We're falling behind... let's get this battle going!


GET PRACTICING!

Matt

That's should probably be 'dudes and dudettes,' if you want to be politically correct.

[feminist]



Akira, that is so sexist! Can't you clearly see that "dudette" is just a chauvinistic extension of "dude"?? Just like "women" from "men", "human" from "man"....! Wymyn must not be shackled to the machismo language of the unfair sex!



[/feminist]

Isn't this some sort of contest between males and females. So, isn't Matt's post encouraging "Dude's" actually okay since he's only referring to males?

Matt's right

At this rate we're gonna get our a...s whooped somethin' awful

We need to do us some serious recruitin'

LOL

How about some serious practicing?

That too

At least us "Dudes" have a higher average per member.

A quick question that's roughly on-topic: Is it possible to edit one's practice log? I accidentally submitted the same thing twice so now it shows 60 minutes instead of 30.

Yea, when you first come to the screen where you enter you info, scroll down and you will see your entries.

Select "edit" and submit, and it will bring up the entry. Just change the date and enter you time for today and it will overwrite it.

Hm, I have one more thing to practice on piano today. If I pull up the second of the double entry, replace what is written there with the next thing I practice and enter (change) the time that would probably set it straight. Thanks.

...But you're a DUDE! Not a member of the wymyn clan!

He's just being satirical.

I know humour when I see it... :rolleyes:

Well, how would you dudes feel about

Chicks and Chicksters?? :rolleyes:

That's how we feel about Dudes and Dudettes.

And while we are on the subject, I am not too fond of Chicks at all. That's a throw-back to babes and broads!

To get away from all gender-antics, we could use

Ladies and Gentlemen
Queens and Kings
Brains and Braun :p
Girls and Boys :rolleyes:
Beauty and Beasts

That's all I can think of right now, but I'm sure you can add more. Of course, depending on your gender, the choices may be somewhat biased.

Kathleen

Lads & Lassies?

hate to break it to you but the 'dudes' no longer have the higher average....

Go Ladies Go!

OUCH!!!

All Change. :p

Well done "Dudes", we're looking good now.

As a matter of curiosity, how many Chicks think performance majors who are required to practice six hours a day should be banned????

This "lady" thinks that all is fair in love and war and practice hours.

(BTW, Frycek...as far as I know you are not a performance major, but I've seen you tally up as many as 4-5 hours on some days. )

I say let the chips fall where they may, and in the end, it will always be the "ladies" who win.

Kathleen

6 hours????? OMG, it's torture for me to get in 4, and it takes all day.

Many studies have been done over the years that show measureable productivity peaks at 5.5 hours per 8 hour shift, and the average across industires is closer to 4 hours per shift (not a comment on workers btw, just human nature and requirements of the job - waiting time for instance).

It takes me 8-10 hours to get in 4 hours of playing, and my hands are dropping off by the end of the day. It hurts to hold a fork and eat sometimes, and that's bad.

6 hours would take every waking minute. I envy anyone who can play that much. I am gettng better, as 3 hours was my max just a year ago.

Ah, another goal....it was all I could do to try and keep up with you, Frycek.

Check out HopinMad.

HopinMad's tally is quite impressive; however, just how long can he/she keep it up?

gmm1: I agree that (and I think you are close to the senior set) too much of a good thing is not a good thing, physically and mentally. I certainly have the time to practice more, but my brain needs time to absorb what I've learned. And my body (especially my back and arms) protest quite violently if I abuse them.

The bottom line: To get the most out of our practice time even if it's only 15 minutes. It sort of reminds me of that old tale of the tortise and the hare. Slow and steady wins the race.

Hang in there...everyone!

Kathleen

Years.

GO DUDES!

The chicks are 5 members behind but they are closing in on the time.....VERY FAST!

I do. i'm a piano major, or rather going to major in piano at a music consevatory but my max time ever on the piano is 5 and a half hrs, right now, if I go beyond that, I go insane the next day.

I guess i've gotta get advice from my teacher

I don't think they should be banned.

If that's the case ban retired people or stay home peeps who don't work and have more time to practice.

Practice is practice regardless of what the goal is.

thank you thank you very much

I don't mind being called a chick or chickadee, it's not being used in a derogatory fashion. It's just a fun thing we're doing here so the terms are in fun.

There are some ugly words out there that should never be used but the people on this forum are classy and respectful and would never dream of using them.

Well, my two cents....

I find looking at how much practice people post in the log to be inspiring and revealing.

One of the reasons I don't play as well as Amelia or Frycek or hoppinmad or LisztAddict or (insert name) is the length of time playing and the time put into practice. I am not discounting talent, BTW, just commenting with practice all of us can reach our goals.

I want to see how much everyone practices. It brings it home how difficult this "hobby" really is, and how much work it takes to become/stay proficient, and how good I should feel that I have made it this far. Like I said, it's inspiring.

As far as Chicks and Dudes, I wish to be called "stud-muffin" instead of dude.

thank you thank you very much....

:D

Well said, gmm1!

What's that old saying that we keep repeating here..."It's not the destination but the journey..." Sometimes I wonder if this really applies to us because we do (at least most of us) have a "destination" or goal. But it is in the obtaining of that goal wherein lies the real rewards.


And I will be happy to refer to you as stud-muffin from now on. :p And I'd like to be called "stud-magnet;" however, this is just wishful thinking on my part. :rolleyes:

Kathleen

Oh great, stud-muffin[/b] and beefcakes[/b] are already taken.

I hope ya'll realize that was just a tongue in cheek poke at hopinmad. I wouldn't even support banning Lang Lang.

I have no business whatsoever named in the company of the other three. Better acknowledge that before it goes to my head.

There are three kinds of players in the world:

Those worse then me (there must be someone....)
Those same as me (poor people)
Those better then me...

Ever notice that "we" are never happy with what we have, always looking at those who are better and striving to reach that plateau?

If I could play like you Frycek, I would be happy... except if I were to reach your current level, you keep practicing, and so you surpassed that level, so and even then I would not play as well as you.

You must quit and give me three years. It's only fair.

ok, sorry for that comment, I was just joking. haha

the chicks are beating the dudes, well almost.

com'on girls we can do it.

no offence guys but I seriously dislike being called a chick, just as some of you a dude

I can tell you that the amount of practise has nothing to do with the talent. it's all to do with disipline and it took me a long time to be able to practise 4 hrs a day

Man, that's a lot of practicing! If I have the time I can do about 2 hours at a pop, but a few of you are doing 4+. Very impressive.

I can't imagine this is done all at once. I've got a bevy of questions.

How do you stay focused?
How long do you guys practice at one sitting? What's considered too long?
Are there stress related injury implications associated with long term practicing?

I practice 3-4 hours a day. It's taken me two years to work up to this level. I started out with 30 minutes to an hour a day over 3-4 sessions.

Focus is an issue for me over 20-30 minutes on a piece, but for scales, tremelos, trills, chords/inversions, I can practice for up to an hour.

I start out with technique practice. 1 hour, a break, 1 hour, then another longer break. Then I will do the "study" portion for 20-30 minutes in 3-4 sets throughout the day, depending on how I feel and if I have the time. I play best in the AM, and not so good at night, so night sessions can be as short as 10 minutes.

For me, fully rested, 1 hour is my limit before I start to feel it. It used to be 15 minutes when I started, and it has grown as I use the muscles and have learned to relax better (thanks Klutz).

As far as stress/pain is concerned, I will stop if I start feeling tense or pain or frustration (I find if I am getting frustrated, I tighten up so I have learned the hard way to stop, take a break, relax, and start again later).

Now, the answer to the question you did not ask - is it doing any good? - Yea, I think so. It's still slow going, and since I spend more than half the time on technique, the pieces come together slowly (bad sight-reader, must memorize). I actually think my technique is ahead of my playing abilities. I know that sounds odd, but I can just fly on scales, and trills are coming around, and I can invert major chords on the fly. It's putting all that to work in a piece that challenges me still.

The key word here is MOTIVATION.

I could practice 12 hours a day if I wanted to. I certainly have the time. But, as I mentioned in another thread, I have hit that wall where my progress has come to a stand-still. The first year and one-half, I was flying. I learned about 25-30 pieces and my ego was so inflated that I was surprised I could live with myself. :rolleyes:

But, since the "wall," my motivation has fallen to practically zero. And, consequently, I have to force myself to practice those 2 hours a day that I commited to. I could blame this all on some personal family problems, but I won't. I do have the ability to push everything out of my mind when at the piano.

Consequently, since I am afraid that I will fall away from the piano completely, I've bitten the bullet and decided to take piano lessons on a regular basis. To have someone to answer to each week, while not the best prod, is better than nothing. And, who knows...I might actually learn something new. :p

Again, another one of those one adages..."Nothing succeeds like success." The better you become, the more you want to become better. (Yikes...what a sentence and I'm a retired English teacher.)

My best to you all,
Kathleen (aka "stud-magnet")

Stud-magnet?

Beefcakes?

What's going on here???

LOL

Hi all:

I should be posting my practice time more frequently, but I don't really put that much time into reading this (or any other site) as maybe I "should". With limited time to practice, I tend to spend my doing that rather than posting about it. If my time frees up a bit, I will definitely spend a bit more time here.

As for motivation, I still think that if a person struggles with getting him or herslef to sit down and practice (assuming s/he has the time to do so in the first place), then maybe this isn't the pursuit that captures your heart and interest, and it may be time to re-evaluate what you are doing and why. It is one thing to be interested in playing piano, and another to REALLY want to. I have seen this when teaching guitar. Maybe the teaching style of the teacher or self-study materials is not really suitable to your style. Maybe you are not learning the style that got you fired up about the piano in the first place. Or, maybe the piano is not the priority that you hoped it would be, now that you have had the chance to give it a shot.

This stuff is not always the most comfortable to look into. but, as George Leonard talks about in his book "Mastery", "the mat (piano) is where you come face to face with your REAL motivations".

Tony

Even the most motivated pianists have their off seasons. I don't think an occasional reluctance to practice should cause one to question one's vocation. Even Liszt once quit for two years. As for logging one's practice time - I think the perhaps 30 seconds it takes me to put it in each day is time exceedingly well spent.

Frycek:

I think that interpreting what I said as being addressed to "an occasional reluctance to practice" is a bit exrtreme, and not at all what I was addressing.

So, I apologize for any misunderstanding I may have created here. Hopefully this post clears it up.

Tony

--deleted in the interest of harmony on the forum - -

I tried to register to add my (paltry) practice time to the cause (and really to track it more than anything else). But the server tells me my name is not on the list, is there some sort of waiting period (sort of like for handgun purchases) or something? Or have I done something terribly, terribly wrong in registering?

I don't know if I could stand the pressure of documenting practice, but I've been going like 6 hours a day, on top of a 21 credit hour uni load, haha.

I played a bunch when I was younger, but it really felt forced. Now, though, for whatever reason, I see piano as the ultimate technical and expressive challenge. For me, it's like the ultimate test of skill, knowledge, willpower, and endurance. I get lost playing, though. I'll just start, and keep playing for hours. I also try to get 30 minutes between classes when I can, but it's tough.

Did you check the box "I wish to add name to the list"?

Yes, Still no joy.

i'm sorry girls, I may have to pull out as I really can't be going on the computer every single day to update this list, I should really be concentrating on my practise and theory.

sorry

You don't have to update every day, right? I update my practice time every few days.
Yesterday I barely made it to the piano at 11:40pm coming from late meeting with client... If not for MOYD, I'd have gone straight to bed, but went to the piano instead... Great stimulus

I don't update it everyday, I usually go in the next day and do it.

don't drop out amelia, just write down your times and when you can enter them do so. Pweeety pwease?

alright then. I'll only key in practise times when i'm free then.

thanks, it's nice to know that i'm wanted

Amelialw, you are an inspiration. Please log when you can. The ladies need you!!

While it's a lot of fun watching hopinmad, ameliaw and Frycek battle it out up top, I also want the three of you to please be careful and try to not hurt yourselves. This is meant to be fun and motivational, not suicidal and self-destructive.

Go XY people!

Ted (languishing in eighth place)

haha, don't worry, I won't hurt myself.

if you check my practise log, some days I really cool it down *grins*

Ted, I thought your post truly well-meaning ... Until I read that cheer for your fellow YX folk. Did you think we wouldn't notice?

Amelia, the link to your Web site doesn't work. (Edit the stuff after ".com" and your home page comes up fine.) And feel free to update your log whenever you can/want ... as long as it's before midnight at the end of the month!

Go, XXers![/b]

Hi all:

I update my practice log on the weekend. The problem for me is that even though, as one person pointed out, it only takes about 30 seconds to update one entry daily, I tend to get sidetracked into reading the forums. I need to spend that time in the evenings playing piano, so I read forums during some time on the weekends and from work when waiting for a compile to complete.

Anyway, I seem to get in an hour a day in half hour sessions, but am working to expand that during weekdays. I am usually able to put in half hour in the morning before work, and want to get at least another hour at night. I realize everybody is different in how "natural" they are in learning piano, and for me it takes closer to two hours a day for me to be making progress, rather than simply "treading water". Maybe others here can make real progress in less daily time than that.

For me, I am working hard to master the physical aspects of the instrument (i.e. being able to "stride" my left hand naturally while playing other stuff in the right, and being able to switch between left hand styles within a song, and that sort of thing). I am confident it will come in time, just as I did get to the point where I could play what I want on the guitar, but like the guitar, it takes me a sustained focused effort to get there.

Tony

ok, the link works now

Create a shortcut to the practice log on your desk top and you won't even have to even go near the temptations of the forum.

The dudes are going strong..........

Come on....practice.....

Let's do it to them before they do it to us....

Johan B

So there is a thread for this then; I obviously need to have a break from the Pianist Corner now and again!


Oh but I;m only putting in minimal practise, I currently have school exams!! They finish in less than a week though, then I'll get the hours in!!!

By now I've read the entire thread, and may I say Debussy20 has it spot on!!!


It certainly won't go less!


Why ban those required to practise?? It's a practise log; now they can feel better for it!

Hey, I only said ban DUDS -uh DUDES who are required to practice.
:p

Frycek:

Good idea. Thanks.

Tony

How do you do that? The only way I know to get at it is by going to the first sticky post in the AB thread, scroll down to the word "here", click on it, which just shows my computer ignorance. :rolleyes:

When you get to the the blue Practice Log login screen right click your mouse. You should see a task bar come up with "Create Shortcut" somewhere close to the middle. Click on "Create Shortcut" and it will put an icon for the Practice Log on your desktop. Clicking on it will take you to the login screen and bypass the sticky thread and the forum altogether.

I really should log, but I never time myself.

We don't need any more dudes.
(How are your audition pieces coming?)

hopinmad, after all the stress and bother of exams, you don't want to spend time at the computer, do you? Noooo. Go, relax. Put your feet up. Forget the Practice Log ever existed ...

How dare you piano_deb!! I take pride in not succumbing to that!

Practise!

Chicks--just want you to know that I am putting my time in at the local Elk's club (borrowing their piano) because mine is in the shop!!!! We really need to get going before they get way ahead . . .

Hey, hopinmad, didn't mean to imply that you should practice less. Just saying it wouldn't break my heart if you forgot to log in your practice time, Duuuude!

Oh blimey some people can't plat the game without cheating . . . . I believe the DUDES are simply becoming too good . . . .

Be careful when you say that. The last time someone said that, the chix left us doods in the dust.

I'm new here and have just tried to sign up for the practice club, but with no success because the login messages keep sending me around in circles.

Oh well!!! This badluck is not an excuse for me to not practice, so I'll just get going anyway and keep a record somewhere else if I can't get logged in.

By the way, I also don't like the chicks and dudes designation. How about "pianomen" and "pianowomen"? I've always loved the pianoman song by Billy Joel, so I'd love to become a pianowoman.

Happy practicing, everyone!

Anybody know who maintains the Practice Log to help The Chariot?

Hey Chariot - after you enter your name and password, be sure to click ENTER and not the rd LOG-IN link (that will reload the login screen).

Reading the thread has got me currious. Where is this log everyone is talking about?

Here

Thanks everyone for the suggestions about logging in. Anyway, I finally got things straightened out.

I'm currently studying classical piano and am in grade six. My exams will be coming up soon, so I need to get cracking! I am also a summer street musician.

I will be happy to add my effort to the team of the pianowomen chicks!

This seems like a really fun forum and there is so much to learn here. I'm looking forward to all kinds of wonderful discussions.

Frycek, check out what I've logged for the 23rd.

Bless your heart. You must be tired.

I had the day off from school as I'd just finished my exams, so I "relaxed"!

Next time I'll reach 700 mins.

Is there a way we can get it so we have our grand totals in hours?

Goodness!

How does someone practice for ten hours?

I envy you!

I think he's channelling Liszt.

In all but playing!!

Playadom, I decided to spend an entire day on the piano before hand, and making sure I knew what my "routine" would be.
On the log I only count the minutes for time spent on pieces, and I usually put an hour and a few minutes (about 70 in all maybe) on piece, or do that twice (though not neccessarily stragiht following each other). I don't log my time for scales and arpeggios, or sight-reading, or anything that isn't a piece which I propose to perform some time.
I started at half past nine, and finished at eleven (thirteen and a half!) with two half hour, and two quarter of an hour breaks in between .

I made my best to plan what I was going to do, is what I'm trying to say I think.