h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

This is a great collection of hints and tips - several of which I hadn't heard before. I intend to try them out. Thank you.

Great article!

why what is music for me isn"t for others when i am simply enjoying beating the drums?

On behalf of my co-contributors, folks

I have tried the suggestion of starting practice at the end and working back, and I found it effective. Now I'm going to try the other ideas. Thanks again!

Works for memorising poetry too!

Wow! Great article! I just realised I have a musical stammer!

Thanks! (on behalf of the many contribtors)

A choir is a great place to lose a music-reading stammer; or any musical ensemble.

What a clever collection of tips, thank you for the motivation to practice.

Nice to hear from you! Glad to help!

Very nice post. There are so many great thoughts about practice and playing. I'll just leave comments on a couple. As I reviewed what I have written, I realized that it requires a short preface. This is by and for people who did not pursue music initially as their profession. Rather, it is for people who discover that music is unavoidable, even though they are starting later.

1. The ability to take criticism is absolutely required for improvement. Even harder, I think, it's a really good idea to listen to yourself play. Record yourself and listen. This can be extremely discouraging. It's a lot like hearing your speaking voice recorded. You swear that the recording isn't faithful. It is. I would suggest abandoning a common idea that you either sound great or you're awful. Get accustomed to listening for the music that is there, and for the most important things you want to change. I don't know any musician that actually likes hearing themselves. However, it's really nice, to hear your playing over long time periods. You will probably get a lot of satisfaction with your improvement.

2. I was very interested in the idea of note-perfect playing. I think the important point was that, even in the case of, say, verbatim playing from a written score, musical shape is actually the more important goal. I would much rather hear musicality (i. e. lyrical phrasing and a sense of effortlessness) with, perhaps, the occasional alternate note in a line, than a mechanical rendering. In improvisational music note-perfect is not a working concept, although I think there are analogs. An important goal is to play what you hear, the idea being that you actually hear it before you play it. Again, you want the improvised line to sound unforced and, well , musical.

3. I really liked the point that practice should be, on some level(s), pleasurable. I'm wondering whether the author(s) have ever had the experience of sitting down with a sense of dread, yet walking away feeling nourished (and surprised!) If you are musical, I think practice is something you really can't get away from. You may leave it for a while, but you're going to come back, because it is a fundamental communication channel. I think it's important to understand that there may be an ebb and flow to your commitment. AS the original article points out, music is serious. Admitting that it is important, and allowing yourself to take your playing seriously, is a very important step.

Thank you Nardis Miles. Very much to the point and very delicately put (the occasional alternate note in a line . . . yes indeed).

I am often tempted to review and update this entry (I correct and improve my others from time to time and the Editors are very accommodating) and perhaps I will do this soon and incorporate your wisdom.