Autumn Term Music and Musicians Thread

[Wafflenose]

Hello everyone!

I know not everyone is in the UK, but my children went back to school today, and I have found that having a new thread every few months works well. The school terms sort-of coincide with music exam sessions here - I will shortly start preparing the pupils that I plan to enter for November/ December.

As there are quite a few people reading/ posting on these threads, I would find it really helpful if people could remind us what children they have, how old they are, and what they play. If you don't mind, of course! Please feel free to ask questions and talk about your own learning too!

I'm Waffle and I'm a teacher of woodwind - mostly recorders these days. I have Mini who is 9 and plays the recorder and flute properly, and a bit of piano, trumpet and ukulele for fun. She is a member of South West Music School and NCO. I also have Baby who is 7 and plays the recorder and cello, and would like to play the piano.

For exams this term, Mini is doing Grade 6 Recorder with Trinity, and Baby is doing Grade 2. Next term, they are doing Theory exams - Grades 5 and 1 respectively. I know Grade 1 is utterly unnecessary, but Mini found it helpful to have a practice run by doing her Grade 3, and I can think of worse ideas than sending Baby in for the first time with her big sister. The next Flute and Cello exams will be Grades 5 and 2, but not yet.

I need to change their names at some point - Mini is not mini any more. She is 4'8" and up to my top lip. Baby is clearly 7, so I need to think again.

Well, if you insist, NewLife...

So far since last Saturday we have had:

• Normal 3 hour Music Centre
• All day 'Big School Musical Show' rehearsal
• Technical and dress Rehearsals, each most of a day and into the evening
• Matinee, 2 performances so far

Christmas concert was the previous week.

Coming up, we have 1x more performance, 1x Music Centre + evening concert. Oh, and a grudge football match against main local rivals.

Other child had a cello exam, will have 2x high level dance exams (1+ hours each) and the usual 12 ish hours of dancing each week before term ends ...and a birthday party to host.

And this is an 'off' year. The alternate years when the dance school show runs in the same week as the Big School Musical production is a kind of continuous motion machine for the whole of December...

Teacher

Are you doing all this running around and working I take it too?

Oh it is so lovely to hear, I bet your dc are loving it.
I miss it terribly.
My dd is doing lots of stuff but not public performances except end of term concert.
I can remember previous years running around until I was frazzled and ready to stop.
The grass isn't greener though

NewLife,

there is a good reason i went part time this year! I got sick of doing all the running around but never actually getting to go to any of the concerts / productions because i had to dash home to work until pick-up time.

I managed to miss out on school show tickets, but the Christmas concert was AMAZING. Haven't smiled so much in ages, because while I've been working like a crazy loon, DS and the other musicians who are his friends have got really good, and lovely to listen to....

I am tired, and have so much to do that I don't know WHAT to do. I work at two schools, and teach privately as well. Tomorrow I am playing at two school fairs in one evening, and DD1 has a birthday party to go to. On Wednesday, I have three carol services, and the DDs are involved in two. There will be rehearsals for these beforehand. I've just finished my 75 reports and all the associated envelope stuffing. Both girls had recorder exams yesterday (plus six of my pupils) and are gearing up for Theory (and possibly Flute) next term. DD1 is playing at one of the fairs tomorrow, and both are singing with the choir. DD1 is playing with her school flute group in assembly at some point. And for February, I have entered 27 individuals/ pairs/ groups in the Festival. I am playing or directing approximately 50 pieces in that.

Eek, Wafflenose. I hope that you come out of that sane. DD's 17 or so dances per festival (next one also in Feb) is enough to have me reaching for gin, and all I do is hair, costume changes and nervous jittering, nothing more active...

Waffle

I'm sorry you are tired, I bet you are ready for a break.
I hope you find your work rewarding and all the concerts and performances will be brilliant I'm sure. Both your own dc and your schools.

teacher

That must have been hard having to miss their performances.
At least I got to see them after the running around.

I can imagine it's lovely to hear the change in their ability, I suppose you don't get that if you hear them all the time.
I can't remember the last time I heard dd sing, end of summer I think.

NewLife, until September, I had last heard DS play in last year's Christmas production, because the class I teach attended it. I had never been to the Christmas concert (DS has played in it for the last 4 years)

I had missed absolutely everything between Christmas and September - Jazz festivals and evenings, school concerts, music centre concerts, taking him to exams, the lot. I missed less of DD's dancing because most happens in half terms / holidays and I have to be there for costume changes.

The school musical is the first thing I have missed since going part time. It's wonderful.

Last week was the last week before the exam so I had two hours driving to and from lessons and two and a half hours of lessons. That's four and a half hours gone from my week in a flash. Add on another hour and a half for the to/wait/from of a sixth form interview, then there was the two and a half hours for the school Christmas concert. My week wrapped up with two hours for two return trips to Saturday morning music school (I leave him there so I don't wait for the three hours he is there). My husband did the running around to the four band engagements.

The music lessons have knocked off now until after Christmas so maybe I might be able to get the tree up this week.

teacher

You sound well blessed, so pleased you are getting to see them both perform.
I was the opposite and never missed anything I did enjoy it so much and feel lost without all the running around and waiting.

Have just started playing again and hope next year to find a wind band, not sure of my chances though.

You all sound so busy, hope you have a great time and enjoy the build up.

DS took his first LCM exam on Monday, he did Trinity all the way through but switched as LCM offer a performance diploma with sightreading, only rudimentary programme notes and no viva. He didn't want to talk to an examiner and his sightreading is good so LCM it was. On the day they said that the results take about a week so we were surprised to get the email tonight. He got 96/100, made up of 20/20 for his sightreading and 19/20 for each of his pieces.

I feel better now about all that running about to music lessons but I can't tell anyone in real life just how little practice he's done over the last three weeks.

Wow, well done your ds. I bet you're proud.
He obviously didn't need a lot of practice for this.
Of course well done to you too, as it's you who did a lot of work too.

What a brilliant score Icould! Congratulations to your DS on his diploma.

Results are just in for my lot: 6 merits and 2 passes. Not bad at all, considering that there were various ups and downs in the exam room!

Baby now has Grade 2 Recorder with Merit, and Mini now has Grade 6 Recorder with Merit (and some currently useless UCAS points, I expect!) They cleverly managed to get exactly the same mark as each other. No more details yet, but we are all pleased.

I have just been Christmas shopping, and am going to bed soon!

Well done I could be and all the Waffles.

Icould that's a great mark well done.
Waffle I got stressed just reading about your schedule. Have a Sweet baby and mini got the same!

I am lucky to be selfemployed and flexible enough to put as a priority over anything else to be there everytime DS plays so I can imagine how you used to feel Teacher! On the other hand my life is basically working and attending performances. ..

Thanks everyone. I feel incredibly relieved because if he'd not passed I couldn't see any way that he could take it again for another twelve months because of mocks and GCSEs. In that case I think it would have meant a whole new programme because two years on the same pieces doesn't stand thinking about.

I think there's another week of waiting for the audition results, if he doesn't get in this time he'll be ok because he'll still be in the honeymoon phase of the exam result. It's all good (or it will be when I get the tree up)

I've been thinking about this again - for me, it's not only been about work vs attending things, it is also the endless balancing act between 2 very busy DCs who do very different 'performing' things.

DH works very long hours a long commute away [and is both tone-deaf and fairly 'meh' on the subject of dance performances], so when a concert is from e.g. 7-9 for DS, but DD needs to be taken to and collected from dance lessons (5 nights a week), it has often been the 'drop DD, drop DS, WORK (planning and marking for next day - work in primary so books always need to be marked overnight for next day), pick up DD, pick up DS' hamster wheel.

It would have been easier if DD was also a music person and taking part in the same events as DS, but she 'found' dance first ... and tbh DS only became one when dropped from the local professional football team's academy. At least watching concerts is WARM!

NewLife4Me -

there's loads of adult groups to play in - check out this website: www.amateurorchestras.org.uk/

and there's the Cobweb Orchestra up north and there's all sorts of stuff happening at Benslow Trust (www.benslowmusic.org/)... and I'm sure that there are local churches with groups too...

Congrats on doing all that running around and faithful concert attendance... we are now on our second to last year of +15 years of school concerts etc. I'm glad that we've done it all but I won't miss the rushing around....

Tonight is pick up DS2 from rehearsal. Tomorrow piano lessons at home. Ds1 playing with school 10.30 to 12.30. Older DC playing with another band 3.00 to 6.00 andDS2 rehearsing and concert most of the day.
Sunday DS2 singing all day, I'm chaperoning in the afternoon. DS1 playing in school group for four hours in a very cold shopping outlet.

DD also has a cake sale I need to bake for.

However, we live in a location you will have seen on the news a lot this week. We've been lucky and aren't directly affected.

Indirectly travelling time has increased massively because of road closures, but this is minor really. Also some concerts/Carol services have been cancelled. Many of the ones that are still on are donating their fees etc to the flood appeal.

Two fayres and two performances tonight... DONE! Yay. I'm ticking things off my list now. Tomorrow, both girls are out for the day so I'm going to write all my Christmas cards.

Turns out there was a typo in my emailed exam results yesterday, and although the Initial Grade candidate did indeed pass, all five of the Grade 1s were actually Merits! Plus my kids. And my last result is just in - ABRSM Clarinet Grade 2... another Merit!

Icould, so happy for you

Well done all the stalls and good luck to those still awaiting results!

We are well into the running about phase of Xmas , though that started over the advent weekend with 2 trips to Nottingham to ds uni symphony orchestra concert and then the advent proscession at st marys with both the big kids singing - we couldn't stay over as dd2 and dh sang at cathedral then a fast ride to our parish church to support them!

Dd1 second graduation ( MA distinction and department and humanities prizes !) tues, dd2 prize giving today, mince pie morning concert tomorrow at wind orchestra ( taking my dad , it's his birthday weekend) , lunch with the biggies as well Sunday ( and morning and evening services for dd2 and dh) . Monday dd2 school concert, tues dd2 exam, dh school concert (it's a boys prep which leads to the immortal question " which is your boy ?" "Oh he's the one at the front waving his arms" !) . Dd2 carol service school on Friday ( end of term). Then Saturday off I think....radio carols Monday ( dd2 maybe dd1 if invited) evensong tues , nine lessons Xmas Eve and ......

For the first time in 11yrs.......... Xmas morning off:)

Like newlife this is the " wind down" with 2 at uni....it just doesn't feel like it lol

Teacher we couldn't possibly cope if we both worked full time. Especially since my job involves so much overseas travel. It was harder when DD1 and DS did drama on top of everything else, because the 3 kids were all in different groups for a while - when you added that to 4 lots of dancing a week for DD2 (sometimes 5), and two nights of music lessons one lot of which are 20 miles away...and factor in that the girls don't get home from school till 4;45 anyway - it used to be a nightmare schedule with every night having at least one activity and most nights having multiple ones (either involving the same kid in different places or different kids in different places) - it was brutal. Now, with the pruning of some of DD1's stuff (drama has gone, singing lessons have now gone - she kept in for a year or so after grade 8 but after she decided not to do diploma it seemed silly to keep on) and some of DS"s (drama and music theory have gone) we have two brutal nights still - Mondays where the girls have a 40 mile round trip for their recorder lessons - and Fridays where DD2 has two dance classes followed by singing - but Tuesdays saturdays and sundays are single child single thing (well - DD1 does playing stuff mornings and DD2 dances in the afternoon) and Thursdays are totally free. Which just seems weird. It won't get much easier when DD1 goes to conservatoire though, because DD2 will probably shift her recorder lesson to a Thursday or a Saturday (she might m0ve up to an hour lesson but that still gives us more flexibility than the two of them having 1.75 hours) and pick up another dance class on Mondays.

Today is the first day of the panto season though so now it's all DD2 all the time for the next few weeks. And luckily all the music lessons have stopped for xmas. So we will get the odd free night. Once the school concerts are done too.

Uhtred, We did 3 years of 2x full time working (DH doing 13+ hours out of the house every day, me working all day Sunday to plan and mark what I couldn't manage during the week) + 2x children doing something 5 nights a week for at least 2 hours a night (DD) or 4 nights a week + both days at the weekend (DS). It was ... ugly!

Still dreaming of a night off, which doesn't look like happening for a while yet, but me working only 3 full days in school + 2 days doing prep at home during school hours, and thus being available all weekend, has just made it so much less relentless.

DD did panto twice, at one of those theatres where they have 2x troupes each doing 36 performances from end November to early January. It was a bit like the sleepless days of tiny babyhood - my memories of it are mercifully hazy! Hope that your DD2 loves it.

Teacher - this is her 6th year in a row. We have 3 troupes. But lots of matinees and a couple of awful days with 3 shows so it's unusual to get a full day off. Sigh. I'm hoping she won't do it next year.

[Pictures 3 shows in a day. Shudders, and offers much awe to Uhtred and DD!]

DD just had a 2 show day / day off rotation. We were really glad she didn't want to do it this year and that she can't do it every year because it alternates between the dance schools....