January Music Thread

Thanks for the good luck wishes. DD2 went in to today's one a bit nervous and quiet, but seemed happy enough when she came out. The Head of Music brought her to the waiting room and said he'd had a very enjoyable 20 minutes.

Only one piece tomorrow, but I know that that school is more exacting with their aural, sight reading etc. Also, there are two other bassoonists going for scholarships there - one of which has done NCO with DD and is the same grade. That's the school that DD1 is a music scholar at.

Another entrance test on Saturday and then two days for Common Entrance next week. Come Tuesday evening, DH will be doing the band run and I will have my feet up with a large in hand! DD2 will be having some serious downtime - not that she has done masses of work (except on bassoon), but it's still a bit stressful.

...and wind of course

Good luck to all those with auditions!

I'll be keeping my fingers tightly crossed for mini-Kutik, double and python! And for the parents!

Sorry, I missed Python! Good luck to your DS too! My DS is also auditioning next week with violin as 1st and piano as 2nd but it's for 11+.

Good luck to miniDouble and miniWid!

*joint

11+ Scholarship auditions this week for DD - join first instruments piano and clarinet and 2nd voice. Practiced every day except Xmas day (her choice!)

For Planets fans love this performance of Mars by Purcell at the Festival Hall few years back (and yes the timpani parts are great fun)

11+ auditions for DD1 Python - one today and another tomorrow. 1st instrument is bassoon and 2nd is guitar.

Hi, just dipped into this thread. Wonder if anyone else has 13+ music scholarship auditions coming up? My 12 yr old has been pretty good about practising most days these holidays and we'll just have to help him keep the momentum going now. He doesn't have a place at his 1st choice school unless he gets a scholarship which is a big incentive! Violin as 1st instrument, piano and organ as 2nd, but realistically going forward he's going to be focussing on organ and composition. Just got permission for him not to play hockey at school this month - he was grateful!

japanese DS spends his orchestral rests with his ear to the timpani, he is so scared of it going out. Tell your sweet DD that they have pedals and that the timpanist changes notes while playing

Awesome folk! I love the Mozart, not so familiar with Faure.

We have mini chamber music going on here, DC's piano teacher is teaching them each a quartet. One piano, 4 kids, one hand each. I had no idea that was a thing. In DD's group at least two of them only started learning last term, so it should be ... interesting? Brave teacher.

It's such a great set of music for percussionists - am not surprised he likes it drummersmum. DD was very surprised to see the timpani being tuned - 'I didn't know you could play notes on drums Mum'!

japanese DS loves The Planets.

It's just wonderful... possibly my favourite choral work (although maybe tied with the Mozart). Need to keep reminding myself it's a Requiem and I'm not supposed to grin like a Cheshire Cat all the way through 😂

Hope DS's exam went well Kutik & well done to mini's mini!

Folk - I love Faure's Requiem. Must be beautiful for you and your DD to be able to sing it properly. I vaguely remember singing it in choir as a teen - many moons ago.

DD and I are just home from the Barbican where we went to listen to the LSSO play (amongst other things) the Planets.

DD is playing Jupiter for Grade 2 piano so I thought it might inspire her as well as be useful to hear it in context!

Wow, sounds fab, folk! So envious as our house if not a nest for nightingales!

Ooooh, buzzing like a buzzy bee!!! Noo and I just back from a first rehearsal of the Faure Requiem. It's her first taste of proper choral singing and she loved it!! She did so well with reading the score too. I can't wait to see her face when we hook up with the orchestra!! And such a joy to be singing it together. Wow, I've missed choir........

Thanks mini!

Thank you Trumpet and drummers. What will be will be. We are fortunate though as DS is happy with the state option.

Xennialish , you have some lovely pieces going on (Mozart and Breval!). DS is also doing some chamber music. It's his first quartet experience (just joined last Oct) and they are performing Hayden very soon. drummers, please come to see his quartet debut if you are around on the day!

massive clap clap clap for mini and cheers to minikutik's atitude

I'm pleased it was a positive experience for him Kutik - good luck with the results

DS's piano teacher doesn't check scales neither. She just expects her pupils to get on with them at home... DS usually runs through a couple of scales when he practises, but we have no idea if he's doing all correctly or if they are up to the required speed.

I safely collected DS. He told me there were some questions asking the meaning of a word.

'Did you know the words?', I asked.
'No, I didn't know all of them.', he replied.
'Okay, so how was it on the whole?', I asked again.
'Oh, I think I did pretty well!'
....

At least he was not so nervous and even cheerfully told me ''it was fun'. One more exam to do. Roll on Saturday!

Best of luck to minikutik- at least your positive attitude won’t risk you being accused of making him nervous!

Good luck with the exams minikutik and the grade 5 cello loose . I also need to be a scales tyrant ds is perfectly capable of learning them but always puts it off in favour of other stuff. His teacher doesn't check up on him ( I think he just expects him to do them and then checks before an exam) to avoid any panics before we get to grade 8 I think I need to help ds work out a plan . I shall remind ds that the trumpet teacher ( different to his normal teacher) who he worked with this weekend impressed upon him how important scales are. I wouldn't mind but because his piano teacher checks he learns his piano scales every week !!