Practice Methods for the Working Musician

By: Mike Nadolson

Being a very mediocre guitar player, the Vice President of Ray Fladeboe Lincoln Mercury/Honda/Volkswagen/Isuzu in Irvine, California and for the want of improvement so I can at least be able to hold my own with my friends and colleagues in the Bluegrass Music field,  I have had to adapt to a few unorthodox practice methods. (Sacrifices). My job is much more than full time and I have spoken to a lot of players who are in my situation and they say they can't seem to find enough time to practice and when they do make the time I am almost positive that much of it is wasted on things that will not make them a better player.

First of all it is not done without sacrifice and commitment! To actually hear and feel improvement you need to find about one hour per day every day! With out fail......With a busy work schedule, family, friends, etc., I know this seems like a lot to give up, but if you want to improve or at the very least stay where you are you need to find the time! So prepare yourself mentally and stick to it.

Before I get into the practice methods here are a few essentials you will need to get started.

• Buy an electronic metronome.
• Find an isolated area no more than 5 minutes away from your work where you can eat lunch and not be bothered. It should be protected at least a little from the environment.  I live in Southern California so this is not my biggest concern.
• If possible have an instrument at work but always take yours to work every day.
• Find several restaurants in the area that prepare food to go during your lunch hour.
• Get ready to get up in the morning at least 30-45 minutes earlier that you have been. Preferably 45 minutes.
• If you don't have a tape player or CD player in your car carry a portable one with you.
• Always have your favorite CDs and Tapes with you.
• A tuner.

Here are a list of practice methods that I have adopted that has allowed me to at least show minimal improvement when I truly practice them.

1. I have to be at work around 7:30 am and the drive is about 45 minutes to an hour. It takes me about 30 minutes to get ready for work, shower etc. So I now set my alarm for 5:15 am. This gives me about 30 to 40 minutes of practice before I have to get ready to leave. This time I use for scales, arpeggios, patterns, cross picking and other mechanical items. You'll be surprised at the improvement you make in a month of just sticking with this routine. (Of course the worst thing you can do is wake up the rest of the family when you do this so find a place in the house or garage or woodshed where you can practice and not disturb anyone.} Use the metronome religiously at this practice session. Practice at all different beats and tempos.
2. If you have a commute use this time to listen or sing along with CDs or tapes that you like or practice tapes that you have made ahead of time. Listen, listen, listen... You want to emulate what you like so you have to really know how "what you like"  sounds.
3. The next sacrifice... No more relaxing lunches! Call your to-go order in and figure out exactly how long it takes for them to have it prepared so you don't waste time waiting for the food. Get the food and head for the afore mentioned location! If it takes you more than 10 minutes to eat order less or go on a diet. This is where you can actually get some real practice time. You now  have about 40 minutes you can practice.
4. Normally I use the lunch hour to play along with bands I like, learn new tunes, try new breaks, and work on breaks and weak areas for the songs and tunes I do with the bands I play in. Be sure to make this time fun or you will fall back into the relaxing lunches. If your not playing along with your tapes or CDs use the metronome! Play rhythm and practice rhythm.
5. Keep a log of what you have done so you don't keep repeating things that are easy . Start writing down what you have done and how long you have done it. If you are jamming and find that you are not doing something right or feel you could make improvement in an area of your playing take some time and write it down and incorporate it into your practice routine.
6. Make this a  life time commitment because that is how long it takes to learn an instrument!
7. Get into a band so you can judge your improvement. You will hear the difference in your playing in about 3 weeks if you follow this routine.  If you don't get into a band find 2 or 3 people who you can get together with and play on a regular basis. Ask them at least to work stuff out to some degree so you make a commitment to improve and grow.

These are just a few of the practice methods I use to keep my chops up. Don't get discouraged. It happens slowly but keep at it! I will follow up with a couple of the exercises I use to warm up and how to get warmed up quickly so your time is not wasted.   -Mike Nadolson

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