Spring / Summer 2026 music thread

[northerngoldilocks]

Time for a new thread as the old one is filling up and think we can claim its spring now!

Come and talk about music lessons, choosing instruments, exams, auditions, specialist schools, orchestras or whatever other music activities are going on. Everyone is welcome, from those with total beginners to those whose children are studying music at advanced levels. Ask for advice or share successes or struggles.

I think that absolutely depends on the child, their instrument, level and ambitions @chocolateisnecessary

DD2 prob does two hours a day on her main instrument now - that's two hours in a practice room anyway. But there's a lot of faffing in that - endless fiddling with reeds etc.

The rest just has to fit in somehow, mainly only played in ensembles or if she's prepping for an exam or performance.

But she might spend another two hours a day playing or singing - in chamber, symphony, whatever else, which must improve things?

And two hours of lessons a week on the main instrument?

But she's not a pianist, or strings.

When DD auditioned for JD at 10, head of strings said it should be two hours a day for the violin. The recommendations are not reality though 😁 There are children at JDs who practise very little, not even every day, for various reasons and those who do four and more hours, especially before concerts, exams and competitions. I don't think JD teachers make them do that much, it's their personal choice.
JDs differ too, some are more pressurised.

Mine do around 45mins to an hour each night on two different ones and around 25mins on a third. Plus a bit of theory. I just wondered if there was a benchmark really.

It’s tricky. Feel a bit helpless with the loss of the JD at RWCMD sometimes. There’s no way to know and no one to ask!

@chocolateisnecessary it’s so instrument dependent. I did brass and did probably max 1 hour a day until I went to conservatoire, though had 1-3 hours of rehearsals most days on top.

I asked DH and he has no idea how much his JD students practice piano, but guesses it ranges from 1-4 hours per day. He doesn’t impose or suggest a limit - at that level it’s up to them how much they want to do/how much progress they want to make vs the other things they’ve got going on.

I don’t think there is a benchmark as such as just so many variables. I aim to get my 7yo to do 30 mins per day but we often only manage 20 as he messes around a lot! No idea how we will manage to fit in more as life is very full ATM, but I guess he will stay up later as he gets older?!

That’s helpful, thanks! Harp is their main really I think and their tutor has said around an hour. It gets stepped up with the Eisteddfod etc. Schoolwork and GCSEs starting to eat into time a bit more too. And things like the DofE, which I can really see the eldest enjoying.

I think our JD friends were doing roughly the same on harp at 10.

I don't think there is a certain benchmark as children are so different, some are more physiologically mature or can do more focused practice so don't really need long hours.

No idea how much mine do but seems to be working! It seems to ebb and flow according to needs and balance of pieces/ orchestra music dependant on how close the course is! They also seem quite focused and efficient which probably helps. Careful listening to pieces and orchestral excerpts in context counts as well, even when not holding the instrument.

I have no idea anymore as she is away at school, but I think ensembles/ choirs/ chamber averages about 1.5 hours per day. Her first is voice so limited on how much she can do on that per day anyway, but I think clarinet is most days for about 30-45 minutes and cello the same about three/ four times a week. The others are adhoc - guitar went back to school last weekend, so I would imagine that is being played a lot this week as they have started a band apparently. DD is ruthlessly efficient when she practises though as she knows that she has no time.

That's so sad kids going off the rails over musical pressure. And a scary thing about JDs maybe, that there are so many very talented players in one place they don't realize how special they are - if you stick to local things I bet everyone would think these kids were the bees knees and nobody would think to question professional aspirations.

I don't think very many people have a career "just performing" these days, but nor do that many have a career "just teaching". All the violin teachers in our local area have bits of performing in their portfolios.

That wasn't at JD, just to make it clear. Ime people who aspire for a solo career on the violin drop JDs quite early as it's mainly orchestral work there.

Jobs are undergoing radical change anyway so it's v very difficult to predict anything. There might not be enough pupils for music teachers so it's not a sure bet either. Online entertainment is expanding though, but I'm not too sure online audience would be raving about classical music :) Chalamet got a furious backlash from the classical world but it only shows he actually hit the nerve.

Ime people who aspire for a solo career on the violin drop JDs quite early as it's mainly orchestral work there.

That's intriguing. Do they go to music schools, or just home ed and practice all day? Completely alien world for me.

JD is something DD is considering and mainly orchestral would suit her down to the ground. I thought we were balancing less orchestra time against a higher standard than local y.o. so this could be good news in DD's book.

JD foreign land to me also.

DS at the moment seems to do minimal practice. Didn't hear him practise a single song for his diploma this week, but maybe he practised at school!

He tends to ramp it up when an exam or performance is looming. For other stuff just wings it with sightreading and chutzpah.

Some home school, some go to specialist schools, I guess the pressure comes from having to do Menuhin, Grumiaux or other major international competitions at some point, this is hard work.

We only have experience of one JD and one specialist school, and ours are definitely focusing on developing orchestral musicians and not very pressurised. I know of someone who moved to the strictest teacher at our JD and it felt low pressure for them after another establishment 😂

In our experience, JD can be a slightly more narrow but perhaps deeper orchestral training with fewer solo performances whereas specialist school is broader in genres, options and combinations of groups. DD would normally play in one orchestra and one or two chamber groups at JD (she did two orchestras but it wasn't the norm) and would be required to play solo twice a year. The orchestras were v very good but she wasn't allowed to do first sectional desk because she was the youngest. At school, she does at least six orchestras/ensembles (I don't even remember off the top of my head), her seat depends on rep and required skills not so much on age, and she plays solo every term or more often. The rep is less challenging though. I guess specialist schools are better for versatility - she plays jazz for example which she wouldn't be allowed to do at JD until much later. I think JD is better if you want to separate school and music and focus on particular genre and one or two instruments. We couldn't fit three instruments and would not be allowed eg piano second study as we were not serious enough about piano. The school tolerates DD's lack of practice at the moment though her teacher is growing more and more impatient.

It may be very dependent on the place and teacher though. Some teachers at JD entered their students for multiple solos in preparation for exams, our teacher just didn't do that. I'm sure other JD structure their studies and priorities differently.

I guess also difficult to know whether the JD teacher would be a good fit for your child, given that I think they have to stop having lessons with the ‘home’ teacher who may be amazing anyway? That element worries me.

Yes, there is always this risk, even though it's a small world. I guess violinists (and pianists?) pretty much apply to study with a particular teacher, not JD as such.

I don’t know….I sort of thought they went to whichever JD they got into/suited their location etc. I don’t know….

I suspect we will be weighing up JD vs genuinely high ranking youth orchestra. Tricky with three studies, JD might make life easier as everything is in house on one day but it is a massive commitment….

ARSM result is in. A distinction! 46/50. He's very pleased.

He was also made one of four head boy/girls this week.

School report in, full of praise but saying he needs, basically, to spread himself less thinly.

Amusing comments by his piano teacher in school report too - "He needs to ensure that fingerings are worked out more carefully to produce a result that is musically and stylistic convincing. Too often this element is improvised, resulting in what to the specialist ear will sound a little like busking and lacking in care! Occasionally, his natural desire to express interferes with the music. I appreciate that may sound a little odd, but rubato and passion need to be within stylistic constraints."

Brilliant result for your DS @herbaceous- also laughing at the piano comments. Given his love of singing is that actually such a bad thing- maybe playing by ear and singing is what suits him best right now.

I’ve been mainly cancelling things this week. School concert on Wed meant no chamber group (the music teacher played her part so the others got to perform) and no orchestra or band. Am about to cancel her piano solo on Sat too. It’s definitely not as bad as when she broke the other one so thinking maybe just sprained but it’s still a bit sore with big stretches on piano and given she’s supposed to be doing Schumann’s Aufschwung in the concert I don’t think it’s a good plan.

I’m still hoping she will be ok to play at NCO and that it will improve as the week goes on. For now still in a splint with copious amounts of arnica cream being applied. She hasn’t asked for painkillers in the last day or so though so seeing that as an improvement!

His piano approach has got him a performance diploma, so has served him well so far. He's going for the LRSM at Christmas. I think maybe he busks the fingering in lessons as hasn't actually done any practice!

Sounds like caution is the best approach to that wrist, @northerngoldilocks. They're complicated things!

Yes @herbaceous- it hasn’t really held him back. Imagine you’re right - sounds like busking in lessons cos he’s probably winging it at that point 😂 Sounds like he does the work in the end though and imagine closer to the exam the fear will set in!

He is like his mother - wings it until the last minute, then puts in the effort! Let's see how that pans out with A-levels...

I think it is very variable. DD1 at JD was a first study pianist she had an hour of workshop by one of the senior profs each week and that cycled around performance, comparing different recordings and more technique focused workshops so at least one solo performance a month. (Also had an hours sightreading class each week - very scary plus either orchestra or duet and chamber music with the strings)

That would have to be our approach. We don't have the sort of contacts to have a clue who DD should apply to. But she has got to a stage where current teacher is gently nudging her it is time to move on, so she will be changing teachers either way.

Piano is essentially a solo instrument, I guess they just have to have more solo performances. I haven't seen ours playing with chamber strings but it may be just an age thing, DD was 10 when she joined so in younger groups. I think pianists her age are still not playing with chamber strings but I may be wrong. Haven't seen that at school either at their age, maybe from year 9-10 if I remember correctly but I miss quite a few concerts so can't be sure.

And yes, it does vary depending on teacher, JD/school and individual combinations of instruments and skills.

I didn't count academic music, composition, conducting etc, only performance classes for orchestral instruments. I don't know much about piano studies anyway, it's DD's third instrument and sadly being neglected in our household.