Ways To Motivate A Student To Practice

A parent recently asked me to motivate his kids to practice more so I gave him this handful of suggestions

1. Bring them to a concert! There's nothing like feeling the physical vibrations and magic of experiencing music being played in real time. I'm unfamiliar with the under 18 venues in town, but I'm sure there are a ton of them. Let me know if you have any suggestions for good ones to recommend.

2. I will be hosting recitals in hip locations so that they have a performance to practice towards. All of the recitals that I played in as a kid were in boring rooms with fluorescent lighting so I wanted to be different and have them in cool places like a small theater, a rooftop, on a boat, in nature, or somewhere else!

3. They could start a recording project and post it to Instagram or Youtube. That way, they know that their playing has to be at its best if it's going to be documented and heard by other people.

4. They could join an ensemble. It's often more fun to play with others rather than just by yourself. Also, it's a great way to make friends who like the same kind of music and that they look forward to seeing at a regularly scheduled time. It builds teamwork, musicianship, accountability, listening, and ensemble playing skills. I can coach ensembles as well for between 2 to 4 musicians.

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