- Schedule it in your calendar. Impress upon your partner and/or children that this is important to you.
- Go and hear a professional play, at least once a month. It really helps to keep the inspiration topped up.
- Collect and organize your equipment: Books, metronome, pencils, Youtube, and recorder. Put the pets outside or locked up in another room.
- Warm Up next. Stretch, do some slow breathing exercises. Imagine the beautiful music you are about to play. Play an old favourite to remind yourself of the work you've done previously and the hard work it might have took to learn it.
- Play your technical exercises: Scales, chords, arpeggios. Whatever your teacher assigned. Play slowly, with the metronome. Savour the sound, like chocolate melting in the mouth. Really!
- Pick a part in your new work to practice. Listen to the recording so that you have a fresh impression in your mind. Resist the urge to play from the beginning to the end, stumbling as you go, and think you are practicing. You won't live long enough to reach your goals with this approach.
- Take a break, scan the internet for articles on how to practice the piano. Then...
- Get back to work.
David
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