What does deliberate practice as a musician/music producer look like?

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magnusmaximum714

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The concept of skill acquisition/deliberate practice has been heavy on my brain for a while, so to the great producers here, I ask:


What are the areas of deliberate practice (i.e. what skills are specifically focused on) in a given week for you?


Over the course of a week, do you block out times specifically to do ONLY ear training, then section off time to ONLY work on keyboarding (or whatever your instrument is) skills, then work on ONLY mixing/mastering, then work ONLY on sight reading -- and then have a time where you just make music, so that all those skills in progress come together?


In thinking about musicianship, I know that there are a lot of different skillsets (which require deliberate practice in and of themselves) and I want to know which skills need to be focused on during the week, and how to ensure I am giving adequate attention to each one through the week.


Advice welcome. Thanks!
 
well i guess the answer usually lies in your own work itself.

like you said, there is a ton of stuff to learn, as in music and business. it all comes down to what your next goal is, because without a clear goal, you might end up focusing on the wrong thing.

when it comes to music, i would recommend to go through your works of the last weeks or months and write down:

1. what is it that you dont like, or that you're at least satisfied with when you look at your last works

you might end up finding one thing over and over again. (for instance: "I love my beats in general, but the sound sucks" - > mixing (focus on mastering EQ and compression. these are the 20% of all mixing techniques that will give you 80% better results, promised).

or: the sound is okay, but my melodies suck (what is there to be learned about writing melodies? scales? blues scales? arab scales? are their patterns to buidling melodies?

or: "I hate that I always struggle with finding the right chords!" (learn the number system!)

or: "I love [producer] but I dont wanna sound like him/them. I wanna sound like me!" (what is there to be learned about originality?)

and so on and so on...like you said, the list can be endless. usually I would tackle what most frustrates you, and what would have the biggest impact on your music. Practice as long as you need to get real results.

2.so: if you have found something check if it does it relate to a skill, that you can practice/learn?

3. define the skill, get the material you need to practice and hit it.

that's usually how I do it, and it totally works for me. I hope that helps.
 
soso def! said:
well i guess the answer usually lies in your own work itself.

like you said, there is a ton of stuff to learn, as in music and business. it all comes down to what your next goal is, because without a clear goal, you might end up focusing on the wrong thing.

when it comes to music, i would recommend to go through your works of the last weeks or months and write down:

1. what is it that you dont like, or that you're at least satisfied with when you look at your last works

you might end up finding one thing over and over again. (for instance: "I love my beats in general, but the sound sucks" - > mixing (focus on mastering EQ and compression. these are the 20% of all mixing techniques that will give you 80% better results, promised).

or: the sound is okay, but my melodies suck (what is there to be learned about writing melodies? scales? blues scales? arab scales? are their patterns to buidling melodies?

or: "I hate that I always struggle with finding the right chords!" (learn the number system!)

or: "I love [producer] but I dont wanna sound like him/them. I wanna sound like me!" (what is there to be learned about originality?)

and so on and so on...like you said, the list can be endless. usually I would tackle what most frustrates you, and what would have the biggest impact on your music. Practice as long as you need to get real results.

2.so: if you have found something check if it does it relate to a skill, that you can practice/learn?

3. define the skill, get the material you need to practice and hit it.

that's usually how I do it, and it totally works for me. I hope that helps.
Click to expand...

Hey, thanks for the insight! Definitely makes sense to check where you feel your skills are most underdeveloped with where you want to go.
 
anytime bro.

and one more tipp: when you find yourself stuggling with learning something new, and you brain feels like it's going crazy...that's the point when you want to push through, because it means your brain is learning. dont stop there. this "feeling of brain-overload" is exactly what you are looking for.
 
from two different threads where I have previously answered this type of question

https://www.futureproducers.com/for...ny-you-play-instrument-s-363974/#post49096690
3ternal said:
Play piano, currently learning to sight read.

Can you guys explain what goes into the average day of practice for you?
Click to expand...

Warmups: 10'-30' depending on what the target of the session is. Mostly scales, arpeggios, fingering studies (etudes) at slow tempi to begin and getting faster.
Revision of previous work: 10'-30'. Going over issues in the pieces worked on last time.
New work: 10'-30': Sight reading a new work first. then tackling fingering issues. Identifying exercises to review to ensure fluency in playing.
Sight-reading: 10'
Warmdowns: 10'-30' again depending on what the session has dealt with. Mostly scales, arpeggios, fingering studies (etudes) at fast tempi to begin and getting slower.

https://www.futureproducers.com/for...-theory-classes-any-tips-383476/#post49230159
Don't skim on practice
At the same time, don't do too much in any one practice session, fatigue is a big disincentive to going back for more.
Every practice session should have a goal, doesn't matter what but without a goal you are sitting there mindlessly doing stuff without focussing on how you can use it.
For me a typical practice session would go something like this:
  • Warm ups - they get your mind, your hands and body ready for the coming session (remember to stretch out first as you will be using muscle groupings in the arms, back neck, fingers, legs and feet) Scales/Arpeggios/Block chords
  • Polish old repertoire - refine your interpretation/performance of pieces you already know, focussing on transitions, beginnings and endings
  • Begin new repertoire - start learning new pieces well, section by section (8/16 bars)
  • Sight reading future repertoire
  • Warm downs and stretches

Don't play with poor posture - you will only cramp your muscles and become discouraged from playing (we all avoid things that cause pain)
Ask questions of your teachers often - not to test them out but to make sure that you understand what they want you to learn and why.

------------

In addition to this instrumental practice session you should have an additional ear training and theory concepts session each day if you are going to be serious about it
 
just make sure that you dont spend your time on little details, unless you have a specific problem that you need to solve quickly. usually it is not really worth it to spend a lot of time on details. especially when it came to mixing,i found myself WASTING WAYYYYYY TO MUCH TIME on the small stuff like "how to EQ a bass drum" or "how to compress a snare". the problem was, I was asking the wrong questions.

there is always this 80/20 question: what are the 20% I gotta learn to get 80% better results. it usually works. usually...not always, for sure...

im not saying detailed knowledge aint helpful, but usually questions as mentioned above are a clear sign of not having understood the basics, i.e., "how to use an EQ" or "how to use compression" ...

sweat the small stuff, leave it... if that is where you at right now, like covering basics n stuff...

when it comes to mixing, focus on EQ and compression first and consciously IGNORE the rest completely until you have mastered what's included in any mixing console: eq, dynamics, levels, panning ... anything else is only refinement..this is where you really get the results from in mixing
 
just keep making beats and picking up on shit.. me personally i never really specifically practiced the art of producing.. i just kept making tracks.. picking up on things.. and my ears eventually changed.. like i know what sounds real good.. and i know what sounds mediocre.. every year it gets better and better.. i did slow down and practice mixing though.. i would focus on that aspect though.. watch youtube videos on mixing and read articles on the aspects of it also
 
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there can be a danger with over thinking this type of thing - if you want to practice making music then the best thing is to just make music. i would agree though that if theres aspects of the process that you find harder than others its worth spending extra time reading & practicing these. for example when i started out playing guitar i would just spend an hour a night messing round on it - not making it mega serious but just having fun and improving that way
 
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