What Does SCIENCE Say About Repetitions in Music Practice?

The Nugget

Optimal repetition rates for musicians suggest aiming for a 70-85% success rate during practice to maximize improvement and retention, with a focus on mindful, strategic practice rather than mindless repetition.

Make it stick

🎯 Aim for 70-85% success rate during practice to enhance skill acquisition.
🧠 Utilize interleaved practice (e.g., ABC, ABC) for better retention and cognitive engagement.
📝 Count and track both correct and incorrect repetitions for effective progress monitoring.
⚠️ Minimize incorrect repetitions to avoid performance deterioration and repetitive stress injuries.

Focus on weaker areas instead of repeating what you do well.
Maintain an improvement goal during practice—avoid mindless repetition.
Make every repetition strategic: identify problems, devise solutions, and seek feedback.
Incorporate interleaved practice to enhance skill retention.

Motor Skills: Aim for a 70% success rate for significant progress.
Cognitive Skills: Target an 85% success rate for memorization tasks.
Follow up errors: For 1 mistake, do 2 correct repetitions; for 2 mistakes, follow up with 5 correct repetitions, etc.

After reaching your goal, utilize overlearning—repeat skills for retention even after they are mastered.
Minimum of 50% and maximum of 100% overlearning is needed for strong retention.
Keep total repetitions low to prevent injury and ensure focused practice sessions.

"You want to end your total repetitions for each set around a 70% success rate."
"Mistakes are just part of the deal; it’s okay to make minor errors."
"Interleaved practice forces us to use more cognitive effort... which helps solidify that information into long-term memory."
"It's not just about the total amount of correct repetitions... the incorrect repetition amount makes the most difference."
"Keep your total incorrect repetitions low for best results."

This summary contains AI-generated information and may have important inaccuracies or omissions.