(Re)Building a Jazz Practice Habit

Here's a walk-through of my practice framework » jazzpracticepyr...
Have you ever taken a longer-than-usual break from playing your instrument? Perhaps around the holidays? And then you come back to confront the "Where do I start/What should I do first?" questions.
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Bob Reynolds is an American jazz saxophonist and 3x Grammy Award-winning member of Snarky Puppy. He's toured with John Mayer, Larry Carlton, and many others and released 12 solo albums-4 of which reached the Top 10 in Billboard's Jazz Charts. A pioneering educator, Bob has coached thousands of musicians through his innovative Virtual Studio. He is a D'Addario Woodwinds artist and lives with his wife and kids in Los Angeles, CA.

[@bobreynolds]

Have you ever experienced longer than your usual breaks from playing? What's been your experience upon returning to the shed? P.S., my Virtual Teaching Studio (est. 2010!) reopens next week bobreynoldsmusic.com/studio

[@bobblues1158]

I have played every day since March 2020. Before that, nevermore then 1 day. I think that once in my life i went for 10 days without playing. The everyday thing means that my basic things are always good. I am always close to what I call "striking distance". Then when I have a new repertoire to learn, my basics are in place. But I am 78 years old and do not have other distractions.

[@Jtibbssax]

It’s hard, but I make sure I tell my self to do everything in baby steps. That usually means long tones, major scales and arpeggios.

[@c.l.4895]

Does 6+ years count as a break from practice or something else? Chops were trash but ideas were better.

[@lincland3867]

I play several instruments. Most of my practice time is on tenor, but most of my gigs are on upright bass or guitar. When I take a break from tenor, then I'll play piano for a couple of days, or prepare for an upcoming gig on bass or guitar. I like the change of perspective.

[@stephenmckenzie2338]

Hey Bob thanks for posting all the videos -so helpful. One thing that has been kicking my butt is embracing the mess too much. By that I mean is that I will blow too long and too hard. Do you take breaks when you shed? I find I will play continuously and then after 60 min I’m kind of done. Do you stop in intervals and rest or do you just go until your mouth is too tired to go on? Basically everyone I stop practice is because I can’t really play anymore. I may be practicing too much. I break it up and play twice per day now and it seems to work well. Anyway it just seems like you can play forever and I was wondering if I’m the only guy who has been playing for 40 years and can only blow for 90 min? Let me know and thanks.

[@DNS0875]

My break last weekend due to heavy rains resulting in a flooded shed- I was just in time to save Selma and Louise, my Selmer tenor and Jupiter soprano- came very badly timed. Two days of scooping water and rescuing equipment instead of relaxed play and mental practice before an audition in front of a jury of the music academy I really want to get in. Two days of forcing wrists and fingers woke me up with carpal tunnel the night before auditioning. Not interesting when your piece is a Händel sonate. So today I asked my teacher how to overcome stress when you have to play and you’re negative nervous (there’s ‘yay, I’m going up in a minute’ nervous as well). His exact words: ‘you want too much to do your best. Just play, whatever the outcome is, observe but don’t judge yourself. You’re there to translate the notes in sound.’ Well, this must be the reason I play saxophone I think now: to learn to let go of control, selfjudgement and to learn to embrace the process (even more).

[@bobblues1158]

You are talking the truth here my brother - The path to mastery is the thing- embrace the fact that the goal is unobtainable.

[@FoolishFrankie]

Man the shot at 1:38...that's all I want in life.

[@felipemendozar]

What tune are you playing there @bobreynolds?

[@DustinKreidler]

All great advice... but man, that cleaning-up montage was sooooo satisfying to watch. :D

[@jamessidebotham]

this couldn't have come a better time. great words of wisdom here and feels good to someone I so highly revere as yourself have a similar experience.

[@sidneiramalho]

Great video and very inspiring Bob. I only have two saxophone goals this year: play every single day and be good on a few things that enable me to improvise and take some risks. 😊

[@jamiemeansjamesmusic]

I swear man, you write that book and put it up for sale, I and probably most of the entire saxophone community will buy it. I take a lot of extended breaks off the horn as well, and when I come back my fingers do feel heavy, technique isn't there and practicing does seem more difficult than usual, but I think it's good to come back to the horn with a fresh perspective.

[@bobreynolds]

"I think it's good to come back to the horn with a fresh perspective." -- totally true! (and this is the year I'm doing the book!)

[@thoughtsforthebuilders]

I took 3 years off after dropping out of uni during my senior year, during covid. Moved out of town and lived like a Joe Schmo. Been trying to get back to daily practice for a few months, and I’m back at school finishing the music degree. I’m rusty as hell. My drum set is OK but my mallet playing is garbo. It’s hard to play some days, but I’m happy to be moving again. I consider my time-off to be a layer of rust, and instead of thinking of removing that layer, I’m just adding it to my personal stratigraphy. The years I took off will always influence me as a musician, and in a sense, that makes me unique (but also worse off lmao)

[@bobreynolds]

love this insight/approach. keep going!

[@thoughtsforthebuilders]

@@bobreynolds thanks Bob (: onward and inward!

[@leorubio4234]

I needed this video right about now, thanks, Bob.

[@jarrettshedd9574]

Thanks for this. Moving countries and cities, going through the pandemic, building a stable teaching schedule, etc. I'm still in the process of returning to the path after various life changes. Returning to the path is the path.

[@robgreaves6681]

Thanks Bob for your encouraging insight - really helpful

[@beckyn9338]

Long breaks, whether purposeful or by necessity, are killer. And then I will usually procrastinate starting up again because it will be painful. Emotionally painful at having to go through the quagmire all over again. Ugh. I feel you. And I suspect it is very difficult for you to embrace any mess. But hang in there. And keep the videos coming. It is helpful to see how you pros experience the struggle too. ❤

[@txsphere]

That kid is the best. How we missed him.

[@criscaceres___]

Just what I needed to hear after a couple of months Off with an brocked arm 🥹 Thanks Bob!

[@SavvySaxy]

Long breaks are good. I’m only in high school, I play an hour a day and sometimes up to three regularly. Sometimes I have to take like two weeks off. Usually about twice a year. I’m only doing sax as a hobby and I have a pretty busy life so sax can get overwhelming when I play it all the time like that

[@tonemoreno763]

I love kids’ honestly 😂

[@williamkeohane9964]

Hey Bob! I enrolled in your studio in November, and that has been the single greatest thing for my saxophone playing so far. Your lessons are all precise and insightful, and all of your lick videos are incredibly helpful. Thank you so much!

[@bobreynolds]

I'm SO thrilled to hear that, William. I pour my heart into that studio (and have for 14 years) so it warms my heart to hear it's doing you some good. 👍 See you inside!

[@andrewtillman3585]

Bob this awesome advice that really resonates with me. About a year ago I experienced some serious burnout. I wasn’t really getting better and no longer had the motivation to practice. I would take a week off occasionally, but that didn’t really help. I decided to take a three month break from playing my saxophone. When I got back to it, it was like I had discovered something new again. I was way more inspired to practice and actually found myself wanting to! I know I am getting somewhere now which is awesome!

[@bobreynolds]

there you go! keep going. 👍

[@jonmagill1328]

So true Bob! Change is always good. I also really like your distinction between ‘habit’ and ‘routine’ . One thing I’ve learned over the years with your studio is, in addition to actually getting a ‘horn on your face’ (the habit), it’s also important to have a goal with each practice. Love the feeling you get when you purge your space, it’s very cathartic….. and despite all the chaos your books on the shelf were still highly organised and grouped by colour 👍

[@jonathankyobe6490]

You are a living great

[@jeffreymassey5541]

Bob this a great video. I have not played/practice for the last 3 weeks. Due to the flu. Did not to blow into the horn while I was sick. Didn't want that virus in the horn. 😃🎷

[@GeoffVidal]

Right on Bob! Yeah, the breaks are necessary for sure and sometimes timed just where we need them. Be patient and trusting the process is key just like you so perfectly lay out in this video. Thanks for shedding in a jacket and scarf by the way to make us Northeasterners feel good while we freeze our butts off and dig out of snow. What a guy! 🤘

[@bobreynolds]

you bet, Geoff! :) 🥶

[@alexeymorozov816]

Bob, what a great video! Thank you!

[@tomaszszlapanski5988]

I play not so long as only few years but I m addicted from it and can't leave "sax alone" for more than one day. I planning to go on holiday now and not sure I'll able to get my sax with me. It's mental for me 😕. Is great video and I'll watch it again and again,after holiday!

[@stephenmckenzie2338]

I guess I need to take more breaks when I play but I keep finding things I need to work on when I practice so I try to work on them until I get them. I just try to get one thing per practice and it seems to work well. Thanks for your input. I always figure one day I will be able to play for hours without fatigue but that hasn’t happened. Cheers Steve

[@christopherfischer6998]

Wooooo Bob you sound great!!!!

[@patricialowe323]

I am soooooo pleased that i saw this video. I went to india on vacation for 3 weeks without my saxophone and since coming back which was a week ago, i been putting off picking up the saxophone. I'm not sure why! Seeing your video this morning has made bounce out of bed to embrace my saxophone and to get practising. Thanks Bob and Happy New Year!!

[@michelmalts9053]

great insight!

[@DavidBeecroftMusic]

Hone skills, like polishing or smoothing a surface, home in like a homing pidgin? Love your videos. David in Berlin

[@thesaxcafe457]

Your mess is my mastery 😂 I wish I played and sound as messy as you. You talk a lot sense as usual Bob.

[@nickmainella]

I feel this so hard! The break over the holidays can be wonderfully refreshing but getting back into it can be tough! 🎷Great video man

[@bobreynolds]

Thanks, Nick

[@Samcatiscool]

I was Idalia with the poster at your gig! Great show and nice meeting you as well :)

[@bobreynolds]

Hi Idalia! Was a pleasure meeting you.

[@pelonete5000]

I always start my day doing my transcriptions, even if I rest more than one day. That puts me into the "zone".

[@LoneBear-one]

Just came back from a week in -5 degree Chicago🥶…Came home, thawed out, and grabbed the sax…actually came up with a new idea however; it might have been that the sax missed me☯️🎶🎵🎷

[@vincescuderi]

Habitually take long breaks. Sometimes I come back strong, sometimes not. I usually warm up with my favorite patterns, then procede to unfamiliar stuff. I was told through my then teacher that Sal Nistico once commented that whatever you're working on doesn't come out into your playing until six months later. Makes it all the more important to practice consistently.

[@bobreynolds]

at least six months...or never. both are fine. just keep working!

[@TheAaronRodgersTao]

It’s very hard for me to take a break. I have asthma and if I miss a day of practicing I lose my Lung strength and technique VERY QUICKLY…. So sometimes I do just long tones. That’s the most ‘break’ I can do… Furthermore, one day off takes me 2 days to get my tone back…two days of, TWO WEEKS to get it back. And so on, compounding the problem exponentially the more time I take off.

[@jazzbrew68]

Timely advice in this one. I have been really laser focused on transcribing walking bass lines. I struggle with walking bass lines on my own. Why? I don't practice it. I don't pull out a tune and try and walk changes. I need to alter my routine. And Bob... please don't become that guy. lol

[@ReedRepublic]

Hey Bob! Absolutely LOVE your videos and the tone you have on tenor. The sound you get inspires me to always be shedding and improving. I do have one question though. I have a full time music teaching position and I am a father of a toddler. How can I manage to balance everything AND have productive practice sessions? How did you do it? Thanks!

[@bobreynolds]

thank you 🙏 re: time, try some of these: www.youtube.com/@bobreynolds/search?query=time

[@aidenhuckabee784]

Hey Bob! Great video! What jazz books do you use/have on the bookshelf? Could we possibly get a video on it?

[@Frauter]

so timely :D plus I also jumped back in by learning All The Things You Are. First time for me though - as I should have a sense of what the tune does before I delve into Jamey Aebersold's "Some of the Things I Am" contrafact with all its tritone sub madness next month ;) thanks for sharing Bob! Shimanto

[@bobreynolds]

Hey Shimanto! Yeah, best to deal with the nuts & bolts of the original first. (But that JA from vol 16 is cool-advanced for sure).

[@rodrigobertoa5916]

i feel that what you describe as the uncomfy starting over feeling is my perpetual state with the instrument

[@alanhirayama4592]

"Embrace the mess" equates to "Embrace the suck" in the military. Learn to live in the chaos, the gray.

[@yoannhameon8171]

Hi Bob , i follow your vlog since the beginning and i really enjoy to hear you talking about all that stuff who are concerned ( as musician, father-husband, teacher) . Thank you for that. I saw and heard you last summer in vienne ( France ) and the show with the snarky was incredible! Just a few gear question : what kind of microphone do you use , clipping on the bell in the baked potatoes please? Peace yoann

[@bobreynolds]

mostly a DPA 4099 but also recently the new clip on by Neumann

[@yoannhameon8171]

Thx for your answer. my heart balance beetween this 2 microphones and the intramic too, i really don't know what is the better choice for the stage. Best regards.

[@SavvySaxy]

How can you effectively practice improv? When I do it over and over again on the same track I get the same product

[@ralfbettker-cuza7432]

My break is a prolonged holiday - actually around 25 years 🙂. Neither family nor the place I live now doesn't allow me to play anytime I want, so I am currently waiting for my EMEO. I don't know what you think about it. I know, the usual warnings about embouchure, phrasing and so forth - but the alternative would be having VERY limited time to play the actual horn. So this thing is, I think, better than hardly any playing at all...

[@bobreynolds]

I feel ya. i got an ewi once for that purpose but these things are different animals than playing a sax. when i lived in nyc apartments i'd just play the sax SUPER quietly. mostly air; barely tone. was some of the best tone development i ever had. kzbin.info/www/bejne/fXKagYmNrptnbNU

[@ralfbettker-cuza7432]

@@bobreynolds very good advice, thank you. That is definitely worth trying more than once and dynamics is not my expertise anway ;-) Still, playing at 10 pm in my room with my headphones on an trying to transcribe some stuff by ear seems attractive to my and my sleeping schedule :-)

[@bassman4632]

I had a sax teacher who said to use the times of not practicing to unlearn bad habits

[@bobreynolds]

i like that

[@gschneidersax]

Sharing with my students right now! Side question: will the music for Runway be released for purchase any time soon?? It's so killer - would love to play it!

[@marcellonoia9418]

Hi, I would like a lot a tutorial about how to front the altissimo register of the sax (best, fingerings, use of air, mouth position) Thanks

[@bobreynolds]

I've not personally seen inside it but I'd bet Ben Wendel's book is fantastic

[@TheEverymanSax]

Aw yeah. I had a break of about 10 years. I wouldn’t recommend it… But good to be back now.

[@bobreynolds]

welcome back!

[@albtii]

Great video! Random question- did you ever settle on a new mouthpiece?

[@bobreynolds]

not yet, but close

[@codfather6583]

2 or 3 weeks and counting. Haha Hudsons end comment tho

[@bobreynolds]

he keeps me honest

[@adriandelgado8709]

What mouthpiece you use for soprano sax ??

[@bobreynolds]

Otto link tone edge 8

[@adriandelgado8709]

@@bobreynolds awesome, thank you 🙏

[@mitchhuber4801]

What's the watch you're usually rocking?

[@SaxSpy]

rolex submariner i believe

[@jopeco84]

is that philly jo jones on drum genious? i also use that one :)

[@bobreynolds]

i think it was/is!

[@m.charron]

I'm big believer in breaks from your instrument, even a hiatus. It's liberating and can free you up from the same old habits and licks that clog up your playing and creativity. For a longer break, I'd suggest doing something else - but for its own sake, not just to be 'productive'. Learn another instrument, dive into recording, do a ton of listening, read/study about something you've always wanted to know more about, learn a foreign language, travel, etc. You'll be rusty when you come back, but the bad habits and tired licks will have also faded. And you just might appreciate your time with the instrument more.

[@bobreynolds]

well said. 👍

[@pianopratico]

❤

[@LoneBear-one]

What about the mouthpiece saga🤔🎶🎵🎷

[@bobreynolds]

still in it.

[@alanhirayama4592]

@@bobreynolds You sound great, hope you're at least closer to your goal!

[@dk7472]

That's a neat stool with wheels at 0:51 . What kind is it?

[@bobreynolds]

it's what they use in manicure salons LoL

[@dk7472]

@@bobreynolds lol good to know i need to get one like it

[@etowahjazz]

Playing into plywood?? No judgment here, just wondering. And, BTW what mouthpiece did you decide on yet, if you have??

[@bobreynolds]

re: mpc... still in progress but resolution in sight.

[@matheusbarbosagtr]

more vids bro, where r u

[@bobreynolds]

☺️ raising kids, performing, teaching, running a business…trying to make time to shed. More videos soon. Glad you’re enjoying!

[@matheusbarbosagtr]

i know exactly buddy! haha I just dont know how you do it. Make a video about that, whats the trick? 😆@@bobreynolds

[@JulianFernandez]

dont be that guy!

[@bro_liv]

You dig?

[@BobDoherty]

Sorry, going to totally derail the point of this video to ask....what mouthpiece are you playing now?

[@bobreynolds]

two different Link #9s in this video. one .120, one .125

[@christophegger29]

Perhaps Bob should think about driving less by car so as not to fuel the climate crisis even more, rather than spouting so much clever stuff.

[@niklasheide98]

He lives in LA LMFAO

[@gabrielsternsax]

Average German commentator

[@christophegger29]

@@gabrielsternsax What makes you think I'm German? I'm Swiss and Italian.