Sing Play Survive

sound ideas to help make it through music school

Archive for category Health and Wellness

Things you’ll regret not doing in music school (Part III)

Dec 18

Posted by Bryan W in Free Time, Health and Wellness, Practice, Surroundings | No Comments

Well, they’re one day late, but here they are: Items 11 through 15 on the list of things you absolutely MUST do while you’re a student–or regret not doing for the rest of your life.

11. Spend time alone.

If you’re really trying to make the most out of your music school career, you’re going to be around other people almost non-stop. It’s fun to have friends, to play in ensembles, to study in groups, and hang out with your room mate late into the night. But you also need time for yourself. I’m not just talking about the alone time you get when you’re practicing or studying. I’m talking about what one friend called “naked time”–the kind of time you spend alone just for you (you can keep your clothes on if you like). Take a nice long walk now and then, catch an afternoon nap, or put on your favorite CD (NOT a listening assignment for class) and read a magazine. Just find something to give yourself a nice quiet break.

If you’re wondering why this is is important to do NOW, it’s because your schedule NOW is probably the most flexible you’ll ever have again. Most work days don’t have an hour or two in between tasks the way many students have an hour or two in between classes. Yes, those are good times to practice, study, etc., but they’re also good times to relax and de-stress a little. If you are just too busy to make this happen during the week, give yourself a little extra time to do it on the weekend.

The other reason to do it NOW is because this is a time in your life to focus on you and figure out who you are. If you’re always around other people, you’ll never get a chance to form your own identity. You do NOT want to leave college feeling like you have no idea who you are, so take a little time and figure it out!

12. Celebrate every holiday you know of.
I get it, you’re a hard-working, talented, music student–not some dumb frat-boy or -girl. Well get over yourself and have some fun now and then. It’s college! If you’re holiday calendar says Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, you’re not celebrating enough. You need a calendar that gives you a holiday for almost every day of the year. That way, you can celebrate whenever you get a little free time.

13. Take up a non-music hobby. Read the rest of this entry »

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Is finals week an excuse to eat and dress like a slob?

Dec 15

Posted by Bryan W in Free Time, Health and Wellness | No Comments

finals are funOberlin College is one of a growing number of schools that publish student, staff, and faculty blogs to help share a bit of campus life with the outside world. They seem mostly geared towards prospective students, but they’re pretty fun to look through even if you’re already in school.

I came across a cool post today called Finals are fun!, which was all about the good ways campus life changes during finals week. She points out how students attire, eating habits, sleep schedules, and even Facebook activity changes, and makes a good point that it’s actually quite liberating to spend a whole week in pajamas, eating potato chips and drinking energy drinks.

Fun? Definitely! Counterproductive? My first thought was yes. I didn’t see how eating and sleeping poorly could possibly help anyone ace a final. But, I thought a bit more and came to realize two things:

  1. All of that eating poorly, bumming around in PJs, and spending too much time on Facebook can be a great de-stresser.
  2. TO AN EXTENT, it’s probably helpful to waste some time and keep your stress level low. Let’s face it. If you haven’t learned at least some of what you need to know for finals BEFORE finals week, you’re probably not going to learn it all anyway. You’ll be better off keeping yourself relaxed and studying a little bit (ie, not cramming), than you will walking into a final all stressed out.

So yes, it’s probably FINE to let yourself go a little more than usual during finals. Even if it’s not REALLY ok, it’s so acceptable at most colleges that you probably should just enjoy it anyway! Happy testing everyone, and don’t forget to shower before your parents come to pick you up.

Things you’ll regret not doing in college (Part II)

Dec 10

Posted by Bryan W in Free Time, Health and Wellness, Practice | 4 Comments

Well it’s Thursday, and here at Sing Play Survive, that means another list of things you BETTER do while you still can. I wouldn’t recommend doing them during juries week (except for number 9), but they’ll all be great fun after.

Got some of your own to add? Please let me know in the comments.

If this is your first time here, you can also read Part I of this series.

6. Have a lazy “marathon” weekend

This is a great thing to do on a long weekend or over a holiday. Grab some friends, stock up on your favorite food and beverages, and take an entire day (or two) to do something like: watch an entire season/series of a favorite TV show, watch a movie trilogy, listen to the complete Beatles discography, have a Monopoly tournament, beat Guitar Hero on expert, etc.

There are a couple of rules for this one: save it for a weekend with bad weather, give yourself a day after to be productive and recover before starting another week of classes, and balance your Karma by spending another entire day volunteering with all of your friends.

7. Learn to function without caffeine
I’ll bet that colleges (and especially music schools) create more caffeine addicts each year than 10,000 Red Bull salesmen do in a lifetime. Between a demanding schedule, chronic sleep deprivation, and easy, campuswide access to fresh-brewed coffee and ice-cold Mountain Dew, it’s no surprise. If you’re on the road to addiction, take a few days off from caffeine here and there. Curb the habit before it owns you for life.

8. Spend time in the library (for fun)

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Are the Practice Rooms Making You Sick?

Dec 7

Posted by Bryan W in Health and Wellness, Music Schools, Practice, Surroundings | No Comments

If you call it yours, does that keep you healthier?

If you’ve never gotten sick during the school year, consider yourself lucky. Even a case of the sniffles can be a major setback when you’re trying to keep on top of practicing, rehearsals, studying, and a social life. Like most music students, I tried every trick in the book to keep from getting sick. Unfortunately it wasn’t always enough, and I often ended up with with a runny nose, sore throat, headache, and cough sometime during the semester.

This frustrated me since I was an otherwise very healthy person. It took a while before I found the culprit to be the practice rooms–those tiny shared spaces with little ventilation and (at least at my school) no natural light. I mentioned my theory to a few friends, who thought I was crazy–until I made my case.

Yes, if you’re not careful, the practice rooms WILL make you sick. Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to defend yourself.

So what exactly makes practice rooms different from classrooms, dorm rooms, locker rooms, or any other public places on a college campus? I think It’s a combination of the environment and the activities that take place there. Let’s take a look at each.

The Typical Practice Room Enviroment

With the exception of closets, practice rooms are probably the smallest rooms on campus. Yet, at many schools, they’re occupied with the door closed from early in the morning until late into the night. I’m no doctor, but I’ll bet that means there are lots of airborne germs crammed into that little space. If they’re not well-ventilated, then  you’re breathing old, nasty air and not fresh oxygen. If the room is carpeted, you’re also breathing in all the dust and mold that collects in the carpet.
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Five Things You’ll Regret Not Doing in College (Part I)

Dec 3

Posted by Bryan W in Free Time, Frustrations, Health and Wellness, Practice | 1 Comment

I’m going to make a prediction: when you finish music school, you’ll start thinking of a whole list of things you wished you had done while you were there. If you need some proof, think about your last few weeks of high school. Didn’t at least part of you wish that you had tried out for a play, asked that cute boy out, spent more time with your friends, or practiced a little harder for your auditions?

Since you might not know what’s going to be on your college list until it’s too late, I’m starting this series to give you some ideas. Every week or so, you’ll find another five things you should try to do while you still can.

If you’re not in school anymore, please email me and tell me about YOUR regrets. If you ARE in school, please read on…

1. Start a band that has NOTHING to do with the “legit” music you play.

If you’re into classical, cut loose and join a rock band. If you play jazz, start a classical quartet and see how the other half lives. Just try something that you wouldn’t normally do. It doesn’t matter if you “can’t improvise”, or if you’re not a classical music expert. Do your best and adapt, because that’s how you learn and grow. Take advantage of the talented musicians around you. Start a group, laugh at how awkward it is, and learn from it!

2. Sleep in once a month.


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Celebrate the Small Milestones

Nov 17

Posted by Bryan W in Health and Wellness, Practice | No Comments

I was looking at my blog stats, and noticed a couple of cool things. I just had my 50th visitor to the site, this is my tenth post, and I’m going to announce it with my 100th tweet (that’s Twitter-speak for an update, if anyone’s been under a rock for the last year).

Are these small numbers even worth celebrating? Of course they are! I know that there are blogs who get that many visitors every 60 seconds, and I know ten posts isn’t much. But guess what, it’s ten more posts than I had two weeks ago, and it’s 50 people who had never seen my blog before.

But why am I sharing this here? Because it’s a great reminder of how everyone should treat their practice time. Don’t wait for your next great performance to give yourself a pat on the back. Instead, celebrate the little things. Whether you just memorized another eight bars, or sped up the metronome by a few clicks, you should be proud of your accomplishment, because it’s something you couldn’t do yesterday.

This is one of the best tips I can offer to help yourself stay motivated and avoid burnout. What’s your latest practice-room accomplishment? Let me know in the comments.

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Take the Stairs (and nine other ways to stay healthy in music school)

Nov 7

Posted by Bryan W in Health and Wellness | 1 Comment

Sitting on the StairsNow before anyone tries to label me a health nut, or thinks that I want the whole world to be skinny, please hear these words: If you want to play your best, you have to stay healthy. I mean it. You’ll never have the mental focus or the physical stamina to endure a rigorous class and practice schedule if you don’t eat right and stay in shape. And during flu-season, it may just keep you from getting sick.

One night at the all-you-can-eat dining hall, my friend Matt Dintrone remarked that I “eat like a saint.” Well I can tell you that’s not always true, but I do try to be conscious about what foods I put in my body. So am I asking you to eat like a saint, or try to get the physique of a supermodel or bodybuilder? Of course not! Here are some simple tips you can start using today to improve your physical health–and keep the freshman fifteen far far away.

  1. Exercise Regularly: You don’t have to be an “exercise nut” to stay in shape. If you’re walking to class and have an extra minute, take the long way. Join an intramural sports team, or do a simple circuit routine at the athletic center. Exercise can be great fun once you find something that works for you. Get out of the practice room and try something new! Not only will your body be in better shape, but your brain will work more efficiently. That should make it easier to focus during long practice sessions. Read the rest of this entry »

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