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Hi everyone thanks for reading my question.

I was just hoping if you would weigh in for me in this issue. I am having a debate with someone about the length of time one should practice for when working towards a music diploma.

Now I know that the most important factor is the quality of the practice time. Quality practice time with focus and a plan is the most important strategy one should employ when playing any musical instrument. And also that time spent with the score is also important.

I also feel that musical ability is also paramount. If your blessed to be Horowitz that may shave a few hours off your time schedule. But sadly I can't factor this issue in.

This is really a "how long is a piece of string question" but I'd be really interested to know what you do yourselves and what you recommend to your students.

My aqaintance believes that one should only work for one hour a day. Granted I have my repertoire pretty much going (but in no way perfected yet) but I believe that is time schedule is woefully inadequate.

Thoughts anyone
Thanks for reading

While one can make any amount of time at the piano work, there are limitations. If one is playing advanced rep and only doing one hour per day, then they will have to limit the number of pieces and/or length of pieces that they do to make that work.

How many pieces does one work on for a music diploma? Are you talking about a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree? Or RCM exams or some other testing institution?

I believe you have to balance your ability to focus with the rep you are working on. But even Chopin believed in only 2-3 hours of practice - as long as the student could be mindful during this time.

My most diligent students practice at most 45 minutes per day. I ask for 2 hours.

For advanced students, half an hour for technique (scales, chords, arpeggios, etude) plus half an hour for each working piece. As a minimum. Of course the more time someone can devote, the better they get.

It's possible to get by with a little less if some of the working pieces are short or if the student doesn't mind taking many months to learn them.

Don't those diploma programs have several pieces on them? In an hour of practice time you could scarcely do more than just play through the program right?

When I was much younger and performing solo regularly, I found I needed 120 minutes of practice per minute of music to reach performance level. Today that number is much larger.

Even my most ardent admirers (like my pet gerbil ) would admit that I'm no Horowitz. Not even close (like a mile).

But what they would grudgingly admit is that I have a sense of realism and I actually live in the real world, not a fantasy land created from my imagination (which I'm not lacking in, even if I say so myself). Or to put it another way, in my very 'umble opinion, anyone who thinks he can pass a music diploma by practicing one hour a day is a fantasist, unless he was born to be Horowitz. But then, he'd have to practice like Vladimir, which is several hours a day.......

I took two years after finishing Grade 8 ABRSM to get my performance diploma (bearing in mind I'm no Horowitz, as stated above), practicing all my spare time while at university (doing a course unrelated to music). I was practicing at least three hours a day, much more (5 - 6 hours) at weekends. One hour a day is barely sufficient to play once through all my pieces, let alone practice them.

Your acquaintance is living in fantasy land........

Did Horowitz only practice one hour per day or something? I don't think talent has anything to do with the amount of practice needed. The best, most talented pianists out there do practice for multiple hours per day.

You didn't say this specifically, but sometimes people think of quality and quantity as an either/or.Yes, quality practice time is important. But it should be the quantity of quality practice time.

Many many years ago when I was working towards a music diploma I practiced more, and it was expected. But quantity did, to a great degree, count over quality. I don't remember too many times that anyone wanted to have a discussion on how to practice efficiently. One just had to be seen down in the basement every day slogging away in one of the practice booths. Still, an hour a day working towards a degree doesn't sound like enough.

I've only been able to find time to practice about an hour a day since I began playing again. Since I'm interested in tracking my progress only for myself and not giving recitals or whatever, I'm happy with the slow technical progress one can get from an hour a day. And an hour a day well spent is enough time to eventually demonstrate some progress. Having a limited time also teaches one to be more efficient. Every now and then I have more time, but there's a law of diminishing returns on "the really big practice day" which isn't nearly as useful as a steady amount of practice time day after day.

When I was in high school, I practiced for two hours per day. That was my teacher's minimum standard. Minimum. (I was a slacker ... ). Students who were pointed toward a musical career practiced three or more hours per day. That was high school. I would expect that any serious student at a conservatory would have internal drive to put out a lot of effort. It's their career, after all.

What is this "music diploma" exactly?

Yeah - that didn't quite come out right. A B.A. which more or less led me away from music and into computers by the time it was over.

Hi everyone, thanks for reading and posting. I appreciate your feedback. I am working towards an performance ATCL. I I sat the exam before and didn't get it. The reason why I failed was not due to lack of preparation, it was because I freaked out in the exam.

I generally do 1/2 hour or 20 mins per piece. And I am doing 5 pieces. I completely changed my program after the first exam as I felt the pieces were too ambitious. I would factor about 3-4 hours as a good work day.

I am avoiding the classical sonta my technique isn't my strong point. Beethoven is physically o demanding for me. And Mozart and Hayden do my head in. I like listening to Mozart but not playing him.

My program is thus:

Bach g minor prelude and fugue BK1

Debussy La Plus Que Lente

Sculthorpe Night Pieces

Glinka The Lark

Alkan Barcarolle

I have no idea why the Alkan is on as it's such and easy piece. But I am not complaining!


Thanks everyone

That's was my professor's minimum requirement. Of course, I'm the procrastinator. I practiced maybe 3-4 hours a week, and maybe a tad more during jury week and concert week.

- Interesting thread

I, on returning to piano after about 25 yrs and now at the ripe old age of 67, find that my practice is very sporadic. Some days I get 3 x90 minute session in and feel wonderful, others after 10 mins I know I'm going nowhere. Then I try and eek out 1/2hr of something before abandoning the effort. I think I overreached my 'come back' and only now after 4 yrs am feeling I can nearly play the pieces I'm working on with a degree of ease.

Beethoven Sonata No 15 - at last getting to the Rondo, Chopin Nocturne Opus 27 No2, Brahms Intermezzo No2 in A Major Op 118, are my determined focus to finish off this summer. I’ve been ‘at’ them for a couple of years, along with quite a few others of varying difficulty, but I’ve picked those three out to ‘finish off’. There is a level of practice that is demanded to get to that ‘ease’ which leaves me confident of playing them. I just love how the keys feel like silk under the fingers when you really know what to play without thinking about it!

I think it is too much to expect of myself to take on new challenges of this level any more. I’ have been signed up for MOYD but it is something I have to let of of now and just be very proud of having managed it for those past 4 years. It has meant I’ve made so much progress since I started playing again which wouldn’t have happened without that discipline.

My recent health challenges, and perhaps many of you can relate, mean I shall be looking at life in 6 month batches between check ups, so I want to keep my expectations within grasp. I do enjoy the challenge of a new piece but there’s plenty of shorter things to tackle and I’ve plenty of things I can pick up again to ‘ finish off’ given some determined focus.

Another obstacle for me as a piano player at heart, is balancing life with my other half, who loves to travel - which I find really interferes with my piano progress. Sometimes its is good to take an extended break and coming back to something that’s been left a while really is part of the process of mastering it. But he is a true rolling stone and travel is extensive and frequent. We are looking at a second attempt at ‘retirement’ and he is anxious to take off…In his book a trip of even just two weeks is really five short hops tagged together. It is living out of a suitcase and the idea of trying to get any playing in, even if we do travel with a DP, is frankly a ridiculous notion. I’ve tried it and it just doesn’t work and leads to lots of frustration for both of us. When we travel I shall feed my need to be a part of the piano world by listening to some wonderful recordings and perhaps making sure our travels together take in some really great concerts!

I envy those of you who do have the time to spend at the keys and rest assured that I will be making the most of mine!