Posted by Arnold on March 07, 2003 at 16:56:35:
In Reply to: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Practicing tips posted by Rick Denney on March 07, 2003 at 15:05:50:
Rick,
Toby is my current teacher. Many people share the same views you do about being a "pro" or in this case becoming a pro and what that takes. Many people have climbed this ladder by practicing many many hours. This is very honorable, please don't think that I am taking away from people who put in so much work. I just think there are better ways to go about it. Someone once told me that here in the U.S. we work more hours on the average than any other country. I said, what about people in Asia? His response was we work more hours, they are just more efficient. More is not always better. This has become my ideal as far as practicing is concerned. Alan Dean, whose opinion I value a great deal, told me last summer that if you can't get it done in 3 or 4 hours then you need to evaluate what you are doing with your time. He also told me he never really practiced more than per day over his lifetime. He is still playing and he still sounds great in his late 60's. Why hammer your chops? Yes you could get a great gig, but how sad will you be when you have to retire early because your face quivers on a soft passage in Til Eulenspiegel? Or your articulation is unpredictable? I love playing tuba. I plan to be doing it a very long time. Once you damage nerve endings it is game over. People just need to be smart about what they are doing. That is all I am saying. I am thankful that this medium exists so that we can talk about these things and people can exchange ideas. Take care of yourself, including your chops.
Arnold