[TPIN] Advice for practice?

[James Klages]

Well, the questions remain (to yourself) - how serious are you? Why are you
practicing as you do?

*If you are serious,* the answer about practice is that *YOU ARE NOT* good
enough. (Good enough means the full development of your talents through a
lifetime of consistent SMART work and performance experience.)

Why are you practicing? If it is only a hobby or recreation to you, we are
not on the same page - and have little to talk about. *Work* is required.
Fooling around in the practice room is childish. (Like my two year old
grandson playing with my old trumpet. Undirected, and enjoyable for a brief
time - but not to be confused with practice of a musical instrument.

Music is an art - requiring all one has- to bring to bring forth beauty,
truth, and integrity.  The trumpet is mainly performed along with others,
not in a vacuum. Learning to match intonation, dynamics, tone, articulation,
style and releases requires much time.

I wish you all success.

Jim Klages


On 7/30/06, William Graham <weg9 at comcast.net> wrote:
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Principal Trumpet" <chicagodreams at gmail.com>
> To: <tpin at tpin.okcu.edu>
> Sent: Saturday, July 29, 2006 11:51 PM
> Subject: [TPIN] Advice for practice?
>
>
> >I consider my self to be a fairly decent trumpet player, not real good
> but
> >a
> > bit over average. I would someday like to play in a professional
> orchestra
> > or teach at a university for a living. I currently only practice at most
> 3
> > hours a week, being in college that is not near enough not that it would
> > be
> > anytime in life, but anytime I pick up the horn to play it doesn't seem
> > like
> > I get anything done, more like an hour of "fooling around." I only seem
> to
> > really practice when I have a certain piece I am working on or when I
> have
> > a
> > deadline for something. Anyone know of anyways to make yourself get in
> the
> > practice room...and how to make that time worth while. I know it is
> > different for everyone but I am open to any opinions. Thanks, RJ
>
> Well, you need to have a teacher that keeps you working on three pieces
> all
> the time.....A brand new one, a piece that you can half play, but still
> needs a lot of work, and a piece that you have almost down pat, and are
> about to shelve until your next recital. - If you don't have a teacher,
> then
> you have to do all of the above yourself, which is possible, but a lot
> harder........
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> TPIN mailing list
> TPIN at tpin.okcu.edu
> http://tpin.okcu.edu/mailman/listinfo/tpin
>



-- 
Dr. James L. Klages
Professor of Trumpet
School of Music
University of Central Oklahoma
Edmond, OK 73034