Gem Star 28/04/2021: Mieszko

Create the right mood. When I hear this I think candles, hot chocolate, a coal fire and a good book. However for music practice a good light, quiet, turn the phone down (note they can be useful for metronomes!) a glass of water, all the music you require and a pencil would be more appropriate.

Warm up. Remember practising uses the mind and body so ensure you warm your muscles up well.

Set a goal for this practise session. This can be summed up as know what you want to achieve and how you are going to achieve it.

Be realistic, you may want to play the whole piece today but is that logical. Instead look at what can be achieved in the time you have right now. Quality is what matters here, not quantity.

Know you target by understanding and identifying the error to be corrected. If you are unsure contact your teacher or reception to clarify. You can share a small video of the problem if required.

Play more than the notes, the notes are important but there are so many other vital parts to music, if you are unsure what these are speak to your teacher or reception.

Make notes on your music or on a note pad. of anything you need to remember. These triggers can help jog the memory.

Record yourself regularly, you can send in your recording for the Gem Star performance, or store the videos as unlisted on You Tube. It is good to look back and see how much you have achieved.

Be in the right mind set to practice. There is no point in practising for the sake of it, if your mind is not in the right place, reschedule, you will achieve more then.

Reward yourself for achieving a goal in the daily practice session.