Practice

[icarus88]

What do you do when you get bored of practicing? Is there a way to keep motivation at maximum?

Is it harmful to take a break for a day or two a week?


A classical guitar virtuoso (my father's old friend) used to say that if he didn't practice for a week, he would regress.

 

[Lobster11]

What do you do when you get bored of practicing? Is there a way to keep motivation at maximum?

Is it harmful to take a break for a day or two a week?


A classical guitar virtuoso (my father's old friend) used to say that if he didn't practice for a week, he would regress.

No harm in taking a week off if you want to. You might regress a little, but it will take much less than a week to get back to where you were.

Otherwise, change up your practice routine, at least temporarily. If you usually practice scales and arpeggios, spend some time learning a couple of songs -- or vice versa. If you don't know your fretboard well, spend time working on that, or do some reading about music theory if you don't usually do that. You get the idea: There are lots of things you can do to practice, so just find something that will mix things up for a bit.

 

[Lee Moses]

Piggybacking on Lobster's comments . . . practice what you like. If you don't like practicing scales and arpeggios, don't spend the bulk of your time working on them. Maybe spend 5 minutes warming up with them, then move on to a method book, or working on learning tunes, or just playing along with the radio. And if you feel yourself getting overly frustrated with one aspect of your practice, move on to something else. If you make your practice enjoyable, you will be much more motivated to do it.

And I can't recall a time in my life when practicing by myself 7 days a week was the norm. If you're practicing 5 days a week, you are giving yourself plenty of opportunity to grow, especially if you are also playing with other people on top of that.

 

[SteveCS]

What do you do when you get bored of practicing? Is there a way to keep motivation at maximum?
...

It depends on what and why you are practicing.

1. If you are practicing without an objective or goal then you need to establish one.
   
2. If you are practicing towards an objective but making no progress you need to practice something else or change the objective.
3. If you are going over the same old stuff and it is feeling old or stale you need to find something new and perhaps a bit more challenging.
   
4. If you are just noodling aimlessly and calling it practice then maybe it's time to stop and be honest with yourself...

IME the easiest way to stay motivated is to have an achievable goal or objective and have a practice plan that will get you there. A common problem is having a fixed practice regime (not the same as a plan) that is not compatible with or appropriate for the objective. Even worse is a practice regime that has no defined objective.

With stale stuff, the easiest way to break out is by seeking out new music. And IME the easiest way to access new music is by becoming a proficient reader. Music for almost every other instrument other than guitar and bass guitar is exclusively written in standard notation. Learn to read and a whole world of new music opens up. If you can't read, maybe make becoming a reader (on some level) your long-term objective then hatch a plan to get you there*.

Without planting a flag or digging a trench, I'm going advise against just playing what you want or what makes you happy - there is little musical growth to be had from following the easy, familiar or comfortable path. Some things in music can be difficult. Even the basics can seem challenging at the start. But other things become exponentially more difficult if you don't have the basics covered. Sometimes, to reach a different destination you have to change lanes. YMMV

 

[mambo4]

Is there a way to keep motivation at maximum?

I think this is a fundamental misunderstanding of how motivation works, and of the purpose of exercise and practice

some days are optimal: the stars align, and you feel the music, and you can effortlessly explore for hours.

somedays are sub-optimal: your cable goes crappy, your calluses give out, the sound is bad, and you struggle to remember stuff, what sounded awesome yesterday strikes you as lame today, and you don't instinctively feel like playing.

View such days a an opportunity to practice overcoming your own boredom.
It's not easy at first, but overcoming your mental state is a skill you can build.

a competent player can execute what is needed regardless of sub-optimal friction
There is tremendous value in training yourself to practice regardless of how you feel
because there is no shortage of sub-optimal situations in the life of a musician

 

[JonathanPDX]

Are we talking about a beginner learning basic muscle memory, or a more experienced player tackling more advanced aspects of music or technique?

If you are training your hands to do completely new things, like holding an instrument, then yes, daily practice is going to help you develop muscle memory. Stopping won't really cause regression, it may just slow the development a bit, but that's okay! If your body tells you to stop you need to listen to it or you can do real, long-lasting damage. There's a difference between "My fingers are sore because they haven't developed calluses yet" and "My tendons are swelling up because I keep my wrist bent for hours every day."

Having a teacher or mentor guide your practice makes a huge difference. Even after 20 years, it's hard to sit down and practice without a goal. Am I working on a concept, technique, song, transcription, etc.? If not, I'm just playing, which is fine, but not the same as focused practice with the intent to improve and develop.

Also remember that music isn't just about your hands or even the bass itself. Breaks can be good! It could be a break from the instrument, or your practice routine, or even the kind of music you listen to. When I was playing 4+ nights per week the last thing I wanted to do on my day off was plug in my bass, so I'd often listen to new music, or chart out songs by ear, to continue improving my musical skills and vocabulary without only devoting my energy into plucking the strings.

 

[wintremute]

What do you do when you get bored of practicing? Is there a way to keep motivation at maximum?

Is it harmful to take a break for a day or two a week?


A classical guitar virtuoso (my father's old friend) used to say that if he didn't practice for a week, he would regress.

When I get bored from practicing I try to learn a new song that is outside of the genre I typically play. It helps to reset my brain.

 

[albertus]

studying shouldn't be approached about something that is fun or boring. is something you do. some things you will enjoy, others don't and that is ok.
I mean it only if you are a serious player trying to get better. if you are just an amateur who is trying to enjoy the instrument and the pleasure to play, then do what pleases you most and spent time playing what you like, becoause the goal is not to play, is to enjoy.
but my experience as a teacher for a long time, is that people tend to get frustrated when they don't improve and the bass stays in a corner for ever when the immediate rewards stop coming because of reaching a point when to improve requires serious effort and overcome that boredome you were talking about.

 

[ga_edwards]

There's nothing wrong with taking a break. We all go through periods where we lack motivation, well, I say all - I definitely do!

I'm at the point in my life where I have no aspirations of being a virtuoso or full time rock star. So my practice regime usually consists of learning songs for my covers band or the odd little side project, such as the recording I did for a friend's album last year.

A lot of my "bass time" at home also gets caught up with bass gear. Such as buying new practice toys that I rarely use, maintaining my basses, or dialling in Helix patches. As one of my guitarists said, I sometimes think I spend more time dialling in patches in my helix than I do actually playing! But, as far as being in a busyish covers band goes, I think it's still valid time well spent, getting my parts to sound as good as they can be.

I do sometimes think I should spend more time learning the "mechanics" of bass playing, such as deep diving into theory, improving sight reading, advancing my techniques, and exploring jazz - an idiom I know very little about, but I know it would rapidly improve my theory knowledge. But then again, often think... meh - I have enough going on in my life!

But back on point. The biggest issue I have if I don't play for a couple of weeks and then do a gig or rehearsal it sore fingers. For that reason alone, I should practice more, just for the physical benefits.

 

[Geepers]

My solution? Watch one of those shows about people banged up in ER. Then go practice with indescribable joy at your good fortune

 

[Fernando Costa]

Someone once said that when you neglect your instrument for a week it will neglect you for a month.

 

[Five or Six]

When I toured the tri state area I played 3-4 nights a week. It seemed as though I lived with a bass in my hands. I even played acoustically on the bus going from place to place. It was in my hands in the Hotel. Never gave it a thought! Now, I may take a day or two off a week, but seldom. "May", being the key word. I found it difficult to practice when covid was around. Gigs were almost non existent, nothing to work for. There was nothing to keep my motivation up. But, this is an art and really, a job if you think about it. My practice ethics never have changed.

Not unlike any other job I needed to be at my best. So, daily practice is necessary for me. I even noodle the day of a rehearsal. We are no different than an athlete! To stay on top you must train, ie: "practice". Sluff off too much and performance will be noticeable. After going on 50 years, I play daily for at least an hour. If I don't, I feel like I cheated myself. So, I avoid that.

 

[Rib 13]

Gonna go against the grain here:

Sometimes walking away for a short period of time does something positive. Theres been plenty of times over the years where I work hard at something, it doesnt come together, I put the bass down for several days and possibly longer than a week on a few occasions, then I pick it up and - boom! - its there: that hard/difficult passage I worked hard to do now comes out of my fingers on first attempt. Maybe my brain needed a defrag? Who knows

 

[icarus88]

Burada kurallara aykırı hareket edeceğim:

Bazen kısa bir süreliğine uzaklaşmak bazen olumlu bir şeyler yapar. Yıllar boyunca bir şey üzerinde çok çalıştığım pek çok kez oldu, her şey bir araya gelmiyor, basları birkaç gün boyunca ve muhtemelen bir haftadan daha uzun bir süre boyunca bırakıyorum, sonra onu alıyorum ve - bum! - işte orada: yapmak için çok çalıştığım o zor/zor pasaj artık ilk denememde parmaklarımın arasından çıkıyor. Belki beynimin bir birleştirmeye ihtiyacı vardı? Kim bilir

interesting approach, maybe working too hard is not the right thing

 

[icarus88]

If I ever stop practicing, I feel like I'm betraying the instrument.

 

[bassdude51]

What do you do when you get bored of practicing?

 

[JazznFunk]

Depends on where you are in your playing journey. Early on, every day you can get in some practice is crucial. You're building a base level of not only musical knowledge, but the physical strength and dexterity to play well. At one point in the first 3 or 4 years of my musical life, I would put in 6-8 hours a day and feel like a failure if I didn't. Eventually I realized that kind of pressure was not productive long term, but it did help me to really get some things together to springboard my thinking and relationship to the instrument. Taking a week off from the instrument after you've been playing for decades is not a big deal.... in fact, it might help you. Early on, you might need it just so you don't get overuse injuries from starting out. I find that when I take a break I think about music differently, and I hear music in other areas of life that I bring back to the instrument. I also find that I don't fall into the same phrases and cliche' phrases that we all seem to have in our personal vocabulary.

The Classical world is ruthless. Your Dad's friend may think if he stopped playing for a week he would regress, but that's hardly true. It's kind of like running.... taking a week off after you've been a runner for decades won't hurt you at all. You won't forget how to run, and you may come back stronger and more refreshed. Speaking as a runner.... and as a bassist.

 

[Jay2U]

When spending a few weeks on holiday, I don't play at all. This is no problem. When returning home, I grab a bass and play some Motörhead and punk rock, just like I haven't been away.

 

[MrLenny1]

Read music. Play some Bach etudes on bass.

 

[SteveCS]

...
Play some Bach etudes on bass.

A guaranteed cure for boredom