Red Henry
Quite a few of you folks have taken music lessons before, right? And all of you had great practice habits, right? (Just joking. I know that a lot of you do practice every day, but I also know that some students do not!) Keep in mind that when you come in to your weekly lesson and play for your teacher, he or she will know RIGHT OFF whether you have been practicing. Usually there’s no guesswork about it.
Students who have been practicing every day will have made some progress in what they’re doing– the effort pays off!– and students who just “haven’t had time for practice” really show it.
Now, I know that there are some times in life when things crowd in on you, and you can’t practice for a day or two. I’m not talking about that. I’m talking about when somebody hasn’t picked up their banjo (or fiddle, or guitar, or mandolin) since the last lesson, or even thought about it much, and when they try to play, not only can’t they play what they were supposed to have learned that week, they can’t play their older lessons very well either!
You don’t have to practice a lot, but you do need to practice every day. Keep your hands, mind, and fingers used to holding and playing that instrument. Don’t let it become a stranger to you. Even if you are only practicing 15 or 20 minutes a day, that’ll be enough to keep in touch with your music.
And Your Teacher Will Know.
Red
Red, the advice you give in your entry, especially in the 4th paragraph down, is music to my ears. Thank you.