Learning a new piece of music is really a numbers game sounds quite weird, but I think it can be a good way to approach learning a new piece of music. So often, particularly with a piece of music that is of a slightly higher skill level, we can become overwhelmed or doubt our ability to master the piece. Sometimes we can even become completely frustrated. I find thinking about the process of learning is made easier if we can think of it like a numbers game – I’ve done this with many students who feel like they are struggling to learn a new piece of music.
This is what I mean when I call this mental process as a numbers game: To master a new piece of music, you only have to practice it ‘X’ number of times. This number would be different for everyone and so the answer to the question of how much is ‘X’, it really depends on several different variables.
Probably the biggest variable is how experienced are you at playing the piano. Are you attempting to learn something a little above your current skill level or massively above your skill level? If the answer is that it is way above your current skill level, then maybe rethink learning that particular piece of music until a later time, so you can gradually work your way up to that level. Make it a medium to long term goal instead of an short term goal.
Another variable that will determine how many times you will need to practice the piece of music is how good are you at the various techniques that are used in the piece? For example, the actual notes played might be easy to learn but the actual timing/rhythm might be quite complex. Someone who is naturally good at working out the timing/rhythm will learn it quicker than someone who has to really work on their timing/rhythm.
What also makes a difference as to how many times you need to practice a new piece of music before you gain mastery of it, is whether you are willing to work on the challenging parts separately to the rest of the piece. It is a very good method of practice to pull out sections that are difficult and just working at those fragments repetitively until they no longer difficult.
There are other factors such your mood, the time of day and how keen you are to learn a particular piece of music that also influence the ‘X’ factor of how many times you need to practice a piece to master it.
Just to be clear, it is not actually important at all, to work out what the number of times a piece of music needs to be practiced in order for it to be played well. Whatever the number is, means that every single time you practice the piece of music you are working on, you are one step closer to your goal of getting it learned.
So next time you are practising something new and maybe you are feeling frustrated or discouraged by a seemingly lack of progress, remember that each time you practice it you are one more step closer to getting it learned, whether or not you can see that progress. Be assured that it is indeed happening and that if you keep going and keep trying you will succeed. Actually, successfully learning a new piece of music is guaranteed as long as you keep practicing as best you can (as long as it is nothing way above your current skill level).
I hope you can see why I say that learning a new piece of music is merely a numbers game, not only because this is the way it works, but because knowing this can be very useful to remember when you are bogged down with learning some music and not feeling like you are getting anywhere. You most assuredly are always making progress, regardless of whether you can see the progress or not.