“Oh wow, you’re a musician! How many hours a day do you practice?”
“I’m going to practise 3 hours today”
“Can’t go out yet, I need to practise more – I’ve only done 40 minutes today”
Stuff I’ve said/heard throughout my life at some point
Do any of the above sound familiar? They are some examples to illustrate the way people tend to measure music practice by duration. But this focus on practice quantity – rather than quality – could actually be harmful and counterproductive.
Quantity vs Quality
There is no doubt that you need to invest a tremendous amount of time into individual practice to gain proficiency in playing an instrument. Some researchers have proposed that it takes a minimum of 10 000 hours spread over 10 years to achieve expertise in anything, including playing a musical instrument1.
However simply putting in the hours is not enough to become a successful musician, because the quality of practice is also important. While practice quantity can predict expertise level (e.g. the grade a student has reached), it does not predict performance quality.2–4
For example, one study4 observed 22 piano students as they prepared a set piece for a performance, which was evaluated by a panel of three piano teachers. The students were categorised into four different groups according to their completed ABRSM grades, and each group was assigned a set piece which was deemed suitable for their level. The researchers found that the students who had completed higher ABRSM grades spent more time practising, but there was no correlation between total practice duration and performance marks. In other words, the students who scored higher in the performance evaluations did not do perform better by practising more.
Furthermore, some researchers have found that ineffective practice may have negative effects on performance. One study5 involving 173 music college students found that practice time predicted achievement only when the practice involved the use of goals, practice strategies, self-regulation, and focused attention. Without these elements, practice time negatively predicted achievement (i.e. higher practice time predicted lower achievement, and vice versa). This suggests that ineffective practice could actually have detrimental effects on performance.
Why do we always measure practice in hours?
Despite the fact that quality is more important than quantity, it is very common for musicians to measure practice by quantity.
This belief is drilled into us from early on – teachers and parents measure children’s music practice by quantity. They tell young students how much they should practise, whether it be in duration (e.g. “Practise 20 minutes each day”) or in number of repetitions (e.g. “Practise each scale twice”)6,7. Young beginners are rarely told how to practise or what they should aim to achieve before the next lesson.
But in order to perform better, we need to practise more effectively. We need to start thinking about how we practise, not how much we practise. (If you missed it, check out the last post ‘5 things you can do to practise more effectively’).
So what does all of this mean?
When you are practising:
✘ Instead of asking yourself, “How many hours did I practise today?”
✓ Ask yourself: “What did I achieve today?”
✘ Instead of saying, “I need to practise 2 more hours today”
✓ Think about your goals for the day and ask yourself: “What else did I want to achieve today?”
When you are teaching:
✘ Instead of telling your students to practise x minutes, or giving them a list of pieces and scales to practise…
✓ Tell them exactly how to practise. Perhaps break it down into simple instructions, and write them down so that they can tick off each step as they do it.
By doing these things, we can try to shift the focus from “practising a lot” to “practising well”.
References