Summer Has Commenced!

After a few extremely busy weeks, I am finally back, and settling into summer! Over the past month I have concluded my junior year, performed my final level change jury of my undergrad career, moved into a new apartment, and started a new job! All of this has been an overwhelming, but gratifying process.

Summers are very difficult to manage with practicing and working when you are a college musician. This summer I am working Monday-Friday from 7:30 AM-4:00 PM, and then another job on Saturdays and Sundays from 6 AM-4 PM, and Tuesdays from 5 PM-10 PM. I schedule practice sessions around my work, and practice for at least an hour and a half per day, with Tuesdays being my days off! It sounds like a rigorous schedule and it is, but the long term needs to be planned for! My senior recital is this fall, and the work needs to be done consistently with lots of focus!

It is very difficult to motivate yourself in the summer to practice, especially when the weather is gorgeous, but I have found the best way to gain motivation is to keep a practice log, and consistently envision the goals you are trying to achieve. Don’t treat the off-season as an excuse to become sloppy on musicianship! During the summers, I reduce the hours that I practice down to 1-1.5 per day, 6 days per week, rather than 2-3 hours per day 6 days per week!

No matter how busy we college students are, enhancing musicianship over the summers are vital to furthering our careers. Chris’s best advice is, “Just do it. Pick up the damn horn and do it!”

One Tip is to get involved in a summer reading ensemble, or reach out to other musicians to keep sight reading and playing chops up!

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