or who would like to teach.

Bell's Studio is for you. 

As we develop and grow, lets start a student/teacher base. I'm willing to post your stories, ideas, successes and challenges right here on this music blog. If you have an idea for a blog about what you are up to in the music world of Antigua, I definitely want to hear from you.

E-mail me at bellsstudio@gmx.com!