The Clarinet Ninja Podcast: Clarinet Lessons & Practice Tips

The Two Types of Practice That Transform Your Clarinet Performances

The Clarinet Ninja Podcast: Clarinet Lessons & Practice Tips

Show Notes

Have you ever practiced diligently but struggled in performance? The problem isn't your playing—it's that you're only doing half the practice you need.

Free PDF

In this episode, I break down the two essential types of practice every clarinetist needs: Practice Practice (building skills) and Practice Performance (accessing those skills under pressure). Most players focus entirely on the first while neglecting the second, which is why performances don't match practice room ability.

What You'll Learn:

Why playing perfectly in practice doesn't guarantee performance success

The difference between Practice Practice and Practice Performance

Dr. Noa Kageyama's research on conscious control vs. trusting your preparation

Dr. Molly Gebrian's concept of overlearning and why mistakes in practice matter

How to use spaced repetition for maximum retention

The red, yellow, green system for efficient practice time

Why the "easy" spots after difficult passages are performance danger zones

How to create effective mock auditions and simulated performances

Building your performance day routine for consistent results

Key Timestamps: [Add your timestamps here - examples:]

0:00 Introduction: My 1990s performance disaster

3:15 The two types of practice explained

8:30 Practice Practice fundamentals

15:45 The Build-Out Method

22:10 Practice Performance essentials

28:30 Mock performances and mental preparation

35:00 Your 3-week challenge

Resources Mentioned:

Dr. Noa Kageyama's Bulletproof Musician: bulletproofmusician.com

Dr. Molly Gebrian's "Learn Faster, Perform Better"

FREE Practice Performance Roadmap: [your link]

Ready to transform both your practice and performances?

Join the Clarinet Ninja Dojo where we work on these exact skills in live group sessions: [link]

Connect with Clarinet Ninja:

Website: clarinetninja.com

Email: [email protected]

Facebook Group: Clarinet Ninja Forum

Free Beginner/Refresher Course

Support the Show: If this episode helped you, please leave a rating and review. It helps other clarinet players find the show!

More from The Clarinet Ninja Podcast: Clarinet Lessons & Practice Tips

Oct 13, 2026

Gary Foster played on more than 500 film soundtracks and was one of the finest jazz alto players in Los Angeles.

Jul 27, 2026

Dr. Ron Odrich studied clarinet with Daniel Bonade and Robert Marcellus, played jazz alongside Buddy DeFranco, Eddie Daniels, and Clark Terry, and spent decades as an elite periodontist, including serving as Leonard Bernstein's dentist. In this fourth and final conversation, we set the clarinet talk aside and get into the real subject: how he's managed to pursue music, dentistry, painting, and writing all at once, for an entire life, without burning out.

Jun 25, 2026

Ron Odrich didn't start the clarinet the way most people do. As a kid, he snuck the clarinet off the stand in his father's house (his dad was a professional doubler), soaked the reed, and taught himself the opening glissando from Rhapsody in Blue entirely by ear. No teacher. No sheet music. No idea what the notes were called.

Jun 8, 2026

On February 2, 2026, Ken Peplowski played his last notes aboard The Jazz Cruise in the Gulf of Mexico. He was 66 years old, he was in the middle of a comeback, and by all accounts he sounded extraordinary.

Jun 1, 2026

What does it take to build a career on an instrument that modern jazz largely left behind?

See all episodes →