Why You Don't Want to Practice (and how to fix it)

[@isaiahchand8991]

one of my favorite things for keeping myslef motivated is by turning on a live performance of whatever artist im diggin first thing when i wake up gets me pumped for prac

[@pleximanic]

The best advice I received ever regarding practiseing was from the great Bill Evans and that is practice the minimum to the maximum! This means studying very little material at a time until you have fully understand absorbed and internalized it before moving on.

[@pizzaboss3324]

A good bit of this advice applies to not just music but anything that requires any form of consistent training for a lifetime

[@LarrySchneider]

Love the “young Jeff at the piano“ insert.

[@b0unce805]

Very good reminders and points 👍🏽

[@seiph80]

Oh I so needed this video. Thanks so much!

[@celiabradley4413]

Thank you Jeff - I appreciate this advice!

[@marcuskhambule9987]

This is great. The quality of the content Jeff is delivering it applies on other areas of our lives too, not just music. We appreciate you, Jeff.

[@MisterManuva]

Another thing I noticed is that one's skill issues are not always that evident. I'm trying to learn improvisation and have been practicing scales up and down the neck (guitarist here) but didn't get much results. I eventually went to an instructor to find out that my time feel was pretty off, which I didn't notice. Since I've been practicing that I have seen an improvement. If you notice that practicing is not showing results it can be a good idea to play for a more competent person (not necessarily an instructor) who can highlight issues that are not evident to you.

[@ArnabSengupta-f2p]

Such a quality channel with great content 🙏

[@atharvamore3822]

jeff, i know you have done so much and have went through much as a musician. This really helps ❤

[@domagoj19zg]

I had a lot of give ups in last 7 years that lasted a few months or at least weeks because I was not motivated and ,because of that, not making progress at all for years..few days ago I returned after my last giveup after almost 3 months...hopefully I won't give up anymore and will make some progress in the future

[@Foggjammer]

I’ve realized that if I’m messing with gear it’s because I don’t want to sit down and tackle that lick or technique that’s eluding me.

[@johnnywesleysaxophone]

Sometimes I get discouraged from practicing because my sound on the saxophone is just very bad. I went back to practicing long notes, but especially on the soprano, my sound is too thin and lifeless. I'm probably doing something wrong but I don't know what it is or I just don't have the talent for that.

[@pickinstone]

You know what sounds good, but do you have a sound concept for "good tone"? Are you chasing that almost nasally "classical indian reed instrument" sound that John Coltrane shaped on his soprano? Are you chasing that older sound that Lucky Thompson had, like on "Lucky Strikes"? Are you going way back and trying to cop that Sidney Bechet sound? There's definitely technique involved--hell, I don't even play saxophone--but a HUGE part is developing your sound concept. That means listening to people who have your favorite tone 24/7 to get it into your aural memory. Just a thought ;)

[@RockAndDoubleBassWithAaronJoy]

I used to hate playing. I mean, I didn't touch my bass for more than 30 minutes every 6 months. I would practice when I was in a band, but when that ended I didn't go look for another. I loved music, and enjoyed playing, but didn't want to play. I would also get bored in bands. The least problem and I walked. I didn't want to play so much I went into the biz side of music. Then I changed one little thing in my playing and went from not touching my instrument to playing hours and hours on the weekend or after work. What did I change? I started playing music I liked. I grew up always wanting to be a jazz bassist or be like Bill Black in Elvis' original group. I wanted to learn upright. YET, I didn't. I started playing metal cause there was lots of metal bands. YET, I wouldn't play with a pick cause upright bassists don't. I wouldn't use a pedal cause Bill Black didn't. I wouldn't even learn how to play 16th notes like Cliff Burton cause you're not going to hear that in a Coltrane riff. I would study bass lines by jazz players, not metal guys. I like metal, but it doesn't interest me in playing it. And, I crashed. Later I bought an upright bass, trying to figure out why I loved playing but didn't play. Instantly I enjoyed playing more. I was in a band and brought my bass to rehearsals after having it for only a couple weeks. I really didn't know how to play it, but was told I was playing better. I was asked not to bring back my electric bass. Later I took a rockabilly slap course and started studying Bill Black, Marshall Grant of Johnny Cash, Bill Haley's bassist, and for over a year I haven't stopped playing nearly daily and love playing. Essentially I'm playing what I like! I recently formed a Johnny Cash tribute band where I'm playing bass, and managing the band, and love practicing.

[@_sonicfive]

I wish you were my instructor. Do you still offer lessons?

[@lukaipictures9448]

Thank you Jeff. I find your lessons very useful.