You’ve got your child startedd with music lessons. Awesome! There’s a lot of initial excitement and things usually start out very well…until a wall gets hit. It’s inevitable. The excitement and newness wears off and it gets to be a little tougher. How do you address it and fix it? Well, I’m going to try to use this blog post to explain a few of the challenges and how to address them.
Common Struggles
One of the biggest initial challenges is reading the written notes on the page. As I tell students, music is a language. Duolingo is an app that many use to learn language, but how many use it to completion? They may learn a few phrases and words, hit the same kind of learning wall that beginning musicians hit and they give up.
Working on technique can be difficult. When I was learning to play the trumpet, it wasn’t too difficult at first to get the instrument to make sound, but as I worked on expanding my range higher, it was HARD because you need to tighten your lips and use more air to start the sound. Or for many piano students, when they’re using their dominant hand, it’s easy. When you start working on your non dominant hand….it’s another story!
Consistency in practicing can be another challenge. Just like motivation to exercise, eat healthy, or make any kind of consistent change and improvement in life, discipline and motivation are essential for those things to happen. It’s the same way with growing as a musician. Looking at the instrument, thinking about it is one thing, but actual growth happens when you, the musician, make music with it!
Another thing that I focus on with musicians is confidence and overcoming self-doubt. This is a difficult struggle for pretty much every musician (including me!) and it comes down to believing in yourself and spending the necessary time and work to do your best. This one isn’t the easiest to overcome.
Practical Tips for Overcoming Challenges
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- Start Simple: Focus on easy pieces to build confidence.
- Break It Down: Practice small sections before tackling entire pieces.
- Use a Practice Schedule: Set aside regular, manageable practice times.
- Stay Positive: Celebrate small successes to stay motivated.
- Incorporate Fun Activities: Use games and apps or create your own games to make it fun. (Check out this post to find a few app ideas!)
The Importance of Patience and Consistency
Anyone else struggle with patience? Or is it just me? In this world of get it delivered today, find a hack to do it quicker and easier, if you want to be an excellent musician, it takes work. Violinist Jascha Heifetz once said, “If I don’t practice one day, I know it; two days, the critics know it; three days, the public knows it.” There isn’t a limit to what you can learn or music you can play. It’s not like you will get to the end of all of the music or mastery of every concept of your instrument. Being consistent and patient builds up and keeps your skills at the level you want it to be at.
Role of a Supportive Learning Environment
Being encouraged and supported for younger musicians is essential. It starts first at home. Yes, the financial and time commitment of lessons is a great start, but it’s just that. A start. It would be like signing your child up for a soccer team and only bringing them to the game and expecting them to excel. Fostering and encouraging that discipline of consistent practice is important. Leaving it up to the child to do it probably won’t get very far. I don’t know many children who choose to eat their vegetables! The other step of that is finding a teacher that will be encouraging, make learning enjoyable and inspire them to be the best they can be. By the way, did you know that Harmanny Music Education has immediate times available for in-person, online or independent study lessons? You can find out more here.
Each week in the studio, I have a quote. This month has been quotes about practice. This week’s quote is quite appropriate. As I shared earlier, confidence is something that students can struggle with. If that practice regularly happens, in a supported and encouraging learning environment, and with a teacher that the student connects with and makes learning fun and enjoyable, beautiful music will happen!