Written By: Aimee Fields-Reed, Assistant School Director
Let me tell you my story. I come from a background of musicians, and have been surrounded by music my whole life. When I was in second grade, I got the opportunity to officially start learning music. I started with the recorder flute, and loved it! I would practice every single day. Eventually, I became the most advanced in my class. Music just made sense to me. Because of that, by the time I reached middle school, I had discovered that I could get by perfectly fine in band class without practicing almost at all.
As a bright eyed 12 year old, I just knew I’d figured out the secret. Music was easy! No need to put in any hard work. At the time, I was playing two instruments, mentoring younger kids during my lunch period, and even assistant teaching the beginning orchestra class at my school. I’d also been invited to join the “Teacher’s Band” as the only student, because I could keep up with them. My theory was RIGHT! I didn’t need to practice to be a good musician! I kept this up all the way to college. Always playing well, teaching others, adding instruments, I thought everything was great.
But then came Starland. Once I started working at Starland, I was surrounded by professional musicians...real, working, teaching musicians. It was here, in conversation with other instructors, that I started to see why my system wasn’t working for true progress.
I started reflecting about my own musical journey. Sure, music came naturally to me, and I’ve always been good, but I realized that I hadn’t gotten as far as I could have. Reading music wasn’t my strong suit. I’d never exactly made it to “first chair” in any group I played in. I never felt confident improvising. I didn’t really understand how music worked- I just made it work for me. So I signed up for lessons!
After a few short months of lessons and daily practice, my musical life had CHANGED! Not only did I start to understand everything I thought I knew, but I felt more confident about what I was doing. My rhythm got better. I could participate more in musical conversations at work. Playing music with others also got easier. I felt more dependable. Most of all, I felt more confident whenever I played. I even built up enough confidence to start improvising more!
So, the answer to the original question is YES! To get the most out of your learning experience, you should practice! Music comes easily to some, and not so easily to others. No matter where you fall on that spectrum, practicing will make a huge difference in your musical learning experience.
Be sure to use your practice time wisely. Work on both fundamental techniques and skills in addition to songs! Remember, the more you practice, the more confident you’ll feel while you play. Ultimately you will set yourself up for success!