Structuring Your Practice
One of the most useful things I ever learned how to do was how to practice.
Growing up, I was a competitive Irish Dancers for a school in New Jersey. Dance was everything to me. I would wake up before school started to practice, would practice under my desk during class, and would spend hours in the studio each week striving for perfection. When it was time to shift my focus from Irish Dance to preparation for music school, I found I was able to keep the same practice mentality.
In college, I would be in a practice room right when the building opened at 6am. But my practice wasn’t very structured. I would warm up and see how high I could sing without much thought on technique. Then I’d fiddle around with some music that wasn’t in my repertoire and then maybe I’d think about working on my German.
My practice habits have long since grown. Below you’ll find how I structure my practice time:
Stretch. I always begin with stretching my body.
Warm Up. I start my warm ups in the middle of my voice and move up and down within my range depending on what music I am practicing that day.
Typically after my warm up, I’ll grab some water, stretch some more, and choose the piece I need to work on. Notice how I didn’t say want to work on. This is where discipline comes in. Figure out what you need to work on, and do it.
Break it down. Don’t try to tackle the hardest part in one go. Set your metronome (seriously, set it) and pick a few measures to work on.
Put it together. Once you’re feeling set with the section you’ve practiced, string it together with another section and see how it feels.
Wrap up. I keep a journal of all of my practice time. This helps me remember what I’ve worked on, how my voice was feeling, and what I need to work on next.
When it comes to practice, find what works for you. You can do this!