House concerts provide an incredible opportunity to watch the artist perform up close, tell stories and interact with other members in the audience. They’re a lot of fun and, sad to say, often more profitable for the artist than larger venues.

Seth Horan, a solo bassist, was the artist that evening and he put on a fantastic show. The man is definitely an entertainer and I recommend you see him in concert if you get the opportunity.

The next morning, Seth and I broke bread, or more accurately, an omelet, and that conversation became my first article for Bass Musician Magazine: Seth Horan: Singer, Songwriter & Solo Bassist.

Oh yeah, I’m one of their new writers. Let me know if you have any ideas for stories or artist profiles.

Well, that’s mostly true.

I have to admit that I never met Susanna in person. I’ve “known” her for the past three years through her blog and adventures as a triathlete (one of my other avocations). I read about her challenges in the sport as well as the pure academic grinder she went through to earn her doctor of musical arts (flute) from Rutgers University. I had interviewed her for another story about how she juggled her demanding studies with a demanding sport and came away impressed with her dedication and smarts.

Susanna  made it through the higher education gauntlet last year and is now a teaching artist with the Philadelphia Orchestra.

Now, as a bassist, you’re wondering why I am introducing you to a Ph.D.-toting flutist.

It’s about the art of practice.

Classically trained musicians are the experts when it comes to formal practice sessions. There is a reason for everything they do and they are the polar opposite of the YouTube/self-taught musician.

I’m not claiming one approach is better than the other. My intention is to share information with you that will hopefully benefit your own practice.

John: How did you get started with music and the flute?

Susanna: Well, my mother is a flutist so I suppose I’ve always been subject to musical “abuse.” I started on the violin when I was about three years old, and played that until I got frustrated during a practice session at age seven and threw the violin across the room. It landed on the couch, but that was the end of my violin career.

In kindergarten, I had started piano as well, so once the violin was out of the picture, I concentrated on the piano, and played piano from 2nd grade until 5th grade. In 5th grade, it was time to pick band, choir, or art, and since I couldn’t draw, and had no intention of singing, I picked band. The morning I was to go into school and pick an instrument, my mom told me “Okay, now I think it’s good that you’re going to try another instrument, but just don’t play the flute. That would probably be weird.”

So, I marched my little 5th-grade self into the band-room and said “I’m going to play the flute, like my mommy.”

From there, my mom didn’t really bother me about practicing the flute. With the piano, she would still make me sit and practice, but I was on my own with the flute. I think, for that reason, I really used it as a time to be by myself, and enjoyed discovering music through a medium that I felt was my own. By 7th grade, I knew I wanted to be a flutist and musician for the rest of my life.

John: What made you want to take your studies to such a high level and pursue a doctorate?

Susanna: Well, I initially decided to go back to school simply because I wanted to be in a musical environment. I figured I’d work on my doctorate and keep auditioning for orchestras, and see what happened over the three-year program. I ended up finishing the degree, and really, finding myself as a musician through it. I realized I truly love the academic side of music…in addition to continuing to enjoy the performance aspect.

Shortly after I graduated, I was lucky to get a job as a teaching artist with the Philadelphia Orchestra. I moved to Philadelphia, and the year has been off to a good start so far. In addition to my job with the orchestra, I’m playing and teaching around Philadelphia, and really, simply enjoying being in Philadelphia. I love this city, and it’s been a great relocation for me.

John: From your experience as a musician and as a teacher, how important is it to have a structured practice session? Shouldn’t we just focus on what we want to play?

Susanna: Well, I suppose that ultimately depends on the person, and the way they work best. However, I have found that a certain amount of structure certainly can’t hurt. For myself and my students, I suggest a three-tiered practice session, including exercises, etudes, and pieces, in that order. However, it is definitely possible to become too Type-A about the whole thing (much like athletics, actually), and it’s important to always remember that you are, in fact, attempting to express yourself through an art form.

Of course, you need technique in order to be able to do that, but if you stress the technical aspects only, you’re losing track of the goal.

John: Can you explain the purpose of each of the three tiers, how long one should “ideally” work one of the tiers in relation to another, etc. For instance, I break down my practice sessions in a similar way, but with different terminology: Warm-Up (scales, arpeggios, chords, exercises to learn the neck, etc.), Work (practice challenging parts of a particular song for an upcoming show), and Candy, a term I picked up from a martial arts instructor to teach the students something fun. In this case, learning new licks, techniques, non-gig songs, etc.

Susanna: Well, again, this is going to vary from student to student, but in general, I recommend an even three-part practice session. Your exercises will help you warm up for the day, and if you can find the “zen” in exercises and long tones, then you’re well on your way to a good practice session. Also, exercises can fix many problems at once, later eliminating the need to work on those problems within the piece. For example, if you are having trouble playing a run of successive thirds in a Mozart Concerto, then you should really practice all of your scales in thirds until you feel confident with them. Then, that run will not only be fixed within the specific run of the concerto, but also in every other piece.

Next, etudes are generally geared towards fixing a specific problem that you might not come across otherwise. Paganini Caprices (written originally for the violin, but transcribed for the flute), for example, are great for figuring out grace notes – how to play them in tempo, but also make them part of the overall musical line. Perhaps then once the flute player starts to play the 4th movement of Prokofiev’s Flute Sonata (originally for the flute, but transcribed for the violin), the second theme, which is heavy in grace notes, won’t cause problems.

I know etudes can tend to be boring, but I’ve always told students to look at it like this: if you can make an etude sound musical, then you can make music out of anything!

Pieces, of course, are the main “meat” of anybody’s practice. They’re what we perform, what we want to play, and so on. I think it’s always important to be working on a few different pieces at once (or orchestral excerpts, if preparing for an audition), so that the method of thinking remains varied. Also, issues within one piece can help with the other, and vice versa.

When teaching a student, I try to have them play pieces from different time periods: one of their choice and another I think would be good for them.

John: What are your thoughts on instrument availability? In other words, should your instrument be out in the open where you can easily pick it up for a few minutes of random practice? Or, is it better to focus on quality and set aside a more formal time to practice?

Susanna: Well, I keep my flute out. I don’t tend to do the “few minutes of random practice” thing, but if the instrument is a place where you regularly see it, you’ll be more prone to starting your structured practice time. In other words, I think what works best is a combination of your suggestions. Keep the instrument easily accessible, and if you feel like just playing, by all means – enjoy! But, try to turn that few minutes into a real practice session.

We all love to play. That’s why we do it. But, being a musician means a great deal of commitment, discipline, and hard work. There is really no getting around that, no matter how talented the student. Even for the student who will not become a full-time musician (and of course, this is most people), that discipline gained from learning an instrument the right way will without a doubt serve the person well throughout life. I really think perseverance is one of the most valuable skills someone can have, musician or otherwise.

John: While there are no magic formulas for this, what balance should we strive for between musicianship and technicality? For example, there are wonderful musicians who can play just about any instrument, but are technically deficient enough to keep them from playing any instrument well. On the other hand, there are people who are technically brilliant with their chosen instrument, but are musically “narrow.”

Susanna: Everyone is going to have their strengths and weaknesses. The “magic formula,” as you say, is to make it so that the listener doesn’t know which is which. The audience should just enjoy, and not pay attention to the good or bad. This might sound like too easy an answer, but really, you just have to have it all. Once you can technically master the instrument while knowledgeably portraying a musical message, well… then, you’re a musician.

John: OK, last question and I’ll let you get back to making music. What piece of advice would you give a young musician you wish you would have received when you started to take music seriously?

Susanna: It’s music. Have fun.

You can try and keep up with Susanna on her blog: http://www.curlysu.com/