Autumn / Winter 2025 Music

Yes our neighbours could hear everything. Luckily, their grown up daughter was a serious pianist herself so they were more understanding. Brass practice can be really annoying though.

We're in a terrace too. Mercifully the house on one side has been empty for a while, and on the other is an HMO where I suspect no one dares complain!

My DD also does keyboard practice around 7-7:45am but it's only the third study for her so we can get away with that, at least for the time being. She finds piano sight reading more difficult though so makes a rather slow progress due to lack of practice. I guess it's always a trade off between the instrument demands, your personal priorities and the real world out there.

DD told me her friend practises the recorder from 6am, which I wouldn't have believed if I hadn't already heard it from their neighbours. We've shifted piano practice to 7.30-8 each morning (volume turned low), but I've vetoed bassoon before 8, we live in a mid-terrace!

She could probably coast on wind instruments, but with piano she has a tendency to make up something plausible based on the first line of the piece if I don't make her settle down and put the effort into working out how to play what's actually on the page. That's about as tiger mum as I'm willing to get.

I guess for them all the music is fun, lots of flow state, so not work and thus not exhausting. I'm very glad DS is the least sporty person on earth, as I'm not sure how we'd fit that in too!

Ahahahaha oh well, violinists cry in the corner 😂

There's a terrifying tiger mum at DS's school who whenever she sees me asks how much practice DS does. She looks non-plussed when 'two hours...' ends in 'a week' rather than 'a day'.

We are also in the winging it camp. Dd hoping to do two grade 8s (piano and cello) and a grade 7 (MT Singing) this academic year - all on very little practice! Her day started this morning at 7.30am with a piano lesson and chamber group before school and will end at 9.30pm after netball club via a full school day, dance audition (for upcoming school musical), away (School) netball match and a full play run through (play - separate to aforementioned musical - starts next week). Like others, practice happens mainly at the weekend and the odd evening she has some time if homework permits. It makes me exhausted just looking at her schedule but she thrives on it.

Yes DD's ensembles are mostly during lunchtime but they clash with MT and other shows rehearsals 🤦‍♀️ She cannot eat properly either...

She also has practice time before school so when there is a choir or chamber music in the morning it means one practice hour less. There are clashes with sport fixtures in the afternoons too 🙈

We could never manage enough practice when DD was at "normal" school. I know of children who do practice around 6am or even earlier but you'd have to live in a detached house or practise on a keyboard for that. Definitely impossible for brass players 😂 but their practice is less demanding timewise.

Re timetabling @Ubertomusic, most of the ensembles are before school or at lunchtime. Or are after-school extracurricular activities.

He has his instrumental lessons in free periods. Or during PE, his preferred option!

The later bedtimes are a boon.

DS is in year 12 now. Yesterday was a typical timetable. School, then astronomy gcse, then into town with friends for dinner, then 2.5hr choir rehearsal.

Then home for a bit of telly.

Then playing and singing Gesthemene (from JCS) at top volume at 11pm as he'd suddenly decided he wants to do it for a concert on Thursday.

@herbaceous Congrats to your DS on the role, it must be very exciting!

How does the school manage such a busy timetable? My DD has clashes every single day and I find it increasingly hard to do everything that's needed. And she's not even doing any academic exams yet!

The answer to 'when does he do practice' is generally 'he doesn't'!

He'll do maybe a couple of hours of piano at the weekend, or late in the evening if he's got a lesson the next day. Singing never gets practised, as far as I can tell, other than in his many choirs. And he seems to wing his horn lessons, with technique improving by sheer mass of ensemble playing.

I think he's allowed to use the music rooms at school to practise during free periods if he likes, so this may go on.

I think his sightreading, plus technique practice in ensembles, stands him in good stead. This approach has seen him to diploma level, so seems to work for him!

My goodness, @herbaceous!

The thing I don't understand is when they're meant to practise the instruments. DD goes straight from school today to the music centre, by the time she's finished there's only time for dinner and bed. I would say that later bedtimes will do it when she's older, but it's hard to see how your teenagers fit everything in!

I've pretty much given up on those arguments about doing too much.

DP suggested perhaps he needn't do quite so much, but DS dramatically replied 'it's what gives my life meaning'. You could almost hear the swoosh of a dramatic cape.

Busy boy

Oh, and doing his singing diploma.

Morning all.

Just had a message from DS saying he's been roped into playing in the recorder group. This is despite him never having played a wind instrument in his life. He's winging it via use of a fingering chart next to the music.

This is in addition to wind quintet, brass group, orchestra, chamber choir, senior choir, barbershop group, jazz band and his rock band.

And playing Tony in West Side Story! YES! His dream role.

And out of school singing in two choirs, plus Rodolfus, and playing in two orchestras. Plus ESO.

Oh, and A levels.

Ds used Musescore when he was first starting out. Then he moved onto Finale which was his favourite but they announced it was being discontinued. He is now learning to use Dorico.

I used musescore for arranging music when I ran a group. Not sure if it can run on a Chromebook. I tried dorico on the iPad but couldn't get to grips with it. I guess garageband is good for recording things and does quite a bit. I don't know it's full capabilities though. I know the kids used it at school. Hope she enjoys being creative. We enjoyed using acapella to make multi track videos in COVID but there are better ways to do this such as recording the sound separately and adding to the videos. There are more expert people on here I'm sure!

I’ll have a think. They have just discontinued support for some of the best notation software.