Do you hate getting interrupted when practicing an instrument?

A living room in a house is for the whole family. If it is a keyboard, yes, take it upstairs. My daughters played on an upright and practice times were agreed on because it was in the living room.

when i played the trombone,i was always being interrupted by my folks.It was a pain but I had to adjust

Eh, sometimes. I have a keyboard in my room, but it’s not a substitute for playing the piano. They are very different, completely different feel. But the piano is loud and it does go through the entire house, so I understand how people are bothered by it sometimes. However, the difference is that in my case, I don’t have to play the piano. Sounds like your family should respect the fact that you need to practice for your lessons and such more. Maybe negotiate times for practicing.

@DominicX Thank God someone understands the different feel between a keyboard and a real piano. No one in my family seems to understand that. I normally practice when I get home from school because no one else is home, but not all of the practice time I need can be finished before someone gets home and tells me to get off. Lately, I have been practicing my keyboard and when I played my piano again, I was screwing up all the time because I got used to the keyboard! It’s really frustrating.

I would only practice my instrument when no one was home.

I don’t, so I don’t have to worry about that.

Can you not get a written note from the person that’s making you play and show it to your parents? At least you don’t have to practice on a dining room chair like I had to last year (the curse of a percussionist’s creative band director)

@VohuManah My parents are literally paying for my lessons and have to take me to lessons every week. And sometimes I have to play my keyboard in my room on the side of my bed, and the pedal is on the floor, which I use my knee to press. But I also share a room, so I can’t even practice there sometimes.

Absolutely. When in practice I get into the “zone” and enter the most awesome high as I enter the music. Nothing trashes that feeling faster than being interrupted. The same goes for my painting in studio- I actually resent being disturbed for frivolous reasons when working.

@Dog That’s exactly how I feel! I can’t even get a strong enough word to describe how frustrating it is. The most popular way I get disrupted is with the T.V. And really? There’s a T.V. in almost every room of the house.

Yes

You can learn to switch between the two instruments. Trust me.

@Sampson You don’t know my family…once their in the living room, they won’t leave.

@jules96 You should learn to deal with ‘the keyboard upstairs’ is what I was saying. Sorry for any miscommunication.

@Sampson Oh, yeah I understand that. The keyboard at my lessons is kind of a mix of the two of my pianos, so I guess switching off would be helpful.

@jules96 Just as actually playing the instrument, practice (on other keys) makes perfect!

I absolutely hated it when I was disrupted while I practiced my insturments, but I always told my parents if your paying for it, you should give me time to practice. So my parents were also taking me to practice two to three times a week.
So I’m not sure how old you are but if you want to make a point, your going to have to tell them.
I told my parents that it was very frustrating listening to my mom sing and my dad working on the car everyday. So we talked it out, and my parents gave me an hour everyday to practice, while they ran errands or went on walks.

That’s what I tell my sisters when I’m practicing. “Mom and Dad are paying for it!” Is one of the major comments of my house. I’m 13, and of the two, my Mom is probably the ‘head of the house’ and most intimidating. Sadly, my parents are lazy, and don’t really leave the house enough for me to take advantage of as practice time. And again with my sisters to talk about…

I don’t play an instrument, but I can tell you I get upset when I am trying to sing and people keep interupting me to talk or ask me what the hell I’m singing. I mean really let me finish and then maybe we can talk!

Promise them a house or something when you become a famous pianist. It probably won’t happen so you’ll get them off your back for no reason.

@Sampson Haha, thanks for that uh, advice. I’m seriously to the point where I might do something like that though…

@jules96 It’s worth a try. I mean, if it doesn’t work then your at the same place as you are now, but if it does you have time to practice!

@Sampson Okay now I’m definately doing that.

Daily. In fact, when I have to deal with people, at least a few times an hour.

When I am doing something, I tend to focus on what I am doing and find such distractions not only annoying but sometimes more disorienting than slamming a double-shot of Bacardi 151. My wife is understanding of this and tries to get my attention gently and in a “When you have a moment…” sort of way as a result.

Jules, I HATE it!! I don’t practice an instrument, but I write. I can’t stand to be constantly interrupted! It shatters my concentration into a million pieces. By the time I gather my thoughts back into something cohesive that I can work with, I get interrupted AGAIN.

Here’s the thing, though. If your parents are paying for the lessons, then why? Perhaps you can appeal to the pragmatist that lies in all parents, and ask them that. It’s obviously an inconvenience to thier relaxation time, which is understandable. But I’m confused as to why the would waste thier money on something and then not support it.

I play the violin. I can’t play when someone else is in the house. For some reason I find the volume to be embarrassing.

OH MY GOSH ! YES! I hate it!

Have you tried scheduling a set time in the house for your practices, and then have everyone stick to it. Not watching television for an hour, or spending that time running errands to get out of the house if the practices annoy you, is not too much to ask. Your parents are paying for your lessons. To get anything out of lessons, the student must be willing to practice. As you’re willing to do that, then they should be willing to make that possible for you. Otherwise they’re wasting their money.

Pick a time to talk about it with your mom when everyone is not arguing about who gets to use the living room. Ask your mom to solve the problem for you, and explain the difference between the keyboard and the piano. Give her some time to think about the best way to solve the problem. Don’t expect an immediate answer. She will need some time to process that the lessons are very important to you, and doing well and progressing with your music is important to you, and that you are willing to put in the work and develop self-discipline to progress.

I know exactly how you feel. It could be dead silence in the house.. as soon as I pick up the guitar or start to play the keyboard.. it’s mayhem… tv’s blasting… my wife interrupting me .. kids screaming… and they usually wait till the moment I press record. XD It is annoying as hell and when my wife interrupts me it makes me feel as if she really doesn’t want to hear me playing and would rather I stopped.. which is… I don’t know.. disappointing I guess.. being that, besides my wife, music is the love of my life.

I grew up in a house where there was someone practicing daily-piano,drums,acoustic guitar,clarinet,harmonica,organ,electric guitar,spoons….anything that would make a noise!To avoid getting their a$$ beat,there were set times for practice.Some family members broke the rules and suffered for their music…but that’s called eye for an eye ;)

@PandoraBoxx The thing that’s so stupid is my mom has set a schedule, but no one ever pays attention to it. When I ask her about it, she always says, “Stick to the schedule”. I’d be more than happy to stick to the schedule if there was one! Sometimes I think my practice time is just screwed. My piano teacher also sometimes sees that I don’t get much practice time in, and when she asks why, what am I supposed to say?
@NaturalMineralWater Exactly. And I get what you’re talking about with the dissapointment. Apparently I’m a great pianist for my age, so why won’t my family let me play if I’m good? I don’t understand why they can’t just appriciate my playing.

@jules96 Maybe it’s for the best. Such disappointment in the past has led to some outstanding melancholy tunes created in minor scales. Perhaps we just need to build ourselves a recording studio in our house, soundproof it, and nail the door shut when we go in. XD

@NaturalMineralWater I’ve actually written a couple songs and love minor, sad, flowy, meloncholy tunes…I wonder how I got that way…
Sounds like a deal. Send me a hammer.

@jules96 I hear ya man. Somehow it happened to me too. I’m a sucker for minor scales.. probably to an extreme.. I love em. Your hammer’s in the mail.

@NaturalMineralWater I know every minor scale by heart. My piano teacher gives me tons of classical stuff, and lets me have one song of my choice so I don’t get bored and stop her lessons. I’m loving Yiruma right now. And I’ve actually been playing Beethoven and Debussy. I like them too.

@jules96 I really need to learn more classical… plus… i need a power adapter for my keyboard.. got lost in the move… grrrrr

@NaturalMineralWater Oh, that sucks. I lost my pedal for my keyboard one time. I had to do Bach stuff until I got a new one.

Here it is.. just sitting next to me… on its stand… useless…. lol… maybe i’ll make a run to the music store today.. i’ll have to find one first… heh

@NaturalMineralWater Haha. I have a saied music store about 10 minutes away from my house. It’s very convenient. I lost the bench to mine, so I have to use a stool. A wooden, circular stool.

Yes. This is one reason that I don’t often play piano. When I lived at home, my parents’ dog would howl along as I played. Now, my son climbs up and starts playing with me, which is fine, but sometimes I just want a serious jam.

I can only really concentrate on playing when I’m home alone, which doesn’t lead to much time with my hobby.

I remember being like you when I was younger, having to deal with people in the house. Maybe you can negotiate a schedule…