Practice Imperfectly
Here’s a principle worth remembering: practicing the wrong thing just teaches you to play the wrong thing more consistently. Practice done properly is what teaches you to play correctly — it’s not just about clocking hours.
What practice is actually for
Practice builds two things: skill and strength. It’s also what keeps you familiar with your instrument, and it’s the great equaliser — it lets you get to your full potential regardless of natural talent.
For brass players specifically, your lip muscles (“chops”) need regular training to stay in shape. Think of it as chop fitness — you maintain it by playing often, not just for long stretches occasionally.
Ideally, don’t skip more than a day at a time. As a rough split, spend about two-thirds of a session on fundamentals and one-third on actual repertoire. It’s worth keeping a lesson and practice journal to track your progress as you go.
Tip: leave your instrument out of its case at home, somewhere safe, so you can grab it and have a blow whenever you walk past. Twenty minutes a day for six days beats a single two-hour session once a week, every time. Athletes don’t train just by playing their event — they work on every underlying skill. We should approach our instrument the same way.
A practice routine that covers the bases
Aim to keep a full sound throughout, whether you’re playing soft or loud:
- Warm up with long notes — focus on air movement, breathing, and filling your lungs fully.
- Work on flexibility with lip slurs, keeping a full sound throughout.
- Run through scales using the slide or valves, both tongued and slurred.
- Practice single tonguing with constant airflow (using syllables like “Ta” or “Da”).
- Develop your range, keeping high and low notes full-sounding, not thin.
- Play musically — treat it like singing, not just note-hitting. Rehearse actual pieces until you’ve mastered them.
- Sight-read something unfamiliar.
Whatever you’re working on, play it as slowly as you need to in order to get it right, then build up speed gradually.
Why consistent practice matters
The gap between a student who practices regularly and one who barely does is enormous. A student who’s comfortable and confident on their instrument enjoys the whole process far more — and so does everyone around them. A student who never practices improves painfully slowly, and the experience becomes frustrating for everyone involved.
Tip: grab a free Lesson and Practice Journal to help keep yourself on track.