Art of Practising

One of the most important reasons why many violin students do not achieve their full potential is that they have not been taught "How to Practise".

Most young students practise mechanically, not engaging the brain, merely moving the fingers, usually at full speed. For practice to be productive, one must have a clear idea of what one is aiming for in each practice session. First, the hands have to be thoroughly warmed up by finger exercises, then the ear has to be trained daily by scales and all forms of arpeggios.

The difficult passages of the current pieces should  then be worked on, having of course ascertained what made them difficult in the first place.

One should endeavour to end the practice session with a performance of a piece already learnt, so that one does not forget works which one had devoted practice time to in the past (The number of pupils who never seem to be able to recall the works of their last Grade !!).