Have you ever spent time struggling with a passage, and after trying again and again, you finally got it right? What did you do afterwards?
Chances are you made one of the most common mistakes that music students fall for – the mistake that is responsible for the slow progress of millions of music students….
You said, “Finally!” and then you moved on.
When you finally get something right, don’t move on! That’s when you need to stop and repeat it until it’s in your muscle memory!
You see, it’s rewarding to finally get a passage right and your brain will say, “Great! Now we can move on!”
But, playing something right once doesn’t mean that you’ll be able to play it right again. You haven’t played it right enough times to have it ingrained in your muscle memory. You have to stop and play it correctly over and over again until it’s automatic.
“But how many times do I have to play it,” you might ask. “That sounds like a lot of work.”
You’ll want to play right at least 5 times in a row – and you’ll want to make sure you follow your Magic Speed Limit.
Well, some people say that number is 4 times, and some people say 10 times. So why do I say 5 times? And why do I call it magic?
I have found over and over again that students can often play something right 4 times in a row, but there is a very high chance that they’ll still miss the 5th time. So 4 times is not enough.
However, I’ve also found that once they are able to pass the 5th time in a row, they cross a magic threshold into their muscle memory and are able to easily play it more times after that.
So that’s why, when you get something right, stop and play it at least 5 times in a row. In fact, challenge yourself to see how many times you can play it without making a mistake. If you are following your Magic Speed Limit, then that number should be forever!
Life Lesson
How can you apply the Magic No.5 to your life? Well, you can apply it to situations that involve muscle memory.
For instance, maybe you have a habit of forgetting to hang up your keys on the key holder when you get home. The keys end up in different areas of the house and you are always panicking to find them when you leave for school or work. You’re forgetting because you are on autopilot, and it’s not part of your muscle memory.
But changing this isn’t easy because you probably have a million other things on your mind when you get home, so you forget to remember to change your habit!
In order to change a habit like this, try deliberately going through the motions of the new habit you want.
Use the Magic No.5 to train yourself to hang up your keys. Put your coat on, take what you need with you as if you are actually going out, go out and lock the door and walk away from the door. Then turn around and come back, unlock the door as if you were coming home, get in the house, and hang up the keys before you do anything else, like taking off your shoes. Make yourself do this 5 times in a row – or more if you don’t think that’s enough. Chances are, the novel sensation of doing the new action a few times will be enough for you to trigger the memory the next time you actually come home.
We can’t rely on ourselves to change a habit that is on autopilot without stopping to make a deliberate effort. See if there are any everyday habits you can change using the Magic No.5!
Teacher Tips
Often, we are unaware that we are modelling the wrong practice habits when we teach, whether it’s private lessons or in the classroom. Teachers are often guilty of allowing students to move on once they get a passage right. We often feel pressed to do this because of time constraints.
As much as possible, resist doing this, and model the Magic No. 5 during your lesson or rehearsal at least some of the time. Of course, you don’t have time to do it with everything. That’s when you remind your students to make sure to apply the Magic No. 5 when they practice at home.
Remember, for most students, the teacher is the only model for what proper practicing should look like. Be aware of how you teach or rehearse, and make sure you are modelling effective practice strategies for your students.