How to Build the Perfect Practice Routine

Essential tips for making the most out of your focused practice time.

It’s happened to all of us. You sit down with your instrument with the intention of practicing, but quickly feel overwhelmed by all the choices you have to make. Where do I even start? Am I practicing the right way? What should I focus on next? Why don’t I seem to be improving?

Whether you’re picking up your instrument for the first time or tackling new techniques to take your playing further, a structured, consistent practice schedule will keep you on track so you can achieve your goals and have more fun.

In this article, we’ll look at how to build the perfect practice routine. We’ll provide some general guidelines that can be applied to any instrument, plus specific examples for different instruments like guitar, piano, saxophone, clarinet, orchestral strings and drums.

Start With Clear Goals

The first step to building an effective practice routine is setting goals that are specific, measurable and achievable. Instead of focusing on broad ambitions like “becoming a better player,” it’s better to break it down into specific objectives:

• “I want to learn how to play a few of Stevie Ray Vaughan’s signature licks”
• “I want to play Debussy’s Clair de lune”
• “I want to increase my picking speed to steady eighth notes at 130 bpm”
• “I want to make first chair in the fall”

By setting some measurable goals and taking small steps to attain them, you’ll see faster progress and avoid feeling overwhelmed​.

Break Your Practice Into Sections

First off, keep in mind that there’s no one right way to practice. What matters most is that your practice sessions are enjoyable and help you progress according to your goals.

That said, there are four important categories of things to practice, and including something from each of them will make your sessions more productive. In this section we’ll look at warm-up, technique, playing songs and creative exploration. At the end of the article, you can try using one of our sample practice routines, and modify it as needed to fit your needs.

Now, let’s explore those four important categories!

Warm-Up: The Foundation of Every Session

Imagine jumping right into a workout without stretching first—your muscles would feel stiff, and your body wouldn’t perform at its best. The same is true for practicing a musical instrument. A brief warm-up at the start of your practice session will get your body physically ready while preparing your mind to focus.

A good warm-up should take about 10 percent of your total practice time and should be tailored to your instrument’s physical demands.

• For piano, you could play scales, thirds, chord inversions or simple arpeggios
• Guitarists can warm up by practicing scales, chord progressions and songs they know well
• For brass and woodwinds, play scales while focusing on air support and articulation to ensure your tone is consistent​
• Drummers should start with shoulder, arm and wrist stretches, then play rudiments on a single drum or practice pad
• Orchestral string players should play through scales

Build Technique

Once you’re all warmed up, it’s time to work on technique. This is often the most challenging part of the practice session. It’s also where frustration can set in if you’re not careful. But true progress can only be achieved by pushing your technical abilities to their limit.

Rather than trying to tackle everything at once, choose one or two technical challenges to focus on each session. If you limit your focus to specific technical exercises, you’ll see much faster improvement without feeling overwhelmed.

• Guitarists might work on improving their flatpicking or fingerpicking speed with a metronome, starting off slow with a particular scale, arpeggio or song excerpt and gradually increasing the tempo
• Pianists can practice sight reading, hand independence and finger-strengthening exercises like Hanon, Czerny or Pischna to help improve speed, agility and control over finger movement
• Drummers can focus on hand technique, limb independence and polyrhythms, and more intensive rudiment workouts​
• Orchestral string players should practice etudes focusing on the left and right hands separately

Play Some Songs

Now we get to the fun part—playing music! Ultimately, you’re doing all this so you can play songs on your instrument, so you should spend a significant portion of your practice time working on pieces or songs. This portion of practice should be enjoyable, and can include learning a new song or practicing a piece for a performance. Improvisation—whether playing through the changes of a jazz standard or shredding over simpler rock- and blues-based harmony—is also great practice.

• Saxophone and trumpet players can work on reading and playing melodies with a strong, emotive tone, as well as applying scale and harmonic knowledge to jazz improvisation. This is also a good time to practice your band or orchestra music
• Drummers can play along to new songs while applying the technique and coordination exercises from earlier​
• Guitarists can practice songs along to a metronome to work on their time, and play the same songs in different positions along the neck and using different chord voicings
• Orchestral string players can work through repertoire, absorbing the rhythm first and then homing in on the main melody, striving for excellent intonation. Also work on paying close, reactive attention to any accompaniment that will support your performance

Whenever you’re learning new songs, it’s helpful to play along with a recording of the music. Try using apps like Anytune for iOS or Music Speed Changer for Android to slow down the song you’re learning without altering its pitch. Gradually you can increase the tempo until you’re playing along at normal speed.

Creative Exploration and Play

Your practice routine shouldn’t just be about hard work—it should also be fun. Set aside some time at the end of your practice to “play” with your instrument, experimenting with new ideas and sounds. Whether it’s improvising a solo, learning a new song by ear or playing along to a backing track, this part of your routine is essential for connecting with your instrument and developing your unique playing style.

Sample Practice Routine for Different Instruments

For Guitar (30 minutes):

1. Warm-up: 5 minutes of scales or finger exercises
2. Technique: 10 minutes of picking technique with a metronome, or working through chord voicings
3. Music: 10 minutes practicing a song
4. Play: 5 minutes of improvisation or jamming

For Piano (30 minutes):

1. Warm-up: 5 minutes of scales and thirds
2. Technique: 10 minutes of arpeggios, chords and inversions
3. Music: 10 minutes practicing a song
4. Play: 5 minutes of improvisation or jamming​

For Brass and Woodwinds (30 minutes):

1. Warm-up: 5 minutes of long tones to focus on breath control​
2. Technique: 10 minutes of scale work, focusing on a new key each week
3. Music: 10 minutes working on a song, solo piece or band or orchestra music
4. Play: 5 minutes of improvisation or playing along with a backing track​

For Drums (30 minutes):

1. Warm-up: 5 minutes of stretching arms, hands and wrists
2. Technique: 10 minutes of coordination exercises, focusing on hand/foot independence
3. Music: 10 minutes playing along to songs
4. Play: 5 minutes experimenting with new grooves or fills​

For Orchestral Strings (30 minutes):

1. Warm-up & Technique: 10-15 minutes of scales and etudes
2. Music: 10 minutes practicing repertoire
3. Play: 5 minutes ear training with fun pitch-recognition games, or composing

Record, Review and Celebrate Your Progress

Recording yourself is one of the best ways to monitor progress. Listening back will help you identify areas for improvement. You can also track tempo improvements or identify inconsistencies in your playing. After a few months, you’ll be amazed at how far you’ve come.

Building the perfect practice routine doesn’t mean following a rigid, unchangeable schedule. It’s about creating a balanced plan that fits your goals and lifestyle. By combining technique building with creative play, you’ll not only become a better musician but also deepen your love for your instrument. So grab your guitar, saxophone or whatever you play, and start building a practice routine that works for you!

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