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Stiles New user 26 Posts |
Hello all. So I have begun travelling the long road to practicing magic. Initially I was mainly interested in coins but after practicing the palms repeatedly without applying them I got frustrated and took a break with cards. As I've practiced more and more I have begun to wonder if there isn't a more efficient way to practice. After doing some searching I found "The Ostrich Factor" mentioned on here but I do not have the cash to order it right now.
Would anyone care to share their practice methods and how they try to make them as effective as possible? Try to remember that I am just starting out and a good amount of work away from being able to perform for an audience. |
Dynamike Eternal Order FullTimer 24148 Posts |
Welcome to the Magic Café.
Practice when you are doing other things.* For example watching tv. It helps the moves become normal while picturing the practice as an exercise. Try the moves using both hands to see what seems easier. Go to professional magicians at a magic shop or magic club to see if you are making the moves correctly, keeping you away from any bad habits. Feel free to show your friends the moves to see if they noticed anything wrong. Practice in front of a mirror. Practice in front of a camcorder so you can spot if you are doing anything wrong. Practice some moves in the dark so it will become a habit. Practice several times a day, but for not long lengths of time because it can get too boring. Good luck. *Not while driving or working any type of machinery. |
NurseRob Elite user Dallas, TX 469 Posts |
Keep it fun, and make a plan for yourself...I would suggest starting with Tarbell volume one, and learn everthing in the order in which it is written, you will have learned ALOT of magic of all kinds by the time you get to the end of that single volume...then you'll have 7 more volumes to go...woo hoo now we're talking fun!!!
Ut imago est animi voltus sic indices oculi ~
The face is a picture of the mind as the eyes are its interpreter ~Cicero |
Sanderr Regular user Netherlands 198 Posts |
As for cards: I recently bought the Royal Road to Card Magic. I like to learn everything that's in there well enough so I will just practice the moves. If you don't have that book I can recommend you getting it if you're interested in cards. Helps you get the moves right and in the introduction they recommend you practicing each move before rushing to the next.
And like Dynamike says, practice when watching TV. |
Yellowcustard Inner circle New Zealand 1334 Posts |
Great advice up there and I will repeat some of it as I explain how I practice. First of all if its a move or a set of moves I need to get right. Its little and often recently ive been learning some coin slight so I have carried a coin every were and practice why waiting for people in my breaks at work and so on. Its the rules which is a dice trick I had two dice sitting in my bathroom.
Once I have the move working and idea of patter I start try to put it all together. This is a more structured half hour thing I do when the wife is out. Also if I gig coming up I get the four or five trick out on the front room table And keep going over them. I will even load up what ill be wearing and do a full run throw several times. I am doing a little parlour show at the end of the month so I have every thing in a box which I go throw once or twice a night. Then I have the day off work before the gig so ill practice four or five times in the day. Something else I do if I am performing and I have done two tricks and things are going well and the crowd are loving it I will slip in and try out a new trick which I have practice lots but not done live,then end with something strong. Sometimes I write out a strong structure over times I just play. Hope this has helped and find what works for you. Enjoy your magic and let others enjoy it as well.
Enjoy your magic,
and let others enjoy it as well! |
funsway Inner circle old things in new ways - new things in old ways 9982 Posts |
Check out thread
http://www.themagiccafe.com/forums/viewt......orum=3&9
"the more one pretends at magic, the more awe and wonder will be found in real life." Arnold Furst
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KENNYRB New user 65 Posts |
Remember there is a difference between practice and rehersal. Practice is what you do when you are learning a new move or trick. Rehersal is what you do when you put together a show or routine.
One thing I always do to help me with practice is to perform the move in front of someone who knows as much or more about magic as I do. In this way any mistakes I am making can be pointed out so that my practice is not unproductive. A drama teacher of mine always said, "Practice does not make perfect, it makes permenant. Perfect practice makes perfect." |
jake.o Regular user 111 Posts |
My practice sessions usually consist of a large amount of time to reherse and probably about a third of that time to learn and practice new moves/tricks. I also think that the best practicing comes when you are just messing around with something, for example when I'm watching tv in the evenings I will normaly be messing around with a deck of cards or a coin and when you have done that long enough you will become more efficient with what ever item you have been messing around with.
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mmura New user Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa (New Zealand) 52 Posts |
Practice until it will become second nature and reherse in front of video camera.
After that, benefit from the experience. |
Mark Boody Illusionist Inner circle 1366 Posts |
Practice 1 routine until you know it forward & backwards the perform it! Family & friends or somebody you trust to give you honest feedback.That is the way to get better, practicing AND performing.
Only he who can see the invisible can do the impossible. Frank L. Gaines
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solrak29 Special user NY Metro 936 Posts |
I found this helpfull overtime. I read something like this in this forum in another thread, but slightly different...
Have whatever prop your working with (i.e. cards, coins, etc) readily available; around the house, in your pockets, in your car. When I see them, I unconciously pick them up and practice what I am working on. I have found that putting things away in my box or case, tends to take more effort and discipline to pull it out. But there is something to be said about setting a specific time and being focused....
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diehards2080 Loyal user Brooklyn, New York 256 Posts |
Quote:
On 2009-08-08 12:32, solrak29 wrote: I do the same thing. I mostly work with cards so I keep cards all over the place. In the office, all around my apartment. If I'm not doing nething important I always pick up a pack and start to practice. its more and more becoming a steady routine now. |
Hansel Inner circle Puerto Rico 2492 Posts |
I practice in different terms...but for me is the same 1 hour or 20! When the magic bug bite and the inspiration comes...I prefer to be there! As Picasso Says: ( I hear that from Rene Lavand ) " When the inspiration arrives, I prefer that they catch me working " ...
Best Wishes, Hansel!
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DomKabala Inner circle I've grown old after diggin' holes for 2827 Posts |
You HAVE to practice until you WANT to practice...when the WANT is there, it becomes a labor of love.
Cardamagically, Dom
We don't stop playing when we grow old...we grow old when we stop playing.
God is enough, let go, let God. Gal 2:20 "Anything of value is not easily attained and those things which are easily attained are not of lasting value." |
m.ruetz Veteran user Peoria Arizona, USA 378 Posts |
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curtgunz Special user Only 99% of users have more than 784 Posts |
Also, remember that magic is a Performing Art. Practice a lot but once you have it down find somewhere to perform.
Volunteer stuff is a great way to start. Most nursing homes will welcome a magic show. Talk to the activities director. Find a magic club or magic shop nearby and perform for them so they can give you pointers. Perform! I know lots of magicians and clowns who have hundreds of dollars worth of props and who can perform a trick flawlessly but they never perform. Do it!
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magiclimber Veteran user Boulder, Colorado 315 Posts |
Lots of practice front of a mirror.
Watch video of yourself. Keep a deck or cards and a fifty cent piece in your bathroom. Annoy your friends. |
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