Christmas and January Music Thread *Thread title edited by MNHQ*

Lovely to hear your update Helen!

Keeping fingers x’d for you Raspberry that the result’s better than he expected...

Hi Helen good to hear your news and I hope my dcs are as busy with music once they leave school as yours are! All the signs are good at the moment!

I have also been having a nose on the NCO thread - congratulations to all DCs who have gained a place. And I hope anyone who didn't feels like trying again next year. The standard across all the age groups sounds incredibly high.

Good luck raspberry with the results.

Following NCO thread so congratulations and commiserations where appropriate to those going through that.

I saw mention of the NPSO on there and wondered if anyone had any experience? Particularly with the grades for the main/training orchestra? Dd is at the boundary of them at grade 5 level of she went for it with clarinet.

raspberry hugs for DS. Hope it’s not as bad as he fears!

School festival of music today. DD has a solo piece and also a big solo within an orchestral piece that’s been specially written for her so I am looking forward to it.

Hi:Helen lovely to hear from you.

I can echo Helen's words about keeping it up - we've been to DS1's uni Christmas concert this week. It was fab. No music students in it, as there is no music degree at his uni.

Waiting for Grade 8 piano results here, DS2 very disappointed with his performance on the day so we'll have to wait and see.

Hi Helen - the comment about the wriggly boys made me smile - I can safely say that 3 year olds are even more wriggly ( 1 more nativity to go today !!)
Lovely to hear your news - yes I hope all our dcs continue to make music a part of their lives whatever path they choose
In other education news this week I heard that a teacher from the midlands somewhere I think has been nominated for an international teaching award because of his commitment to school music . He’s basically turned a school around not by cutting music( as so often happens so they can do more English and maths ) but by making it a major focus of the curriculum ( it’s a primary school and I think they can all do up to 7 hours a week !!)

Hi Helen, nice to hear your news . Happy Christmas!

Hi wafffle anybanyone ejo remember me 😂
Just checking in to see how everyone’s Xmas music is going.
Had husbands school Xmas concerts this week and I was very devoted and went to both - year 3 /4 and year 5/6. Small boys are so wriggly ! But they clearly had a great time. All abilities showcased including a lovely bit of a back cello suite from a 9yr old from memory!

My kids are doing ok. DS depping at the cathedral messiah for money ( wow!) and going to Leeds today for youngests clothworkers consort mammoth weekend of advent candlelight tonight and two messiah performances st the weekend then we get to bring her home from uni - yay!

Keep up the music. It’s so worth it for them. Eldest still singing loads too.

Glad it went well last night Mending and lovely for your dd that her teacher made it.

Well i inherited the solo and it went ok, phew
Best bit was dd2 had invited her double bass teacher, and lovely guy that he is he came! (An hours journey each way!)

piccolo 💐

I think you are right about the grieveing starting now piccolo
New concert for me and the dds tonight. Looks like we may be down a soloist (winter lurgy strikes) so we may be doing some quick rejigging during warm up tonight (i have my fingers crossed that i dont inherit the solo....)

Thank you, bostik. I'm wiped out today, emotionally and physically. Trying to have an easy day, but keep bursting into tears - I guess the real grieving starts now.x

Didi what a fantastic thing! I have an autistic son and I can relate.
I thought of you yesterday Piccolo. I hope you are ok.

didi that's amazing! How lovely!
DS1 is playing in a school concert this evening in a church. I will be there although I suspect I'll be feeling more like curling up with a blanket and a lemsip!
Minisnowball can be reassured that all three of us who take exams in this house have messed up scales and passed!

Thank you for all your kind thoughts. Yesterday was as hard as I thought it would be, but at least it's over now. I

Hugs to minisnowball, but it sounds like a good exam to me ( lots of my pupils have gone to pieces over scales and still done very well). 👍

I'm so sorry you had a difficult evening, Mending. Such a shame about the concert, but very glad you're safe - we noticed the gritting lorries out last night where we were.

didi, you must be grinning from from ear to ear! How wonderful!

Oh didi thats wonderful

That is amazing- well done to your boy!!!
The power of music!

Didi that is amazing!!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

My very anxious autistic 6 yr old DS has just stood up in front of a church full of over 100 people and played his violin !! OMG.... what just happened ????

That sounds pretty good to me Snowball, remind her the pieces are worth much more than the other bits.

That's a shame Mending but glad you got home ok.

Dd is singing in Carols by candlelight tonight, our last Christmas commitment!

Hope today was bearable piccolo
I suspect that wont be a bad score snowballs
Me and dd2 should be playing a concert right now but a fatal accident has blocked our only road so we cant get there. I got stuck on the other side on the way home from work. They briefly allowed people to park up and walk past so my car is parked on the other side. Please be careful on the winter roads people.

thoughts are with you, Piccolo. Hope it goes as well as these things can do.

I've just taken a tearful dd2 back to school after her G3 flute exam. Pieces (from what I could hear) pretty much flawless, except for missing one beat on a long note because she ran out of breath on the study and a small slip on a fast run in her A piece.

But then scales a complete disaster (and she KNOWS them). She played too far on the G Major that is supposed to only go to a 12th and then came down again from the top E , then got nervous and messed up a few others- but corrected herself. Did the chromatic and two arpeggios correctly, she reckons - though the second arp was 'untidy' (her word). She was asked five scales in total as well as chromatic and arps.

She reckons the aural was probably OK with one ropey echo. Sight-reading usually a strength, but goodness knows - because she was nervous by then.

How bad? She'll now spend the next two weeks being upset about it...

I hope it goes well todayPiccolo.