How I Teach: But I Practiced It Over and Over

So a student played for me in a lesson, and when they'd finished, I asked what their goal was for a difficult passage they had just played.

They told me they wanted to get it to the point where they didn't have to think about it. Just do it.

I said, okay, and then asked them how they planned to do that.

They said they would just play it over and over until it stuck. Well, I bit my tongue and said, all right then, try that.

And they packed up and left.

At the next lesson, I asked how it went.

They explained that they had played it over and over again, but it still wasn't happening.

All the practicing they had done on it hadn't produced anything close to the result they were hoping for. And on top of that, they were thinking just as hard, if not more, than before.

Well, they looked desperate, completely at their wits' end.

But despite this, I kept a straight face and started asking questions.

It's not that I didn't feel compassion for what they were going through. I did.

But I was more focused on helping guide them to where they wanted to be.

Reacting like a friend might have felt comforting in the moment, but I didn't think it would help them get any closer to where they wanted to be. So my solution was to ask questions.

Not to avoid giving them answers, but to help them explore through their own responses.

With this strategy in mind, I asked how they approached practicing.

But I quickly realized that this was too vague.

So I narrowed it down and asked how much time they were spending on the passage each day.

They said one hour, and asked if I thought they should do more.

I replied, not necessarily.

You see, I wanted to keep all doors open.

I asked if they had used a metronome.

They said no, so I suggested it might be a way to measure their progress.

But they said that whenever they used a metronome, they became so mesmerized by the lights and the clicking that they would get stuck.

And that only frustrated them more.

I acknowledged that using a metronome isn't always intuitive.

And then I asked if they'd ever considered writing down their target tempo and working backwards from there, mapping out the steps to get there.

I suggested that this kind of planning, writing things down, might help clarify their goals for the passage.

They agreed, then thought for a moment, and came up with other ideas to structure their practice session.

I listened to those ideas and told them I thought that they were really good.

But then I threw them a curveball.

I said they might need to be careful not to fall into the same rut they had when they were just doing it over and over again.

I suggested that maybe putting a time limit on how long they tried each new idea would keep that from happening.

If, for example, they decided a certain goal should be reached in seven days, then on the final day, they can assess what had improved and what had not.

From there, they could decide which ideas to keep and which to set aside.

I reminded them that even if an idea didn't clean up the passage, it might still work for another one in the future.

So nothing was wasted.

And with that, I'd help them find a direction that could lead them towards realizing their goals.

All right, then.

My questioning had worked.

But couldn't I have just told them what to do from the start? Wouldn't that have been a lot faster? Well, I could have. But if I had, they wouldn't have had the chance to work it out on their own.

You see, when students figure it out for themselves, it stays with them in ways that answers seldom do.

Automatic video-to-text transcription by DaDaScribe.com

Thank you for your comment, question or request!

Comment/Question deleted successfully.

Post a comment, question or special request:

Comments or questions must be between 3 and 10,000 characters long.

You may: Login  or  

Otherwise, fill out the form below to post your comment:

Add your name below:


Add your email below: (to receive replies, will not be displayed or shared)


For verification purposes, please enter the word MUSIC in the field below

---