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Extra-curricular activities

Find advice on the best extra curricular activities in secondary schools and primary schools here.

Original poster

Summer term 2019 music

855 replies

thirdfiddle · 01/04/2019 14:50

A new installment of the long running music parent threads. Everyone is welcome from complete beginners to grade 8 and beyond. Thanks as ever to the lovely waffle for starting the threads up and looking after them for years. What are your plans for the coming term? Any exams, auditions, festivals, new instruments? Please come and chat.

OP posts:
LinksEche · 11/04/2019 23:46

Thanks. Yes, we definitely don't want something as an alternative to a piano. Firstly it needs to live under the sofa, and secondly we would see £500 as an absolute maximum!

NeleusTheStatue · 11/04/2019 23:43

Zak, Encore is so impressive and expensive. Having said that, DS's dream summer camp costs roughly £5.5k excluding the flight. It won't happen any time soon I need evening and weekend jobs...

NeleusTheStatue · 11/04/2019 23:39

Hi LinksEche. We have Yamaha Clavinova. It was the right investment for us as DS used it as an alternative to a real piano. Now we have an acoustic piano, so we would be very happy with more cheaper models in Roland or Korg as a spare. I found their keys are not too bad for the price, and certainly good enough for just messing around. However, I am not a pianist so hopefully, someone more experienced will step in soon.

LinksEche · 11/04/2019 23:04

Lurker and occasional poster. DS 11 is a woodwind player and has just starting to look at G5 pieces. Our 30 year old electronic keyboard has well and truly given up on life and we would like a new one. Any suggestions? It's useful for aural test practice, but mostly it's for messing around on. Prices vary hugely, not sure where to start.

ZakStarkey · 11/04/2019 16:12

What summer course is he attending Neleus?
Encore by any chance?

NeleusTheStatue · 11/04/2019 14:26

Ah, bless her, having so much fun. It's the best way to learn music, isn't it?

Just renewed insurance for DS's violin. We got a discount last year but had to pay full this year - ouch.

Also booked accommodation for a summer course DS is attending. He's too young to go alone so I have to go with him hence everything costs more - another ouch.

Original poster
thirdfiddle · 10/04/2019 21:17

Do you think DD tends to play more musically compared with DS due to the use of stories/images?
At the moment more erratically really. She is fun to work with though. And she's having a lot of fun with it which means more practice happens. I definitely approve of playing around with music :) Your DS sounds like a very mature young musician.

cocopops, congratulations to your DD! How exciting.

OP posts:
OneLovelySister · 10/04/2019 20:23

I was raised in a hippyish milieu so that sound is a bit of a blast from childhood. Thank you, I shall revisit Smile

Doubleup · 10/04/2019 19:59

Herts it could be someone trying to advertise. I’ve seen those removed before.

RomanyQueen1 · 10/04/2019 19:58

Onelovelysister

If you like that, then I give you this. The first thing my dh shared with me and we're still together 30 years later. Grin

If you like the tonal thing, listen to we three kings.

CoffeeTeaChocolate · 10/04/2019 19:43

Hi Everyone,

Occasional poster and lurker here. So lovely to see so many familiar names.

I have three DC, DD, 10, violin, who just has passed grade 5 music theory (yippee!!!) and will do Grade 6 violin in the summer term, DS 8, violin, who will do Grade 2 this summer term and DD 6, who MAY look at recorder Grade 1.

RomanyQueen1 · 10/04/2019 19:20

OneLovelySister

In some things talented, but other aspects of her music making a teacher can be surprised she doesn't get something they consider easy for her Grin
I think they have strength and weaknesses in different areas.
When I see all the sax players together none of them seem to play the same Grin all different sounds, even though being taught by the same teachers.

Hertsessex · 10/04/2019 19:06

Just checked in after a while and found every thread spammed by SommyAE. One of the old crazy culprits? Anyway glad to see the new thread. Three musical children here, one at specialist school. Bit of everything between them classical and jazz piano, violin, saxophone, marimba, drums, etc. Never a dull moment.

OneLovelySister · 10/04/2019 19:05

That’s impressive, Romany, she must be very talented.

I like the tonal thing and the, um, percussive sounds. No clue how those happen, I couldn’t see from the video!

Clearly, months of three G1 flute pieces has made me hungry for a more balanced musical diet...

SommyAE · 10/04/2019 18:29

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

NeleusTheStatue · 10/04/2019 18:21

Interesting, thirdfiddle. Do you think DD tends to play more musically compared with DS due to the use of stories/images?

My DS also seems to link music to landscapes and seasons. So, weather, landscapes and seasons - lots of nature for some reason!

RomanyQueen1 · 10/04/2019 18:07

She just picked it up and sight read it Grin
Other things that may sound easy to others she has to work at.
That awful tonal thing is hard to do, but she picked it up straight away.

Original poster
thirdfiddle · 10/04/2019 18:07

thirdfiddle, do you think your DD thinks of a story when she plays? How about your DS (the mathy one)?

DD - yes, stories or images for dynamics, or to get the starting speed right, or for articulation. So one of her current pieces has a bear in it, that stops her playing too fast or lightly. But sometimes she changes it to a pixie instead and plays it up two octaves and double speed. Or similes - I'll be showing her some technique and she'll break in with "oh it's like a little insect" and then she can do it (that was grace notes I think - no idea why it's an insect but whatever works!). Mixture of us feeding her stories and her coming up with her own. DS is not interested in imagery and just plays the notes and markings on the page so far. Less poetic but on the plus side we don't have to invent a mountain hike to get him to follow a simple dynamic marking!

OP posts:
OneLovelySister · 10/04/2019 17:49

I was thinking you must have very conservative musical tastes, Romany, until I hit 3:17... Grin

I love it! That said, I imagine it takes a lot of practice before it sounds as amazing as in the video.

RomanyQueen1 · 10/04/2019 17:24

Shsky

Your house sounds like ours, although dd not home yet.
She's playing a terrible piece with horrible noises, are they multi tones or something? It is an acquired taste.
What pieces is she playing for the diploma, there can't be many at that level?
Here it is, is bloody awful. Grin

Mitsouko67 · 10/04/2019 17:08

Lovely to hear all the good news on this thread lately.

NeleusTheStatue · 10/04/2019 16:28

Great news, cocopops! Star

4strings · 10/04/2019 16:26

Fantastic!

MeltingWax · 10/04/2019 16:21

Very well done coco's DD - great news! Star

OneLovelySister · 10/04/2019 16:15

Wow, fab news, coco - well done to your DD! Star