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At the end of lessons I always ask, "Do you have any other questions?" Almost all of my students always say, "No." But, I have one who usually has a good question either about repertoire, posture, technique, or practice. Today he asked me, "What should my mindset be while practicing?" Obviously, it's a very general question, and, as I told him, mindset shifts throughout a practice session, but what would your answers be to the question? I rambled for a while while trying to answer his question, but I think the heart of my answer was to "trust in the method, don't allow frustration to dictate how you practice."
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I have played the violin for a few years strictly on a recreatonal basis. But a time came when I felt I had to step back and try to decide on how far I've come and what I might expect for the future. I became my own critic. Well, I decided that I did not like what I was hearing and the key word was "sloppy". I've had some successes along the way playing for other people or in a group so I hoped some work on basic techniques would help a lot. I adopted a policy of "zero defects". Whenever I hit a snag while playing/practicing a piece, I made it a big deal to understand the problem and work it out during practice. I may have spent a few practice sessions just focussing on minor details. I practically came to a halt from dealing with all my flaws. By being so fussy I found that I really couldn't play anything anymore! This went on for several weeks and I seriously wondered if I would ever survive as a violin player? About the 3rd week I started a usual practice session and somehow, all my issues seemed to come together. I had definitely hit the "next level" almost like a lightning bolt. I know that I have never sounded better but even that leaves me as an "average" player who is now better to listen to. Actually, I am mostly impressed at what was achieved when I "raised the bar" and stuck to it.
