When you don't have a structured practice time, you can find yourself wasting time or walking away. This will help you to stay on task and to make the most out of your practice time. *please note that this is not for a Suzuki violin.
1Make sure that you have all the appropriate supplies for your practice time. This should include a stand, your violin and bow, music, pencil, and a metronome.
2Set goals for how much you want to practice for each category of music. Write it down in a notebook, and keep a clock close by to monitor the time. For example: scales: 10 minutes, etudes: 20 minutes, solo: 20 minutes, etc. You may want to set a timer if it helps you remember.
3Always start your practice time with scales. This will warm up your fingers and make you more aware of the key of pieces. Start at G and play as many octaves as you can. Then go up chromatically, as far as you know. Go slowly, and precisely; making sure each note is in tune. This may also be used as a warm-down.
4Next move into etudes. Be well aware of the key and don't worry so much about the bowings, unless your teacher wants you to have them. Make sure the notes are in tune: that is etude's main purpose. Play the etudes straight through, and then pinpoint any difficult spots.
5After that, move onto your solo, or other current music. Make sure you don't just keep playing this straight through. Avoid playing the parts you know over and over, and work on the difficult parts. If there is a hard passage take it out of the music and practice is slowly with nice, sustained bows. Increase the speed from there until you have is up to speed, and put it back into context.
6Metronomes are friends!! Try to use one at least every other day, especially in parts where you are rushing. When you get a new piece, play it slowly with the metronome, to make sure you get every note with every melody.
What if I have music so hard, I can't even read it or try to improve?!wikiHow ContributorI'm in grade 10 violin now. A tip I have is to read the notes first and understand them before you start playing them. After that, start playing it one note at a time until you can understand and read them at a steady pace. After you can play the notes perfectly, focus on the timing, tuning, etc.
- Don't give up! All this hard work you are putting into your violin will pay off in the future.
- Bring a notebook to your lessons, and have your teacher write down any key points your need to remember while practicing.
- Always tune before you start playing. If you can't tune on your own very well yet, use a tuner.
- Practice every day!! You can even set a timer if you need some motivation.