How many hours per week do you usually practice / play ?

[9lbShellhamer]

Surprised to see this wasn't a post already... sure its been discussed somewhere.

Not concerned about quantity vs quality, etc. I'm just curious what the norm is, that's all.

[Jim Gallaher]

Normally seven to ten hours for me. More if I have a gig coming up.

[Richard J]

At the very least 14 hours. My wife is surprised when I'm not playing.

[UsuallyPickin]

Play which? I manage to split about three hours each day between four instruments. Sometimes four hours sometimes only one or two if my schedule gets beyond my control. Mandolin usually gets an hour because it's my warm up instrument. R/

[JeffD]

Well it depends. I have two jams a week I attend plus a band rehearsal. I sometimes I rehearse with my other band, depending on the weather and road conditions So that's what, 8 minimum and 11 maximum hours a week. Depending on how many jams and rehearsals I was able to get in I will play at home during the week, so in total maybe 12 minimum per week total and often more.

Now I would not be able to sustain the maximum for more than a few weeks running before something I have not been attending to takes up too much of my time. So if you include that, and average for several months, summer and winter, I would go with the minimum number of 10 to 12 hours a week.

What happens, or what happened to me, is that my life entirely re-arranged itself around the music. It started as just something I did now and then, soon it became something I make time for semi-regularly, then it became something that was always more rewarding than watching television, (so that left entirely), then it became something that made it necessary to decline other involvements and potentially rewarding obligations, (various professional society leadership committee type things and some volunteer service on boards of various local charitable organizations), and now its such a part of how my life goes that loss of mandolin in my life would leave a huge hole not easily filled.

I have NEVER seen practice or playing as an obligation, part of what I "had to do" each day or week. I have always looked forward to being able to have time to play. (Well that is not entirely true, there was a band that invited me in, a prestigious position in a way, but they took themselves way way too seriously, not inappropriate for a band of such quality and ambition, but I found I wasn't looking forward to practicing and playing for it, so I quit. Jaws dropped. But I am not going to work on this more than is fun, no matter how valuable it might be.)

[MaggieMae]

I try to practice an hour a day. It seems to be harder to fit in lately, as I am trying to keep up more with the housework, gardening, and working out too. There are only so many hours in the day.

[9lbShellhamer]

Yeah- between guitar and mandolin I find I top out at about 10-12 hours per week average for both with the odd crazy high week thrown in. Sounds like most of you are the same. In December I played very little guitar and so mando time was very high, but in January I had some goals for Guitar so it was about 5 hours each 10 hours weekly that month.

Sometimes when other life goals are high I have to remember its totally fine to practice and play less! I find when I'm fresh off a race and training (running) less my mando time is obviously much higher. It's great to have that balance and allow it to come and go, (although its always there in some capacity).

Thanks!

[JRcohan]

I try to fit in one hour a day at the very least. That is on the days I don't have band practice, or a gig. I always play at least a short warm-up right before a gig. I am sure what works best for everyone is slightly different. Less is sometimes more.

Keep playin

[Denny Gies]

About half an hour a day.

[Steve Zawacki]

Retirement is wonderful! Manage to get in at least an instrument/hour a day involving at least one instrument (usually more) each day, plus whatever time here.

Now if I only would get better......

[Bill Baldridge]

I like to get in an hour of playing each day, plus a weekly jam. Some days I play more, some days less. In addition, because I am retired and live alone, I leave the mandolin(s) out on the stand and grab one of them throughout the day to play a tune or two or work on some piece I am struggling with. I find that I often make more progress with two half-hour sessions than I do with a continuous hour of practice. My days of playing for money are over, and I don't miss the hassle.

[mandolirius]

Ten to twelve hours a day.....unless I get ambitious.

[Shelagh Moore]

I like to try and play for at least half hour every day. I don't practice as such... I just noodle with whatever tunes have risen to the surface.

[Phil Goodson]

Three or four 3-hour jams per week plus about 30-60 minutes per day of home practice.
(But I started late in life. )

[roysboy]

10 to 12 hours most weeks

[Bertram Henze]

1 hour a day, on average. There's peaks, though - 4-hour sessions twice or thrice a month.

[Bill Clements]

One hour a day, when possible.
Business travel and work make it difficult sometimes. Retirement...I see light at the end of the tunnel.
I'd also be interested in how long some of you have been playing mandolin. I began in 2010.

Good post, Jeff--like most of your contributions here.

[Ivan Kelsall]

Usually between 14 & 21 hours each week. If i'm learning a new tune / song (by ear),i might cram 4 hours a day in.I have to qualify this though.In my un-centrally heated home - no heat upstairs where i do most of my practicing,in the winter i'll keep my playing down to as long as it takes for my fingers to freeze !,
Ivan

[Pasha Alden]

Similarly to Richard I try and practice every day for at least half an hour. I vary practice sessions, one day focusing on right hand and picking technique. Then I would the next day play some melody/lead then the next practice switching between chords, etc. So As a reward I allow myself the learning of something new every once in a while to ensure practice remains interesting. Thre mando "projects" working on ire: "Song Sung Blue" "True Clours" and finishing of "Here comes the Rain again." All this continuing while I am also doing a little extra practice for the African/south African music I am playing with other language groups. So yes, sometimes I noodle, but sometimes I make the half hour count by focusing on something specific.

Good luck and happy playing!

[DataNick]

Wintertime: 12-15 hours per week
Spring, Summer, Fall: 21 hours per week

[derbex]

Sadly less time than I spend on here

At the moment I am going for 2 or 3 half hour sessions a day, I work from home so I can space them out, and I got 3 hours a day back when I stopped commuting.

3 days a week I take my daughter riding, so I take the mandolin with me and practice in the car -it beats staring at the rusty slurry tank. The days are getting longer -soon I won't need the head torch

I am working through Ranieri's Art de le Mandolin with a tutor, and Simon Mayor's Mastering Mandolin by myself, early days for both, as well as learning a bunch of new Scottish and Irish tunes for a monthly sessiom.

[9lbShellhamer]

One hour a day, when possible.
I'd also be interested in how long some of you have been playing mandolin. I began in 2010.
Good post, Jeff--like most of your contributions here.

April of 2013.

How many of you are in bands?

[Mark Wilson]

12-14 hr/week. Began May 2013.

2 hours per day with a missed day here, and an all morning weekend session there.

Time split between instructional books and learning a new song, and playing learned material and improvising over that.

I had to set aside TV and reading books to make room for mandolin. I don't know if my memory is worse than normal but it's the thing I stuggle with most.

I played bass in bands all my 20's and 30's. There is a lot of seat time on an instrument playing out and no real substitute for it imo.

[stevedenver]

about 14-16;

6 hours band practice weekly (two 3 hour+ sessions)

plus about an hour a day, plus an hour on guitar, provided im not spent after work

the occasional jam-like every other week

sometimes I do veg, but I find playing compulsive most of the time-

there are days I play for hours and have no clue until I look at the clock

[Tobin]

I probably average 14 to 18 hours a week. Never less than about 10 hours, and sometimes as high as 22-ish.