I Love the Autumn!
I love the autumn! The smells, colors, tastes, and crisp air. I love the newness of the school year and the excitement on kids faces. I also love, and I mean this, that a group of fourth grade students are breaking out band instruments and learning how to play them! I know what you are thinking! Parents with older children who have been down this road before are not looking forward to the "interesting" sounds coming out of the end of an instrument that would raise the hair on the dead. Parents who are experiencing this the first time are wondering what they got themselves into. However, fear not! The brand new instrumentalist will quickly start to actually sound... good.
So What are my Kids Actually Doing During Lessons?
That's a great question!
In the beginning, the students are working on learning the fundamentals of playing their instrument. Such as putting the instrument together, how to maintain the instrument, how to blow into the instrument, play a few notes, and the importance of rehearsal etiquette. Once they get these basic skills down we can start to really look at music in their method books. A typical 30 minute lesson I teach is structured a bit like this.
As the year progresses, I will spend less time on warm-up activities, and more time focusing on the music. The most important thing the student can do for their lesson is to Have their instrument for their lesson! We do have instruments for students to borrow. However, each instrument is a little different, and your son/daughter knows their own instrument the best.
In the beginning, the students are working on learning the fundamentals of playing their instrument. Such as putting the instrument together, how to maintain the instrument, how to blow into the instrument, play a few notes, and the importance of rehearsal etiquette. Once they get these basic skills down we can start to really look at music in their method books. A typical 30 minute lesson I teach is structured a bit like this.
- 5 minutes making sure the instrument is properly set up and breathing exercises with and without the mouthpiece.
- 10 minutes on specific warm up strategies that will focus on breath control, articulation exercises, tone production, and other instrument specific techniques that will help build musicianship and playing ability.
- 10 minutes working through the material found in the method books.
- 5 minutes review the practice expectations for the week.
As the year progresses, I will spend less time on warm-up activities, and more time focusing on the music. The most important thing the student can do for their lesson is to Have their instrument for their lesson! We do have instruments for students to borrow. However, each instrument is a little different, and your son/daughter knows their own instrument the best.
Band Time
The full band usually meets once a week. We meet with the students on Thursday from 2:15 to 3:00. Ms. Wiener is the director and I am there to help out with the random things that pop up, and also am another set of eyes and ears to assist both the students and the conductor. During this time, we work on basic ensemble tone, rehearsing as a group, and learning how to be a team. About 10 minutes of the time is dedicated to basic warm ups, the rest is dedicated to rehearsing music in the method book, or band music. Every student needs to remember their instrument for Thursday!
Final Thoughts!
I hope that this post was informative! Again, please make sure your daughter/son has their instrument on their lesson day, and on Thursday for band. Please feel free to leave a comment or a question on this post if you have anything you want to add.
Next week: Tackling the beast... Practicing!
Next week: Tackling the beast... Practicing!