How long do you play when you sit down to play?

[Silence Dogood]

Most times when I grab my mandolin, I'll knock out 30 mins to an hour of playing tunes.  If I'm working on learning something new, I'll usually spend that entire time of that piece.  I usually stop because I'm out of time.  On rare occasions I'll play for a couple hours and I'll usually feel like I jumped a hurdler or crossed into some new territory.  30 mins to and hour almost seems like a good warm-up, and the real stuff takes root after that's done. But that rarely happens for me. 

If I'm shredding on electric, I'll usually play an hour or so.  Again, I usually run out of time.  And it's a pain getting out all my gear since I don't have a music room. 

If I'm singing songs with my acoustic, I can sometimes go for hours, if time permits.

Seems like it's always a matter of finding time.  I'm a family man and working stiff, so that's just the way it is. 

I've never been able to relate to the guys that play for 8 hours in a sitting.  One, I've never had that kind of time, and two, I don't have the stamina or desire for it. 

Playing in these small bits of time is likely one of the things that keeps so many of us intermediate players for life.  I'm definitely an intermediate player, and have been for decades. But I'm also ok with that. 

[jazzereh]

I'll play anywhere from 15 mins to an hour at a time but I do that 2 -3 -4 times a day.  I have my stuff out and ready to go in my music room so no time needed to set anything up.  That's on guitar these days but it was the same with sax when I was playing in bands.

I'm not a pro who needs to practice for hours a day so I just do it as the inspiration / motivation strikes me. 

[William2]

I play about 2 hours a day. In the morning, I play studies that work on technical issues and also serve as pieces of music. in the afternoon, I either run through some music I have memorize or look at some new music. I remember reading many years ago when John Williams was asked if his father made him practice a lot. He said no but that he was told it was important to accomplish something.

[teh]

As an empty nester, converting an extra bedroom to a dedicated guitar room is a real game changer. The amount of time I spend playing depends on the weather, my schedule and the guitar(s) I'm using. This weekend, I've been playing my 00-24 which is really comfortable and an easy guitar to play. I'm currently working on an instructional video from Pete Huttlinger (Homespun) on Gordon Lightfoot songs. These videos include tab and provide detailed video closeups of both hands along with tips about Gordon's chord progressions.

[B0WIE]

 If I'm building skill or learning a song, I break it down into numerous 10 to 15min sessions throughout the day as it's more conducive to building muscle memory. For just enjoyment, usually a half hour to 45min session once a day.

[BlueBowman]

When I have the time, I enjoy getting lost in it for an hour or two. On a less busy Saturday or Sunday, I'll play for several hours more than once a day if I can.

"Sit down to play"

On my guitars with strap buttons, I'll stand up to play on occasion. Strangely enough (or maybe not strange at all), I play in a very different manner while standing. More aggressive and energetic. Great for rhythmic, funky blues stuff.

[Silence Dogood]

When I have the time, I enjoy getting lost in it for an hour or two. On a less busy Saturday or Sunday, I'll play for several hours more than once a day if I can.

"Sit down to play"

On my guitars with strap buttons, I'll stand up to play on occasion. Strangely enough (or maybe not strange at all), I play in a very different manner while standing. More aggressive and energetic. Great for rhythmic, funky blues stuff.

Interesting.  I only play guitar standing if I have to.  I can't play the mandolin standing at all.  Every bit of my technique completely falls apart.  I just never learned it.