I’m always interested in ways to make piano practice more efficient and more effective for my students. I believe that the more we understand about how humans learn, the better adjustments we can make to how we teach. In a past Teach Piano Today podcast we interviewed Dr. Christine Carter who opened our eyes to the benefits of breaking free from “blocked practice”. Today we’re speaking with a neuroscientist from Montreal whose research may be the piece of the puzzle that your piano students are missing.
The Surprising Role of Sleep in Piano Practice
We’ve all heard before that sleep is important, but you may not have realized the direct role it plays in the learning of a fine motor skill such as playing the piano. This knowledge could have a profound effect on your more advanced students, shed some light on the frustration often experienced by (sleep-deprived) teens and may even result in an improvement in your own practice efficacy!
As piano teachers we should always be looking for ways to assist our students with their home practice. In today’s busy world, finding the most effective and efficient ways to accomplish practice goals will result in students who find more satisfaction. And sometimes, the discovery of the “perfect practice assistance” can come in the most unexpected of places!
Listen In… And Then Head Back to Bed!
Today on the podcast we’re speaking with Dr. Karen Debas, discussing:
– Why a 30-60 minute nap may be your piano student’s newest prescription
– How sleep directly affects the learning of a fine motor skill
– How and when we should sleep when learning a new task
– How to practice until “saturation” and what you should do once you’re there
– and much, much more…
Click the Player below
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Brian Jenkins says
This is fantastic! I’ve always been really interested in the subject of sleep in regards to learning to play piano. I just wrote a couple posts about it as well, so this is really at the front of my mind.
I think she really hit the nail on the head when she said that a student should only practice until they’re not getting any better, and not to worry about how long the practice necessarily is. Once that “saturation” point is reached the only way to improve is to sleep.
I think maybe taking it one step further might help even more. If the music is broken up into very small sections and practiced, then the student just has to make sure that those sections are only practiced until they’re not getting any better. Meaning the student can work on a lot of new sections a day and extend a practice section as long as they want, but always be working on new sections. In this way we don’t have to cut our practice sections short, and still receive the full benefit of sleep.
Andrea says
Hi Brian – glad you enjoyed the podcast! The “breaking up music into sections” was exactly what Dr. Carter (another neuroscientist) was discussing in another practice-focused podcast we did. If you haven’t already heard it I’m sure you’ll find it really interesting. Link is below for you 🙂 https://www.teachpianotoday.com/2014/05/27/the-huge-practice-mistake-that-thousands-of-piano-students-are-making/
Jan says
Thank you for this podcast. I am going to have parents and adult students listen to this and use it myself. Great help!