6 days ago
- Musical multitasking, such as playing multiple instruments simultaneously, is a learnable skill, not an innate talent, as demonstrated by organ and piano players.
- The key is to offload physical actions from conscious attention into automatic, chunked routines using three steps: practice in isolation, practice while distracted, and practice in combination with other musical actions.
- Breaking practice across multiple sessions is critical to allow for consolidation, which makes difficult tasks feel easier over time.
- Talking while playing is a related multitasking skill that can be developed by starting with simple patterns and prioritizing musical consistency over speech fluency.
- Playing melody is harder to multitask with than accompaniment due to its complexity and variability, so beginners should start by offloading rhythmic or simple accompaniment parts.