how much time practicing?

College Majors Music Major
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<p>How about for voice? How much time is about right? It seems one could really overdo it, or practice a bad habit without realizing it–and damage the voice. Would it be better to break it up, say 2 one- half hour sessions each day? Can/should a voice major practice 2 or 3 hours per day?</p>

<p>SopranoMom-</p>

<p>Practicing for singers is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT than practicing for instrumentalists. I just graduated from Northwestern in Voice Performance and I usually practiced about an hour and a half per day. Then I spent the rest of the day singing in choir, lesson, diction, studio, vocal solo class, rehearsal, etc. So I sang a lot more than that, but devoted an hour and a half specifically to the work that I was doing in lesson.</p>

<p>I would agree with all the things you said about developing bad habits, although that can happen with any instrument if the student is practicing incorrectly. Figuring out how much practice is right depends on the person, it depends on their stamina and ability, and depends really on each day. If you didn’t get enough sleep the night before, you wont be able to sing as well. If you ate something you shouldn’t eat before singing, that will affect you too. I would say about an hour for the first session is fine, at the least. And then if the singer feels like they need to practice more than that, they should break up the remaining practice sessions into half hour blocks, and make those sessions really really focused. Especially for singers, its all about Quality, not quantity. You could have an amazing 20 minutes that completely changes the way you sing, or a wasted two hours. Singers absolutely have to learn how to use their time wisely. But I think the biggest thing is being careful about not damaging the voice when the singer ISN’T singing. Most singers are careful when they are practicing, but can be careless at other times, like when in a crowded room where they have to speak louder, or when talking during every day occasions.</p>

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<p>Thanks beci316–that approach seems to be working well for my daughter. She has choir every day for 1 1/2 hours, also lessons, etc. So her home practice is very focused, but not long. She has made tremendous progress in the past few months. It’s nice to hear from a voice of experience. Thanks!</p>

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<p>My D who is a freshman vocal performance major said the same thing: if you count my choir classes and the classes i actually sing in that is probably 3 hours a day, but probably like an hour or more a day of actual practice. You sing in alot of classes throughout the day. This is from a kid who is very good, but only practiced an hour a week for her lesson (the night before) in high school. And I know she has spent 5 hours practicing on occasion at college. It is not the same as high school. More motivation, and less distraction by other classes.</p>

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<p>I’ve heard 40 minutes each day is a good target for a young singer. Like everything in life, it depends upon the person. Some young singers have fragile voices that need extra care and can’t handle the vigors of singing for great lengths; others have sturdier voices that can take more work. As far as my daughter goes, she usually does her voice teacher’s lesson which is 55 mins but actually singing time is 45 mins each day and then works on her rep for another 30 minutes max. She doesn’t usually do a full vocalization and then work on rep but breaks it into separate sessions. I’ve noticed lately since she’s working hard on learning a tough role, she sings an octave down and fairly lightly to put the time into learning it but not put strain on her voice. She also listens to CD’s and watches DVD’s as added practice without any vocal work. She has alot of extra singing like choirs, choruses and cantoring to boot so she has to be very careful not to oversing. She definitely sings more than she should, but it’s all healthy singing and it seems to work fine for her.</p>

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<p>Once you are in a studio at college this should be discussed with the professor. DD’s professor wanted her to start slow and then check in with her in the beginning to make sure she was practicing correctly. As they both agreed how she would practice, DD did more time and more on her own. There is of course another side to the practice, it is working through the music on a keyboard, researching it’s background, working on the language. That adds much more time to “practice” than just singing.</p>

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<p>practicing and singing are two separate things. All musicians have to practice and play with their group. Voice majors have it easy in that they should not practice as much as other instrumentalists. However, they will be participating as much as other instruments.</p>

<p>That said, practicing does not require singing full voice all the time. When you are learning a song, you should not start out singing it full voice. You are naturally tense while trying to figure out the notes, and you don’t want your voice to “learn” to sing it tense. So, when learning the music, sing softly with a relaxed voice. Also, practice should include exercises your teacher has given you to expand/improve your voice. Some exercises are not taxing, and can actually be soothing to the voice.</p>

<p>I have heard 1 hour a day of practices is about right for an undergrad. Other time should be used to learn more about music. Listen to recordings of how other singers have performed the song. etc.</p>

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<p>Ablest mom, Hi! I haven’t seen you for a while, how goes it?</p>

<p>I don’t know how much time my son spends practicing each day, probably too much! He tends to get fixated on a particular piece and works it to death. We have had a struggle with him regarding taking better care of his voice and from some of the things he’s said recently I think he is begining too, thank goodness! I know he spends alot of time in memorization, I think he likes to memorize things “just in case”! :)</p>

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<p>I can’t talk about specific instruments since my son is a violinist, but it seems the consensus is that the amount of practice is also tied to the level someone is shooting for and also the instrument, and it varies. It also depends the type of music as well I suspect, it may be easier to pick up an electric guitar in your teens and ‘get serious’ in your 20’s and ‘make it big’, whereas if you tried that on let’s say a violin,viola, cello or other classical orchestral instrument odds are you would’t get that far. </p>

<p>Every instrument has its own environment that determines how much practice is needed. In the violin world, the assumption is to be a top player you need to get into the groove with regular, long practices, early or your future is severely lmited,that it is unlikely someone can pick up a violin in high school and become a top level violinist. In a sense, basd on my own experiences with a wind instrument, with wind players it takes several years before ‘getting their wind’ (bad pun, I know), and they tend to start moving into the serious path a bit later, so they may on average practice less then let’s say a violin or cellist at a comperable age, who have had a running start since they genersally start younger.</p>

<p>I think the ultimate answer is what does the kid want to do with it? Are they the best player in school and are happy with that, and don’t look much beyond that? Do they sort of have their heart set on playing music in school, but don’t plan to major in it or go into a career? Are they looking more into teaching music rather then playing it as a career? Or do they have the idea of striving to get into a top level conservatory and become a top level performer? Each brings its own relative level of excellence and requirements. In the classical world, I would hesitate a guess that if by the time they hit early high school, they aren’t practicing regularly at least a couple of hours a day, it will limit how far they can go, that if they have dreams of getting into a top flight conservatory trying to cram it in Junior year may prove difficult to impossible; if on certain instruments, like the piano, the amount of practice and when to start doing it full force goes higher and starts earlier IME. </p>

<p>I agree with some of the posts on here, the key is also effective practice. 6 hours of sloppy practice may not be worth all that much, while 2 hours of targeted practice do wonders. Also, taking breaks is important, my son practices 25 minutes, then takes a 10 minute break, ,and so forth, until he gets to his alloted time. It helps keep from getting strains or too tired.</p>

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<p>My son called today and I asked him how much he practices a day. He said a total of 2 hours, but not all at once.</p>

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<p>Hi srw!!! Things are well…e-mail me and catch me up on DS when you get the chance…will out kids be together this summer again?</p>