How do you keep your focus, and continue practicing?

[mandolindude04]

Recently I attended a Mid winter bluegrass festival near my home here in CO. It was held in Northglenn, and I live in a neighboring township in Thornton. I attended a mandolin class on that Sat. and listened to three pro mandolinists play. I asked the question to them, about how they kept focus. One of them said, knowing he didn't have to dig ditches somewhere helped keep him focused. One said that joining a band helped keep him focused. So my question to you is, how do you keep focused, and practiced up?

[Earl Gamage]

Just keep playing and working on it. You won't always feel like it, but stay after it.

[JeffD]

I jam. As often as possible. Monday night about an hour away, Tuesday night is local, and Wednesday night at another location an hour away. Usually on the weekend I put in some lone time with the instrument, or play out at a party or something.

[Willie Poole]

After forty years of not getting any better with my playing I just don`t practice by myself very much any more, I get the whole band together and it makes me feel like wanting to pick...I occasionally go into a room all by myself where it is totally quiet and work on a new song but not very often...Funny that this thread would come up at this time because I found that I do get the urge to pick some and as soon as I pick up the mandolin it seems to go away, I know there is more out there for me to learn but I can`t seem to get comfortable looking for it....

[catmandu2]

For me, it is the music that inspires me. Often, I'll burn out on playing an instrument--something I've been doing since the age of nine years old--whether playing with a band, or a solo performance, or whatever...eventually, like all habits and routines it becomes somewhat stale. But, I'll hear something that intrigues my imagination, and motivates me to experiment with something, musically. There's more music going on around me than I'll have the time to capture. It's kind of like MAS, but spelled "music acquisition syndrome."

[Raymando7]

I find that there's always focus conflict between:

* Practice to improve
* Practice for jam sessions
* Practice of band material

Logic says that I should practice the band material but keep going over the same songs can be difficult.

I'm not sure whether jamming improves my playing as the jams I go to tend to play standards that I don't play outside of the jams and I have to re-familiarise myself with the 'usual suspects' before I go.

What really keeps me going is learning new songs and mando breaks and trying to get somewhere close to a specific solo that really catches me. More recently, I have tried to incorporate elements of these into the band songs so that I am both learning and practicing the band set.

I'm also trying to get to grips with chromatic solos which I think may require an upgrade to my brain cells :-)

[JeffD]

For me, it is the music that inspires me. Often, I'll burn out on playing an instrument--."

Bingo.

I'll hear a new tune, or be impressed with someone's playing, or something on a CD, and all of a sudden I am back at it with renewed vigor.

Worst comes to worst, buying a new mandolin always works. :)

[JeffD]

I find that there's always focus conflict between:

* Practice to improve
* Practice for jam sessions
* Practice of band material

)

Big time. I try and tie them together. For example, I was goofing around with the tune "Hunting the Buffalo", and thought I would try it in a closed position, just to improve my playing. Well I worked it up off the nut and practiced a bit. Next jam, playing "Hunting the Buffalo", I felt mischievous and I shot it up an octave just for fun and everyone looks over. So now, I and my duet partner are working it into our selections. What started as improvement, turned into jam stuff and now band stuff.

So I try and mix it up. Stuff that is giving me trouble for performance I break down and work on while woodshedding, etc. The big no no no no is bringing band stuff into the jam. I never do that and I hate it when people do. The jam is the jam and not practice or rehursal for your band.

[300win]

I always have notes and riffs running around in my head and bumping into each other, and have to get the mandolin to see if I can find them on there. I always do, but I make up stuff.... what I mean by that is stuff I hear that I've not heard done before, plus stuff that I have heard and do my own variation of it. For instance the classic kickoff that Bill Monroe does for Mule Skinner Blues or Roanke etc., I don't do it like he did it, but you can tell what I'm doing if you are familar with the tune. Of course the purists say . 'well if you don't do it exactly like so & so played it, then it ain't right '. Who cares ?, I sure don't. I'm more interested in what I can think up than what someone else before me has, probably the reason I have written over 350 songs/tunes so far in life. Will they ever be played by someone famous ?, I doubt it, although a few have in the past, but that really don't matter.' Making music' is fun, anytime time you begin to think that it is work, well it's not fun anymore

[JonZ]

Before you practice, decide on the musical goals that you want to accomplish. It might be memorizing an entire song, perfecting a difficult passage, playing a picking pattern without error--or whatever else you want to work on. Make your goals as specific as possible. "Get better at Old Joe Clark" is not specific. "Play measures 1-8 of Old Joe Clark at 90 BPM without error" is specific. Don't work on any one goal for two long. If you do not acheive it, put it aside for the next day. If you do achieve it, put it aside for a few days. Avoid "Daily Warmups". Do warm up, but don't do the same thing every day; it's boring and inefficient.

In short, put a little planning into each practice session, and a lot of planning into your long-term goals. Repetition is essential, but spacing your repetitions will help you learn more material faster and stay focused.

Also, try to be aware of your stress level. If you find yourself becomming frustrated by a goal, break the goal down further, or put it aside for the day. You want to try to set acheivable goals, but sometimes it doesn't happen. Don't flog a goal to death.

[Jordan Ramsey]

Lots of good advice here, but ultimately, each person has to find their own way. I'm the guy who made the digging ditches comment, and although it was mostly meant to get a laugh, it definitely has relevance to my situation. I worked a labor intensive job for a couple of years back in TN before deciding to move out here to make a go with music. Every time I get a little lazy in the practice room these days, I think back to working outside in the middle of summer, sweating my tail off and how much better I have it now doing something that I love. It always motivates me to get back in there, because I realize that if I want to continue to do this and thrive (read survive), I have to treat it like a full-time job, even when there are no gigs or lessons.

For the weekend warriors looking for motivation, I would suggest organizing a duo or small ensemble and booking some low key gigs. Nothing like the prospect of embarrassing yourself in front of people to motivate you in the practice room. Coffee shops, nursing homes, doesn't have to be big. Same with jams, go to as many as possible and take breaks, put yourself out there and play in front of people as often as you can. You can also try switching up your routine if the practice room becomes stale. Transcribe something, learn some new lyrics or work on your singing, study music theory, listen to some of your favorite mandolin players/musicians, put a metronome on a medium-fast tempo and pat your leg on the back beat, read something about mandolin or music history, etc... Lots of way to improve and motivate yourself without having the instrument in your hands.

[catmandu2]

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[Chris Biorkman]

Methamphetamine. Just kidding.

[Randi Gormley]

Oddly enough, getting a new tune book gets me playing in a more focused way; I guess getting new sheet music of any kind works as well. I'll pick up a tune or two by ear, but a new book with lots and lots of undiscovered pieces seems to stimulate my imagination more and give me that ooomph that gets me away from whatever I'm doing and back with my instrument.

[George R. Lane]

Most of the comments seem to be geared towards people who play in a band or attend alot of jam sessions. I am neither. I play for my own enjoyment and to relax. I have days where I am busy with something else, my farm, flyfishing or some such and I don't play at all. It is then that I go looking for a new song to learn and inspire me. So you don't have to always be focused and practice till your fingers bleed. Just enjoy your instrument.

[Jesse Weitzenfeld]

My son is into guitar contests and I usually back him up on the mandolin, help him with his arrangements, and generally assist/direct wherever I can. His focus, enthusiasm, and intensity are much higher when preparing for a contest, and I've been amazed at how much he can accomplish in a short period of time. Tunes that would normally take him months to master he can learn in a few weeks. Any kind of "event" can help you focus, whether it's a contest, gig, recording session, a weekly jam, or even just a regularly scheduled lesson with an instructor who expects you to have "done your homework". I think you have to have some kind of goal that's associated with other people to keep from getting complacent.

[JonZ]

Preparing for a competition is certainly motivating, but I wonder if it is analogous to cramming for a test.

I suppose if motivation is lacking, that is where you have to start.

[catmandu2]

Preparing for a competition is certainly motivating, but I wonder if it is analogous to cramming for a test.

I suppose if motivation is lacking, that is where you have to start.

Sometimes, gigging is the ONLY practice I get. I hate to say it, but I only play some instruments on a gig...I usually intend to get them out and practice some, but it rarely occurs. This doesn't leave much room for study and technical improvement, but I guess I tend to develop in other areas, though. Lately, the instruments that come out at home have not much to do with performing or other "gainful" employment. I confess too, at times on a gig, I'm sometimes thinking -- "I should have practiced that." And, sometimes I'll be practicing too much while on a gig... :redface:

[jasona]

Methamphetamine. Just kidding.

Yeah, that's terrible for focus...

I've always taken the long view on practice. It takes time to achieve expertise or proficiency (or even competence!), so whereas working on drills or difficult parts of songs over and over may be boring (or drive your partner mad) its part of the process.

What keeps me going though are those moments when I realize "wow, that sounded really good/played effortlessly/I've come a long way, maybe I really can get there!"

[Ivan Kelsall]

Learning new tunes & ironing out the picking faults in the old ones is enough to keep me on track. Also i simply play for the sheer enjoyment,picking along with anything & everything that I'net Bluegrass Radio stations can throw at me - in at the deep end,playing (trying) song & tunes i've never heard before. It certainly keeps you focused big time,
Ivan

[Duane Graves]

A couple of things I do that works for me is (1) try to write my own tune and name it then learn it and add to it or take from it (2) run over the major scales in first position and name the notes as you go through them (3) and like has been said some new song that catches my appeal will always get me going. For instance I am working on "The Blind Fiddler" by Nolan Faulkner. I have no notation or tab to work with so am getting my own by listening intentlly to the song and comparing results. All the best, dgg.

[Duane Graves]

After forty years of not getting any better with my playing I just don`t practice by myself very much any more,...

Hi, Willie. I'm sitting here thinking..."I sure wish Willie was my neighbour or even lived in my town because with 40 years of experience and not sure what to do with the down time, well, I, for one would be calling upon you to tap into that 40 years of knowledge to show me...." I'm sure there are interested people that would love to have you give them your ideas, Willie, and that would perk your interest for sure.....I'm just saying, 40 years....wow, and still going at it....take care, dgg.

[JonZ]

I came upon an article (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/heidi-grant-halvorson-phd/success-strategies_b_833464.html)that pertains to this topic.

[AlanN]

Willie, you sure that ain't 40 Years Of Trouble? Just funnin'. I bet you have 40 years of stories, if nothing else.

[JeffD]

Oddly enough, getting a new tune book gets me playing in a more focused way; .

That is excellent actually. I just got a book of tunes from Prince Edward Island and its like pouring gasoline on the coals.

[JeffD]

My nephew once said: "Practicing may not be fun, but its a lot more fun than sucking."

[Fretbear]

There is also a kind of Zen that can come to your playing, when you no longer feel that there is anything wrong with your playing that then needs to be improved upon. When music is presented to you or you wish to play something, of course you might have to spend a lot of time learning it and refining it to perform it or record it, but the sense that "you have to improve" is not necessarily there, which is very liberating as well as relaxing. It makes your playing sound and feel better too.

[allenhopkins]

Practice? What's that...? Not fair, really, but I find my "practice" is almost entirely directed toward learning new material, when I need to do that for a particular performance. Band rehearsals are usually just to review and add a new tune or two -- but other times, they may involve learning a large chunk of new repertoire in relatively little time, to meet the deadline for a gig. I take mandolin, as well as other instruments, to as many jams and sing-arounds as I can, and exercise my improvisational skills by playing unfamiliar material "on the fly" -- with mixed results, I might add. So new techniques get added piecemeal, in a not-very-organized fashion, but I'm playing frequently enough to feel like I continue to learn.

As for focus, hey, that's never a problem, I keep a laser-like... hey, what's on TV? Wow, an American Pickers marathon! I'll get back to ya...

[mandolindude04]

Wow! Lot's of good advice. JRamsey thanks for responding too. Someone else posted a link to Huff Post, I printed it out to read as I'm settling down for the night. I actually have a couple of ideas of where to go from here....I was listening on my MP3 player this eve. to Walking in Memphis, I wondered if anyone has ever done this on a mandolin. I thought I might work on that. I also have a book by Dix Bruce called getting into Bluegrass, I'm kind of stuck on tremolo, and getting a decent sound while doing double stops. I do enjoy going to jam sessions, but am a little shy, although others have told me I do a good job playing. I'm going to a bluegrass jam camp for beginners in Boulder next month, and I'm looking forward to that. Maybe I'll learn something that will help me as well. But I'm impressed with all of the caring good advice from this little question that I initially asked. Thank you all. Back in September I had a heart attack, and almost died. They put a couple of stents in me, and I was off on FMLA for seven weeks. I'm back at work, but often when the weekend comes around I just want to rest. I know there are some bluegrass jams to attend but sometimes I'm just tired. The day I went to the mid winter camp was a big day. Somebody there invited me to a jam in South Denver, I went but I lasted only about an hour. I was getting really tired. I know I'm rambling some, but my point is, that where I'm at at the moment is really just getting the mando out when time allows, and just practicing.

[Paul Busman]

Try not practicing for a while. Sometimes taking a total break allows your brain to process all that you've recently processed.
Play a different instrument for a few days if you're multi-instrumental. Listen to a brand new genre of music.
You will come back to the mandolin refreshed and ready for more.

[Mandolin Mick]

Leaning how to play new tunes is my motivation. I've been a musician for almost 40 years and play 9 instruments. In that time I can honestly say that I've spent a grand total of about a few hours on scales or exercises. To learn new techniques I learn a song that has those techniques.

Music isn't a religion to me but a diversion or escape from this world's everyday cares. The day that I start doing scales and exercises for practice is the day I sell my instruments! ~o)

[Duane Graves]

That is excellent actually. I just got a book of tunes from Prince Edward Island and its like pouring gasoline on the coals.

"....PEI....that's just a stone throw away from me.....any songs about the "The Confederation Bridge or Bud the Spud" in your book?....the Island is famous for it's "bright-red" (filled with zinc) mud, lobster, potatoes and the Confederation Bridge is the longest (8 miles long) curved, free standing bridge over ice-covered water in the world....excellent musical artists come from PEI....sorry, had to say something.....too close to home.