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Hello Meowski! And welcome.

I understand all too well where you're coming from. Are you working for something in particular?
My solution when I hit an annoying plateau is always to leave the pieces I've been struggling with, and go and play something fun that I love or that I haven't played in years, instead. If this is your first break from your work for ages - go and have a longer one! After a stage, practice actually gets detrimental - you lose your freshness and perspective.

What instrument, incidentally?

Hello meowski. Sorry to hear of your problems, but you will get good support and suggestions from the forumites. Welcome to the forums We are an interesting, educative, and entertaining lot . And sometimes a bit odd too.

If you are practicing, practicing, practicing, and after a decent wait for it to take effect there is no improvement then you are: practicing the wrong things or practicing the right things the wrong way. There may be something wrong at a more fundamental level that is getting in the way.

Do you have a teacher, or are you trying to teach yourself? If you are teaching yourself then you have the extra difficult task of figuring out what skills and knowledge you don't have that you need, how to get them, and the right order to do things. Not to mention the near impossible task of observing your own playing and objectively deciding what you do well, and where there are misconceptions, poor methods, and bad habits.

Hello Meowski and welcome to the forums.

It's annoying when we don't find that our progress is constant and proportional to the work we put in, isn't it?

But sometimes, the work we are doing takes a while to sink into our music, so there's no apparent gain. However, in the long run, it pays off.

I certainly found that after an 18 month plateau - my teacher kept reassuring me that I was doing fine, but I didn't feel it.....and then one day I noticed a sudden and quite marked change in my singing, and have been improving a lot ever since


So I'd say keep on keeping on....it WILL pay off eventually.

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Hello Meowski!

A couple of months ago I started going backwards - couldn't do a thing right and was getting worse instead of better. I had a complete break for a few days (thanks to advice from other forum members!) and when I went back to it, I did start to improve again. I think I'd been over-doing it and getting stale, and it's possible that that's what happened to you too.

Glad you've found the forum, look forward to seeing you around



Edit: you posted whilst I was writing mine - glad to hear you're feeling more positive!

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If you've had a long break for exams, then maybe your brain needs a bit of a break altogether? I'd also be inclined to practise something else, play something easier (maybe some old favourites) for a bit, then come back to the plateaued material. Even a couple of days off altogether can work wonders, I'm not sure why, but suspect it's because you then expect less of yourself when you go back to it, and thus are more relaxed. Rest assured, it'll pick up again, you just need to give it time .

Music hasn't been the same for me since Secondary school and its got to the point where I find playing a chore. After A2 Music next year, I've decided it would be best to completely give up. It would be pointless of me trying to flog the dead horse when all that remains are the ashes.

Maybe try to give yourself a break now and then? I find that sometimes, the more I practice the worse it gets. Then I get soooo sick of everything I start going :"I hate the pinao/violin/music!" (Right now I can't believe that I ever said that, but I can also foresee myself saying that again ) Usually, if it gets to the point where I find it more of a chore than something I enjoy, I leave it alone for a while.

That said, I really hate it when it happens!! Good luck though, you'll get through it, promise!! Now, take a gooood break first!

That is rather drastic. I am quite sure it is an action you will come to regret. Why not simply put music lower down your priorities for a while. Play a little every couple of days then, when you feel the enthusiasm to work at it again, you won't have fallen back to a lower level of skill?

In the meantime - it looks like poetry might be a pursuit for which you have some talent!

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I have to agree with some of the others and say that you just need a break from music. Last year I didn't play anything for over a month, then I came back to music so refreshed!

I don't know how much is proven scientifically, but I once read that both the brain and the muscles in your hands benefit from periods of complete rest while they assimilate the tons of information that the nerves throw at them and repair the tired muscle fibres.

That's certainly been my experience.

Steve

I've pretty much stopped playing at the moment - I've got a few things ticking over and will pick up some technique-related things from time to time - in the hope that after the summer I'll feel more inspired. I think that music is one of those things which can require a lot of dedication, and if life is throwing other things at you then it's perhaps best to take a break, rather than becoming more frustrated with yourself.

Glad you're feeling more optimistic, Meowski, and welcome!