Why You Should Record Your Practice Sessions

Have you ever listened to yourself talk on tape and thought, “I don’t sound like that!”

Well, bad news... you do sound like that.

The same phenomenon applies to how you sound on your instrument. Recording your practice sessions is one of the most effective ways to develop an objective ear and identify issues in your playing. This is why I recommend that all of my students record their practice sessions regularly.

Below are some of the most important reasons to make recording part of your daily routine.

Allows You to Focus on Performance

Have you ever tried to do homework while watching TV at the same time? Odds are you end up not really paying attention to the show and doing a poor job on your homework.

The same thing happens when you practice music.

Working through a new piece or a difficult passage requires a lot of mental energy. Your thoughts are usually filled with reminders like “More air here” or “Think subdivisions to keep a steady tempo.” When you focus on the act of playing, you don’t have much mental space left to evaluate how you actually sound.

When you record your practice sessions, you free your mind to focus on one task at a time. First, you focus on playing. Later, you focus on listening. Separating these two processes leads to better results in both.

Recording Serves as an Objective Ear

You’ve probably heard the phrase “A photograph doesn’t lie.” While that’s less true today, the idea still holds... a recording captures a moment without your emotions getting in the way.

How you feel physically can affect how you describe your sound. If you’re dehydrated, your lips might feel tight, so you might describe your sound as thin. That doesn’t always reflect what is actually coming out of the instrument.

Recording yourself removes those sensations and emotions from the equation. It allows you to focus on what really matters... how you sound.

This is even more effective if you wait a little while before listening back. Give yourself time to forget how it felt to play and listen with fresh ears.

Capture “Ah-ha” Moments

Inspiration often comes in flashes. A musical idea suddenly makes perfect sense, and then just as quickly, it disappears.

When you record your practice sessions, you can capture these moments as they happen. You can explain what you discovered, why it worked, and how it felt. Later, when the moment has passed, you’ll still have a clear record of the insight.

Capture “Uh-oh” Moments

Have you ever felt sick right up until you walked into the doctor’s office? Or had car trouble that disappears the moment you reach the mechanic?

The same thing happens in music lessons.

Sometimes you know something is wrong in your playing, but when you get to the lesson, you can’t recreate the problem. A valuable teaching moment is lost.

When you record your practice sessions, you capture these issues when they happen. This makes it much easier to diagnose the problem and show it to your teacher.

When listening back, ask yourself:

1. Is this a range, rhythm, intonation, articulation, or musical issue?
2. What happens right before the problem?
3. What happens immediately after?
4. Do I notice patterns?
5. What are five exercises or approaches that could help fix this?

Practice Getting Nervous

If recording your practice sessions is so valuable, why doesn’t everyone do it?

One common answer I hear from students is that recording makes them nervous.

That’s a good thing.

You get nervous in performances. You get nervous in auditions. The only way to reduce nerves is to practice feeling them. If pressing the record button makes you uncomfortable, that’s a low-risk way to start working on performance anxiety.

Track Your Progress

Learning an instrument is a long journey. Some days feel great, and others feel discouraging.

Progress often happens slowly and in small steps, which makes it easy to feel stuck. But when you listen to a recording from last month or last year, improvement becomes obvious.

Recording your practice sessions gives you proof that your work is paying off, even when it doesn’t feel like it day to day.

Take Notes

Recording alone isn’t enough. You need to write down what you learn.

Writing activates more of your brain, which helps you remember insights more clearly. It also saves time. Listening to an entire recording again can be tedious, but notes let you quickly revisit the important moments.

I recommend writing in your practice journal and including timestamps. That way, if you want to revisit a specific moment, you know exactly where to listen.

Advice on Setting Up Your Recording Equipment

Try recording yourself in different rooms. You will sound very different in a large space than in a small practice room.

If possible, practice once a week in an auditorium or performance hall. Place the microphone several rows back so you hear what an audience would hear. You’ll likely notice that subtle details don’t project as clearly as you thought.

Avoid placing the microphone at the bell of your instrument. That’s not what anyone else hears. If you’re using your phone, don’t leave it on your music stand. Place it on a table a few feet away instead.

How Often Should You Record Yourself?

I recommend recording something in every practice session.

This doesn’t mean recording the entire session. Instead, perform a short section at the end. For example, if you worked on twelve measures of an etude, record those measures as a performance. You might also record a full run of the piece.

As performances approach, record full run-throughs more often. This helps track readiness and build confidence.

How Should You Analyze Your Recordings?

How you listen back depends on what you’re trying to learn.

Problem Patterns

If you want to identify recurring issues, record yourself playing the same passage three times in a row. Listen back with a pencil and circle problems each time you hear them.

Afterward, look for spots you circled multiple times. These are your highest-priority areas.

Focused Practice

When working on a specific passage, record each attempt and listen back immediately. This tells you whether your adjustments are actually working.

Recording Lessons

I strongly recommend recording lessons.

Teachers often say things that make perfect sense in the moment but are hard to recall later. Recording preserves those insights.

Wait a few days before listening back. Then listen with your practice journal and write timestamps for important moments. If your teacher talks about breathing at 5:02, write it down and plan how you’ll apply it in your next session.

Performance Readiness

Don’t listen to a performance recording immediately after playing. Your emotions will color how you hear it.

Wait a few days. When you listen back, write the piece names at the top of a page and leave space underneath. Limit yourself to two or three improvement goals per piece.

This keeps feedback actionable and prevents overwhelm.