Like she said, 13-year-old brass players can be annoying --- funny, but very annoying!
My 12-year-old granddaughter Abby went with me to an orchestra Christmas Concert the other night. She had not been to any live concerts to hear more accomplished instrumentalists play, so this was a first. Abby is learning to play the flute in her Middle School beginning band. She was very interested in watching the players and how they used their instruments and how they interacted with one another and the conductor. She also enjoyed how well they played and how enjoyable the music was to listen to. While we were chatting during the intermission, Abby told me about what it is like to be in her Middle School band. She says that it is one of her favorite classes, besides art, and she is learning a lot. But, she is in a class with a lot of 12-13 year olds. She says that she is starting to understand the personalities of the players and how that corresponds to the instruments they chose to play. For example, she says that the flutes are usually quiet and well behaved. But the trumpets are loud and annoying -- just like their instrument! (Okay, I did mention that Abby plays flute and has just the personality she described --- quiet and well-behaved.) Abby went on to tell the story of how the first chair trumpet player is the most loud and annoying of all, but he is also the guy that helps the others solve problems in their section. One time one of the trumpet guys was trying to get his stuck mouthpiece off his instrument. After a lot of tugging, he succeeded in getting it free only to drop it into the bell at the other end of the trumpet. Then, the mouthpiece was stuck again. The first chair guy said, "Hey man, that happens to me all the time. Here, give it to me." Then he grabbed the trumpet, turned it upside down and spanked it with his hand really hard. Out popped the mouthpiece. Although Abby was impressed that the guy knew how to help, she still thought the entire incident was loud and annoying. Apparently, most of the brass instruments and their players are loud and annoying --- trombones, saxophones, baritones, and even tuba. But the percussion players are the most annoying. She says that if you put sticks into a 12 year old's hands, they can't help but bang on anything and everything. Then I asked her about the clarinet players. "Oh, they are the nicest people in the world." Well, isn't that just like a clarinet? It can blend into any sound level in the band (provided that the player has a good reed and has learned not to squeak too much). One day in class the teacher was trying to explain how to execute a staccato. As usual, the brass players were not giving the teacher their full attention. A saxophone player behind Abby had really not been paying attention, and when they went to start to play, he blurted out, ''Uh...what's a st...st...st...taco?"
Like she said, 13-year-old brass players can be annoying --- funny, but very annoying!
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This Title I middle school had lost its Band, Chorus and Orchestra teacher in the middle of last year. The program had been suffering. In fact the students felt like they had been abandoned and were convinced that they were not good kids and that no one liked them. My daughter applied for the job last Spring. During her sample lesson as part of the interview process, some of the kids told her that "nobody likes us because we are bad kids." Once she was offered the position, Cami told me that her main goals were to help those kids feel good about themselves and to convince them that they were just as "average" as anybody else, that everyone has both bad and good days, and that they can succeed by putting in an honest effort. This fall, she began rebuilding the program from the ground up. Nearly all of these students were beginners. Many did not have any exposure to participating in a band, orchestra or chorus program previously. Many have very little support from parents or family at home. Yesterday was their first concert of the year. She had 70+ combined chorus students from three classes singing four 2-part songs. The 30+ orchestra students played 2 songs, and the 100+ combined band students from two classes played "Jingle Bells" for the finale. The main goals were to keep the rhythm together, attempt to play and sing the right notes, and display proper concert etiquette. My daughter was not even sure anyone would come to the concert -- performers or audience (parents, grandparents or friends.) The student body population of the school is made up of mainly low-income families (whose parents have to work odd schedules), and students of all ethnic backgrounds including refugees who speak other languages and are just beginning to learn English. Language and cultural differences can be big communication barriers. I admire my daughter for having the stamina to work within these constraints as well as try to convince these 12-14 year-olds that they can learn fingering, embrouchure, breathing, rhythm, musical notation, tone quality, and concert etiquette fast enough to put on a concert. That is a tall order for any teacher, but multiply it by 200+ to give each student individual attention, and you have a job of epic proportions! And she is expecting her first baby to be born in just a couple of weeks! Fortunately, the student performers showed up and also a good crowd of parents and other supporters. I even heard a lot of parents comment about how impressed they were by how many students were participating in the performance and how well they did. I even heard some of the kids mention how surprised they were by how "cool" and "fun" giving a performance was. I am so proud of my little girl who grew up to be such an amazing teacher! I have got to send a shout out to all of the music teachers, students and parents who plan, prepare, set up for and attend the year end school music concerts. Occasionally I get to go accompany my daughter's chorus for their concerts. This year I also got to attend my granddaughter's first band concert. Some schools have a large population of energetic and engaged students and parents, others have trouble recruiting enough students to make a viable program. I salute the music teachers who so willingly work to build their programs no matter what hand they are dealt. My daughter teaches at a small charter school where the students may choose just one elective class per semester. Even when the students have 12+ choices for their one elective, she still has had enough students to teach junior high band, orchestra, chorus, guitar, percussion, as well as 6th grade General Music. She has also taught after school band and orchestra to the elementary school students. That is such a big load! Besides all of the teaching, planning and conducting, she and the students are responsible to set-up and take down for the concerts. Imagine having to move the one good piano in the school, many music stands, all of the percussion instruments, many of the larger school-owned band and orchestra instruments, and the sound system from the 2nd floor music room to the main floor gym any time you have a performance. Oh yes, and then you must set up the risers for the chorus, the sound system, and all of the chairs for the performers and the audience. Hopefully, after all of the heavy lifting, you have enough energy to conduct a pleasing performance. Then, after the performance, you need to summon enough strength to take everything down and put it away. That is a lot of work for just one teacher and a few willing (but small in stature) students! I was happy to be there to help with set up and take down. I was also happy that there were a few parents who pitched in at least to put away the chairs. I am so proud of my daughter to have the spunk and endurance to make things happen for the students in her school. This was her last concert at that charter school. Next fall, she will be teaching at public middle school. I sure hope she inherits an energetic and eager bunch of students with supportive parents that will help her build her program. Music teachers do so much! My very talented daughter Cami is in her first year of teaching music at a charter school. She teaches orchestra, band, choir and guitar. I went to the first concert of the year, to support her and was delighted by the events of the evening. This school caters to many students who have not had their needs met by traditional junior high schools in the area. That, said, I was surprised at how well the students did their jobs helping set up for the concert (chairs, instruments, stands, mics, etc.) and also taking roll, handing out programs, and managing themselves and their Halloween costumes. All was not according to intent, though. The microphones were not working. Instead of panic, Cami came up with Plan B. She noticed that the two body mics w/ packs she had for the acoustic guitar players were working. So, she simply used one of them to make announcements and allow her soloists to sing amplified. The choir did very well. Then, she went over to the band. This is a small school and the band was not made up of the typical ensemble. She had 6 or 7 percussion players, 4-5 guitars and bass players, 4 clarinets, and one each of trumpet, baritone, flute, oboe, and piano players. Somehow Cami made it all work. They played movie score pieces that the kids really liked. Though not as good as they are abound to get by the end of the year, they pulled off an enjoyable concert. And then they systematically joined together to put everything away. I was so proud! Good work all! But then, Cami surprised us by coming to visit for the weekend . She then proceeded to take apart a small violin. (She wanted access to her dad's tools.) For her birthday, she got luthier tools and clamps for repairing violins, and by golly, she intended to use them! This little violin had a crack on the front. Cami disassembled the parts and pieces, glued on some "band-aid" strips of thin wood along the underside of the crack, then glued the top back onto violin body. Amazing! Who knew that my "Tubateer" girl would grow up to also be a luthier (the fancy name for a violin maker and repairer)? She says that she is expert at breaking instruments, so she thought she had better get some skills at fixing them. I read an article the other day about the devaluation of music in our society today. The author made the case that with so many avenues to hear, enjoy, obtain, and otherwise consume music for free, it is little wonder why regular people have no "wonder" or appreciation for serious music. They may hear bits and pieces of classical or jazz music in movie scores, video games and cartoons. But they don't really listen to or appreciate the influences or herculean efforts the composers use to write this music or the incredible musicianship and effort required on the part of each member of the orchestra to play it. Serious musicians who have studied to perfect their artistry over many years can barely make a living doing music. The digital age has changed all of the rules. Consumers assume if they can hear the music over a device, it must be free. People generally admit that they have favorite music that forms a soundtrack for their lives, but they do not place any value to it. They just assume that it will always be there. Many school districts have cut music programs along with many other fine art programs from their curriculum. What that does is further the devaluing of music. Fewer people now grow up with any idea of how music is created, or gain an understanding of the effort it takes to learn to play an instrument, sing well, or write a song. Composers who write music for choirs or instrumentalists or singers basically give their creations away. If they publish, the publisher typically takes more than 50% of the royalties. Then, the consumer might buy the fewest number of copies allowed, because they can easily run off more copies on a copy machine charging their school or church with that cost. They have absolutely no regard for copyright laws. That is why it is so wonderful when occasionally some choir director will order a true amount of legal copies of a piece of music for her choir. Or a couple of singers will order three copies of a Duet because they realize both singers need a copy plus one for the accompanist. I praise those few honest people. Thank you for being who you are and placing a real value on music and the people who create it! The journey of helping with the High School Musical "Mary Poppins" continues. My sister came to me with some ideas she had about making the chimney sweep brushes for the Chimney Sweeps in the "Step In Time" number. She thought that they could be made with long wooden dowels with end plates cut out of wood with brushes sandwiches in between. Then they would be painted black. She priced out all of the pieces and found that each brush would cost upwards of $8.00 a piece. That would break the bank. They did not have budget to afford 30+ brushes at that price. So we needed to brainstorm to come up with a more cost effective solution. I went to the dollar store to see what I could find. I found a simple light weight mop that looked promising. I decided to cut off some of the length of the cotton rag mop ends, spread out the remaining lengths, glue them around the edges of a black plastic plate, attach the plate onto the mop and sew the parts together with black pipe cleaners. After spray painting them black, the rag ends stiffened up. Hopefully they will be light-weight enough for the dancers to use, and sturdy enough to hold up to the dancing. The cost was about $2.50 each. Sure, there was a lot of labor to make them, but that was expected. We made 35 -- just in case some malfunctioned. Hope they work!
The local High School is producing the Musical "Mary Poppins" this Fall. My very talented niece is playing the title role and her mother, my sister is helping with Costumes and Props. Since they have helped me out so often, I am trying to return the favor. They were having trouble locating a parrot-topped umbrella for Mary Poppins and asked if I could help them create one. My first idea was to sculpt something rudimentary out of foam clay. But then I had an even more brilliant idea, I asked my husband to carve the parrot head out of wood and I would then paint it. He agreed that a wood handle would be sturdier and stand up to the repeated use. So he carved it and created a way for it to fit onto the handle of the umbrella. And I painted it. This was such a fun project to work on. And my niece loves it. She will keep it for her own special keepsake from doing the show. That is sweet. Good luck, Grace! Have a fabulous show! After being urged by my Elementary School Music Teacher friends, I have decided to offer some of the songs from my musicals for use for Elementary school Children's Chorus or General Music classes. Most of the stories from my musicals center around character traits and values such as Honesty, Integrity, Sincerity, Cooperation, Bravery and Work. And some of the shows have songs that are reminiscent of the good aspects of Life in America. Some of the music from the shows introduce elements of Musical Devices and Styles. Some of them are songs for various Holidays. Some of the songs from the shows are just plain Fun. A Few Value Songs: "Being Sincere" - from the Aesop Fable "The Boy Who Cried Wolf." In this song, being sincere is compared to a treasure, for it is much better to be trusted than to give in to your own foolish pleasure. "Worthy to Admire" - from the ancient Chinese folktale "The Empty Pot." The comparison between the promise of a seed and the promise of a child. "Everybody Works" - from an adaptation of "The Boy Who Cried Wolf." Work is important. It shows personal responsibility, capability, and sensibility. It is the hallmark of society. Everybody works. Songs of Americana "Over Yonder" - from the American Western retelling of "Stone Soup" "Good Morning Sunshine" and "Off to the Races" - from the barnyard tale of "Chicken Licken" "I Love the City Life" - from the "Tale of the City Mouse and the Country Mouse" Fun Songs Using Musical Devices "The Barnyard Troubadours" - Add-On Song using Animal Sounds "Wintertime" - Lead and Echo using the Pentatonic Scale "Why Is Grass Always Greener on the Other Side" - Musical style influenced by the music of famous Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg Holiday Songs "Jingle Bells " - for 2-Part Children's Chorus "The Greatest Christmas Card" - Theme song for Chorus concert "Under the Christmas Tree" - Partner Song "For This Is Halloween" - arrangement of finger play using Visual Aids "We Are Out to Scare You" - group involvement in choosing characters |
AuthorMy name is Betsy Lee Bailey. I enjoy singing and writing all kinds of music. I have performed and directed or taught music all of my life. This blog is dedicated to all of the people who have been encouraging me to write about my experiences. |