Spring/ Summer Music and Musicians Thread

[Wafflenose]

My children go back to school tomorrow, and it's my birthday this week, so it must be properly spring in the UK now, and time for a new thread! Please jump right in by telling us about your DCs' learning (or your own), or by asking any music/ music exam related questions you like. We have lots of experienced music parents and teachers on here, as well as lots of new ones.

I am a music teacher, and mum to Goo (10) and Rara (7). Goo started the recorder and flute when she was tiny (age 3 and 6 respectively), has recently added piccolo, but not very well yet, and is starting piano lessons in a couple of weeks. She has no exams this term, but will probably do Grade 6 Flute in the Autumn and Grade 8 Recorder next Spring. She plays in her school orchestra and recorder groups, South West Music School and NCO, and has her first concert with County Wind Band tonight, after a trial course. She hasn't auditioned to become a member yet, and might not for a few years yet, due to age and time factors.

Rara isn't so musically inclined - she prefers to read and draw, and is also very physically active. However, she is due to take her Grade 2 Cello exam this term, and Grade 3 Recorder in the Autumn - she's currently getting to grips with the treble and loving it!

teacher DS is in year 10. Don't get me started on revision matters... He is non musical, quite academic but also pretty lazy. I love him to bits and he a great teenager but his lack of interest in anything (other than ps4) drive me mad.

We (or at least the kids) are on holiday this week. DD has done some piano today - her compulsory audition piece is even easier than she thought, and after 45 minutes of work she has two of the three pages learnt and up to speed. It is a couple of grades inside her "comfort zone", so it's not going to require much work.

I just bought her an ancient, secondhand MacBook pro from a musician friend, and she's been exploring new recording software today. I need to find out what other kit she needs as she has a birthday coming up...

We have Grade 8 Recorder pencilled in for March, but it could wait. I never expected to be looking at a potential Grade 7 and 8 (two instruments) at primary school. Although it might be a good idea to get them done before secondary school homework (and a longer day, bus journey etc) kick in. Everything within me is saying "don't" to this Grade 6 though. It won't hurt to wait, but 7-8 months is a long time with these kids.

Anyway, the entry is due in a week or so. We'll see how it goes this week, and if Goo can't decide, I've told her I'll decide for her. (I'll say no).

Waffle are you not tempted to try for a music school for Goo?

No, she is going to the comprehensive down the road with her friends. Our nearest music school is more than an hour away, amazing for music, not as good academically as our local school, and I absolutely can't bear the thought of sending her to boarding school. If she really wanted it, and got a substantially assisted place, we'd think about it. But she doesn't, and I'm glad really. The thought of sending her away makes me want to cry - difficult as she is sometimes!

Re other activities, DD did lots until the last year of junior high - dance, Zumba, archery, gymnastics. This year it has been hard to find activities that fit with her lycée timetable (she is out of the house 6.45am until at least 7.15pm four days a week). She does Zumba once or twice a week, and she writes and draws at home.

Fleur with you all the way with the lazy teenage boy issues, mine is 13 and I've had to really insist on him keeping up BMX this year. I understand why he's a bit demotivated - he's just gone up a category and is competing against boys who are in some cases physically adult men - but I won't let him slob about at home all weekend!

Good that you don't have second thoughts waffle! She sounds very talented.

waffle there are huge social and practical advantages to going to a local high school. Our local 11-15 school is 150 metres from our house, and it meant that DD had lots of time to do extracurricular activities all the way through. She would never have been able to play so much music if she'd had a commute - she actually added two new instruments in her final, exam year.

It has been much, much harder this year, with a long commute to school. She tried boarding and it was not a success (too regimented and not enough time for casual musical creativity). The bus ride is OK but takes more than 2 hours out of her day.

That's good to hear, Misti. Our local school is 2 miles away. We think we can get her there by car between us in the mornings, and she will have to get the bus home. There's so much music that she could do it every lunch time and after school if she wanted. Or, in the unlikely event that she begins to show some sporting ability, they do quite a lot of that as well!

Misti, we made the same decision for DD - local good comprehensive vs the grammar school she got into easily but is a significant bus journey each way. As she dances 2-3 hours+ every evening, going to a nearby school means that she fits in 'normal' teenage life - homework, a little music, school sports teams, even a little mindless teenage tv - as well. The school a bus journey away would mean a wake-bus-school-bus-dance-bed grind, out of the house from 7.30 am to past 9pm except for snatched supper every day.

We didn't consider vocational dance school for her - too big a compromise in terms of academics at too young an age. She may consider dance college at 18.

Misti I've lost the battle I'm afraid (with regards to teenage boys and their interest). I'm not complaining, he is really good otherwise.

Fleur, DS is lovely too. Not unwilling, just lacking in forward motion or oomph! Driving me nuts....

teacher yes it's always a compromise isn't it? After being very local for years 7 to 10, DD got a place on a very selective three-year language programme at a lycée (sixth form college) 30 miles from where we live. It is a great opportunity for her, but it has meant sacrifices, and we are hoping to move closer to her school next year. She has had to drop theory, and sax has fallen by the wayside a bit too. It's impossible to do everything.

Our local comp isn't "good" (great team of teachers, but very deprived intake and getting worse) but we have been very pleased with it on the whole.

We would like to keep DD in the mainstream and local; she would like also to audition and then decide about one music school - it's the one waffle mentioned (I think!) and the academics worry me plus it would be a house move - I had done isn't want to board and I am v v happy about that.

Waffle - I would prob take it this term or skip it; I am not suprised she is 'ready' - she is v talented and works (and my DD has told me this do must be true!)

Amazing concert tonight, 2.5 hours of which the hastily put together orchestra played about two thirds. Two composers in the audience to hear their works. Makes it all worthwhile when you get to see this type of thing and so proud of DD for some serious sight reading efforts (historically not her strong point!).

Rubbish typing as usual 'DD not interested in boarding, thankfully!'

My two pennyworth Waffle would be to skip it. DS2 isn't doing exams at all on trombone and has skipped Grade 5 clarinet. He did 5 exams in 3 terms last year, including working very hard to fit in his Gold RSCM while he was still a treble. He's still one now, but you never know!

Another one here who resisted suggestions of Music school or chorister school.

We have a busy week coming up. Two school concerts for older DC. These will be DS1s last school concerts (although he is doing tour band), so will be rather sad.

DS2 is off to London with DH tomorrow, to sing in a big concert this week. Very exciting.

And to finish off, older DC have anither concert at the weekend!

Raspberryripple, would the concert feature 2 celebs beginning with A? My DD is singing too.

DS1 is typical 14 year old - bright but not very driven. I joke that DS2 age 11 is far more capable at practical things!
Waffle - I would go with your instinct as far as exams are concerned but I am sure Goo would be fine!
Must say DS1 has thrived at local comprehensive and has plenty of time in the evenings for music as the school is only 10 minutes away! DS2 follows him there in September.
I have some doubts about their exams next month - there needs to be a lot more practice compared to screen time!

I also think it has made a difference to dd ( yr 8) that she attends local state secondary 15 min walk away.
She's home at about twenty past three every day... Has time to easily fit in homework , and instrument playing before doing anything else.
She goes to a local music centre for 4 hours on a Saturday...( And I help there in a non- musical capacity.) She attends various sessions there . It's been amazing value . We could never have afforded to independently source all the different lessons and groups she has made use of since she first started there. They are just about to start a composition group for kids taking gcse music .. Perfect timing for dd!

I always say if I could be take a little bit of dd's drive ( read obsessiveness) and give it to her teenage brother and then give some of his chilled laid-back attitude to her, then I would.

I would like to do the same for my two, trout!

I know what you mean trout! DS1 is a clever lad but it was many years before he could sit on a chair without somehow managing to fall off it! He used to try to leave the house without wearing shoes...Recent example of dozy is the grade 5 percussion exam. Yesterday, I asked how the practice was going. DS was shocked that the exam is next month. He doesn't have a snare drum piece! There are too many scales! Then he looked thoughtful and said the snare drum will be ok because it's grade 5 and the pieces he plays at band are grade 7. Only later does it dawn on me that he plays bass drum in the marching band, not snare!
A quick check of the syllabus and his practice book suggests DS1 has covered everything, he just needs to revise it. DH is taking him to the percussion lesson tonight - he's going to have a quick word with the teacher just to make sure!

No exams this term! Phew! I don't especially want them to do exams.

Actually I don't especially want DS1 to do music GCSE either. I thought he could just stick to his music school for music and do other things for his GCSE. Or does GCSE music "buy" you things you don't get from attending saturday music school?

Never ... No don't think a gcse in music 'buys' anything for an already musical child. Apart from the usual benefits that time doing music brings of course.
Dd is at an unusual state school I think. She's in year 8 . They do gcses in a year (apart from languages) and they teach year 7&8 together (streamed) and then year 9,10and 11 together in GCSE groups. So, dd just had to choose a language and another option to study and take the exam in next year. ( year 9)
We went with something she loves and spends most of her free time doing anyway... Coz she's still young to be taking exams ( ha -what am I talking about ?!! She done loads of music exams!! )
Anyway...Hence GCSE music.

GCSE music covers composition and listening and analysing music. You also get exposed to different forms that you may not have come across before. Performance is a large chunk of it but not all of it. Google will turn you up the syllabus of whichever exam board your school uses so you can see the specification in detail. I was asked why DS was "bothering" with GCSE music when he already had a higher qualification but why shouldn't he if it's what he wanted to do? He's got a higher qualification than A level music but he's going to be doing that as well.