September Music Thread

I do love playing as a trio with my girls Even if violin, flute and flugel horn is a rather odd combo. Im thinking of drafting in dh's uncle who is a new beginner horn player to make a quartet and and to the lunacy 😁

I know DC that did. Mine couldn't get a sound out of it, they are more suited to larger mouthpieces.

Is French horn something he could try at 8?

Catkins my DS1 started on trumpet aged 8 and got to Grade 5, but it was really too small for him and he switched to trombone and tuba in Y8.

DS2 never got away with trumpet at all, and took to trombone immediately at age 8. I always think it's best they arent too fixed on a particular instrument, and try a few out.

The DC isn't doing badly if they're grade 6-7 standard, whatever exams they're taking. Unless schwanen meant it was the mum who was grade 6-7? I do agree if they start very young it has to be about having fun doing it now, not any expectation they'll end up a better player for it.

schwanen so the dcs played for app 7 years and they are 10? Did they start at 3? What instrument? First if this is correct I would think that she's brave, it must be very hard to teach your dcs specially after a certain age.

Secondly if it is piano or violin I would say that very rarely you see measurable progress so young unless you are a trained Suzuki teacher, I know quite a few DCs who started piano at 4 and took 3 or even 4 years to her to grade 1 level.

There was a girl same age as dd doing lessons before us with the same teacher when dd started age 6. This girl started lessons at 4. A year and a half later dd took her grade 1 exam and the following year grade 3 exam and at this point the other girl took her grade 1. What had happened is that dd came to lessons fresh and out in the work while the other girl become complacent and bored with the lack of progress. She had years of playing without achieving much (that she could measure, there were of course achievements but she didn't have a certificate for them).

Does the DM not realise you don't have to do every exam Schwanengesang? Or could it be there's an aspect she struggles with like aural tests or scales that they're working through as they go up? My teachers never put me in for exams till I was well past the standard, but that's a bit extreme!

Thanks Minimusuciansmama — yes it is definitely nice to have a part of me that is not all about changing nappies, stewed apple, and sleep deprivation (much as I don't mind doing the standard mum stuff for our lovely giggly little DS).

Those of you with opinions about music exams: I'd be interested to know what you think. Someone I know who plays the same instrument as her DC has recently taken DC away from teacher, and begun teaching DC herself. DC would be grade 6-7ish I guess, reasonably confident, has been playing nearly 7 years, aged 10. Mother recently told me DC is progressing rapidly through grade exams. But I found out that DC has just recently done grade 2 exams, having done grade 1 in the previous round. Did quite well in the exams. Hardly surprising given the normal level of playing and the number of hours of daily practice with mother over the last 7 years!

Is this pot-hunting, or a legitimate way of boosting the DC's confidence? Seems a bit odd as a strategy... wouldn't be totally surprised if this featured in negotiations about removing DC from teacher.

schwanesgang it's wonderful you're giving yourself that time with your music- and it will benefit the baby too. My piano lesson each week is quite precious "me time" now. Plus my DD loves seeing me practise and progress. Duetting together is special too.

Fleur, despite GCSE results out, ds is still giving me a headache. He is know thinking of changing subjects as for one of them he only got A instaed of A*. But it is (I think) his favorite subject...

dc2 giving me a headache as she hasn't done much of practice over the holidays.

Hello again. We are impostors here as DS is only 10 months old and the extent of his musical prowess so far is bashing the piano and glockenspiel, chewing the descant and tenor recorders (must clean the pumpkin out) and singing a d when I tune my violin (the d is the one i have to tune every few minutes as the gauge is probably too high for my instrument). He would like my violin but probably only cos it looks tasty...

However inspired by these threads I have got going again with violin and piano practice (working through Grade 2 ABRSM/ Grade 3 AMEB / Doflein books 2 & 3 at the moment) and am learning to read music on the recorders, which I always played by ear before. I've also got out for the first few times since DS was born and gone to sing evensong in our cathedral choir. Have also been working through the little Kodaly choral method books, singing them to DS. He thinks it's fun, and some of the pieces are exquisite

I sympathize everything seem to happen on the same day syndrome, Waffle! DS is so looking forward to starting jd this term but he is going to miss the first day as year 6 tests (which is part of the process for selective places at some states secondaries) as well as the secondary school open day (where they don't offer any alternative date...) are happened to be on the same day. It'll be either the test in the morning and the school visit in the afternoon or the other way round but haven't got any confirmation yet.

On top, DH was trying to enter DS for a triathlon which was again happened to be on the same day. I had to tell him DS had only one body!!!!

Catkind Yes, bands usually have instruments. Our band insures them as well so the only cost is regular attendance and whatever the weekly subs are. I should probably warn you that it's not unknown for the accompanying parent to be given an instrument as well so as to have something to do while they are waiting.

www.brassbandsengland.co.uk/find-a-brass-band/

We started with the music service teacher first and then when he' been playing a year or two he went straight into the main band. He sat in between two old hands who rescued him whenever he got lost, pointed out where he'd missed an entry and brought him back and generally acted as training wheels.

When they did whole class brass in primary they were each given a trumpet mouthpiece and a trombone mouthpiece to buzz on and depending on how they got on with that determined which instrument they ended up with.

Tonight DS is playing with the fourth band of the week, it's holiday season and he is covering for absence.

Icould DS is driving me crazy about cars and learning to drive. He has another year but he goes on and on about it.

Gilly good joke 😜

Thanks for thinking of us all, for some reason all the stress left me once the GCSEs results came out and I am now in a state of "I don't care much" regarding all the other stuff happening around me. It is really bad as dd has the MAT and then the NCO and I am barely asking her to practice her pieces every other night or so.

Luckily she seems to be more responsible than I am and last night whe she had a sleepover she took her clarinet and both piano and clarinet music books with her and practice at her friend (who also plays the same instruments) or so she said.

Today we visited a lovely town and she dragged me in a music shop and asked for more sheet music, she now has some Beatles piano music and clarinet Christmas music (Guest Spot). Her piano teacher is used to us buying random music but I swear her new clarinet teacher will be shocked when she'll see the amount of books we have. I need to stop giving in!

Do brass bands loan instruments Icould? I had no idea! Said I didn't know anything about brass. I think there are a few brass bands around here, there seems to be a different one every week in our local park in summer, so I will have further consultation with DS about which instrument and enquire. Or does one start with the teacher and they work out which instrument?
Well done your DS for playing principal! and lol at the most organised player.

Catkind I'd find your local brass band and ask what instruments they have to loan. If you can steer him to trombone or cornet then he has the possibility of joining an orchestra later (on trumpet rather than cornet but the fingering is the same). If your local band is a high performer and not suitable for people starting out they will be able to tell you of somewhere that has a training band. The piano is a solitary instrument and being in an ensemble is a social thing.

DS is 17 now, he's been away for a week over the summer with a music service wind band and we were surprised to see him on the video as principal because he went with his second instrument. We were even more surprised when he came home with a prize for being the most organised player. I did my best Victor Meldrew impression at that one.

I am still driving mum's musical taxi for the time being although the L plates are out and I'm hoping to be made redundant soon.

Musicdoc, as long as I know, RCM has only one open day a year and it's usually in Oct/Nov. the booking is needed. So I would advise you have a look at the website and make any necessary booking in advance.

Yes musicdoc sometimes a bit of forward planning do that your life is easier in the long run. In the end ds has ended up at AYM in snape as it's much closer to us and had less of an impact on the whole family. I'll ask if my ds knows your ds he had lots of friends in the strings

Thanks trumpetboysmum Yes, he was in U12s this year but only played in the summer course as a reserve when someone dropped out. He passed grade 5 (merit) at end of year 5 and grade 7 (merit) at end of year 7.... since then he has had a renewed enthusiasm to practice more improve so I think an advice audition might be the way forwards - Guildhall would be easiest for us to get to on a Sat morning but we know some of the RCM violin tutors and so going that way would be better if and when DD wants to go the JD route.

Not sure about strings musicdoc which might be more competitive but when I looked into it for ds you needed to be around grade 5 distinction aged 10/11 and then at least grade 8 distinction standard by year 11 for entry in the 6 th form. This was pretty much across the board for the London ones . It sounds like your ds is the right standard you can have advice auditions and the open days are mostly after Christmas I think . Guildhall don't have open days but you can book an appointment to look around . Hope that helps was your ds in the under 12s this year ?

Wow this thread moves fast! Thanks for the good advice waffle and trumpetboysmum. That's a good point about the second instrument helping with sightreading. I thought DS would say no because of the practicing thing, he's previously always said "not yet". But ... I had a chat with him again and he's keen to get going now. He got to try a tuba earlier in the summer and loved it, perhaps that's why :) I think he'd like playing in a band. I mentioned to DD that when she's a bit better she could join the local string group, DS was quite miffed there wasn't a band for pianos!

Will talk to school/CMS for a starting point I think. We have busy after schools, if he could do it in school it would make life easier. And they hire out instruments so he could try something for a term and return it if it doesn't work out.

Good luck to the kids preparing for auditions! Interesting reading about all the NCO stuff, I have a few friends with children doing various bits of NCO but have never worked out all the different versions and levels.