Practising the Cello – thoughts on keeping engaged and how to get better.
What holds you back can move you forward.
8th January 2026
Hi and Welcome!
So, I’ve just launched my HelloCello.co.uk website with the express purpose of sharing the fruits of a long career in music, playing cello in bands, making up music for dance and theatre and teaching thousands of kids and adults. And, so here is the blog. Every business has to have one these days, so I’m told – but in my case, I’m actually really keen to think and talk about what makes playing and practicing cello such a rewarding experience.
So, I thought a good place to start would be on the subject of practice. This is probably the singular most important and sometimes underrated aspect of learning a musical instrument. People often focus on talent as the quintessential quality for musicians, but you might be amazed at how much the top talents practiced. Jimi Hendrix used to take his guitar to the loo with him!
For young beginners, where distractions and concentration spans can flit around like butterflies, the idea of practice is akin to a ball and chain. Parents are often obliged to use bribes and threats to ensure it happens, for which we thank them later! The fact is, there’s a turning point for most musicians, when you become motivated by the musical activity itself (we are all musicians to some degree but I’m referring to the people who call themself musicians and who have bonded with an instrument). You ‘get it’ – a sense of achievement when you can hear that you’ve ‘made music’. Thereafter, you become motivated to do more of this activity. But you can’t get there without practice.
The key is not to get into a mentality of thinking practice is a chore or even worse, that failure to practice makes you a bad person. – both can lead to a fatal (for your instrumental future!) cycle of guilt and avoidance.
So, here’s my list of the most valuable things needed for effective practice. I plan to take a deeper dive into each quality over the coming months so please look out for these. It would also be a great help if you could like and share on any of my social media platforms:
You can also follow me on any of my social media platforms just here….
BLOG
PRACTICE TIPS
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You can also find me on substack here: https://substack.com/@lesboum?utm_campaign=profile&utm_medium=profile-page