In this letter
practice wisdom | Mozart concerto
It's the start of a new season and as I unbox new reeds and test which old friends still have life in them, I'm reminded of the excitement that each new season brings. This fall, it's especially thrilling with our new music director Cristian Macelaru and an upcoming gala featuring Yo-Yo Ma.
As the calendar fills up, I'm also planning practice so there are no surprises. Sometimes the focus will be training fluid technique back into the fingers and other times it'll be about sound and endurance. And before too long I'll identify challenging passages in the rep!
For years, I believed that being "prepared" meant checking every box: complete warm-up, scales, etudes—all executed flawlessly. The assumption was that quantity and perfection were the keys to growth.
The trap
Here's the reality: When you chase perfect practice sessions, you often end up with no practice at all. The relentless pressure to be efficient, productive, and to see progress every single session? It doesn't exist. It's a lot of pressure. And it's the fastest route to burnout!
Add to that the (unrealistic) expectation of seeing significant progress every. single. time. you practice, and it's a recipe for NO GROWTH and quite possibly injury.
With a "check every box" mentality - a literal checklist where you mark off each completed item - you create a rigid, task-oriented approach to practice.
Want to chuck this limiting belief holding you back from real progress? 🙋🏻♀️
5 golden rules
1) Let go and stop chasing perfection. Embrace consistency. Getting to 100% isn't a marker of growth, but what is is showing up day after day, when your capacity is 70 or 40 or 80%. Or when you can't tick the boxes. This is where growth happens. Only have 20 minutes instead of the 90 you planned? Do the 20, and do it well. With full presence and intention.
2) Don't drill passages to submission. Have a challenging section? Ask, what is this passage trying to say? What do I want to say? Which micro-passage is giving me trouble? Tease it apart, then put it back into musical context. When you approach difficulties like puzzles to solve rather than something to conquer, practice becomes exploration instead of a battle.
3) Find one or two little things that improved from the day before. It could simply be holding your instrument in a more relaxed posture, or breathing well. These tiny acknowledgments don't just feel good; they're training your brain to notice progress and giving yourself the grace that sustains long-term growth. A self pat on the back compounds into confidence.
4) Build flexibility into your routine. Create practice "menus" rather than rigid schedules. Have options for different energy levels, time constraints, and goals. Some days call for technical work, others for musical exploration, and sometimes you just need to grab a friend and play through some duet for pure fun. When your practice can adapt to your life, you're more likely to stick with it.
5) Cross-Pollinate with Other Art Forms When you hit a wall, step outside your instrument entirely. Dance through a tricky rhythm, sing your melodic lines to discover natural phrase shapes, or study how actors develop character and apply it to different composers. Sometimes the breakthrough you need lives in a completely different artistic language.
The bottom line:
Growth comes from small consistent effort instead of big unsustainable peaks. Consistency beats intensity. Curiosity beats pressure. And showing up imperfectly beats not showing up at all.
Cheering for you,
Ixi
