May/ June Music and Musicians Thread

[Wafflenose]

Welcome, everyone. I can't believe we need a new thread already, but I'm delighted that they now seem so popular!

I'm Waffle, I'm a music teacher and I have two daughters - Goo (10) who plays the recorder, flute, piccolo (a bit) and started the piano a month ago, and Rara (8) who isn't as musically inclined but plays the cello and recorder. She is plodding (very) slowly towards Grade 3 on both.

We're going on holiday this weekend, so will have to have a good read when I get back. For now, I'll wind the thread up and let it do its stuff.

*Drumming

Fleur: minifleur is so much matured compare to mine, hearing her practice makes me smile. I have someone playing violin tonight while laying down on the floor on her back!!! Apparently a long day with tennis and swimming and hours in the climbing frame then thats the best I could get!!!

How does it work with the NCO? Dd is 10 in September so would she be applying for under 11 next year?

Woolley - yes that's right; they don't look at grades, it is solely about the audition (sight reading v important). If your DD wasn't quite ready she might get a place in the regional orchestra which is really good experience. Auditions were sept-October last year. Some years they do a wind/brass summer course for those deemed as talented but not yet playing at the level needed that year; you don't apply separately for it, and am not sure if it always runs)

Our first two clarinets were named Clarence and Clive. These were when DS2 and DS3 started playing. Then DS2 got his wooden one which is named Clement. DD acquired Clive when DS3 stopped playing. Now her wooden one is Clarissa.
I'm glad we aren't the only instrument names!

fleur do you mean drum roll

With NCO, you don't apply for a certain orchestra really - they decide where to put you. My DD (and Musicmom's) are 10 and in Under 11s, but Goo has a friend at regionals who is 10 and in Under 12s. A six year old got into Under 12s years ago!

We are off on holiday tomorrow morning, so I look forward to catching up with you all when we get back.

Just caught up with page 4. Please do apply, Woolley. I have a (just turned) 9 year old pupil applying on the clarinet this year - she is about to take Grade 3. If they were both to get in, we might be able to tell them to look out for each other.

That's the word Drummersmum kept searching for it last night. I knew you'll come to my rescue.

Any piano names suggestions? We tried last night, thought of Peter but DD doesn't like it and she'd adamant the piano is a "she". I call it the black beast but she wants to name it. She took out the recorder an guitar also last night (instruments we bought for DS when he was little in case he wanted to learn) and had a satisfying grin on her face at having "so many instruments mummy!". I do hope she doesn't get any more ideas to ask for guitar lessons.

Waffle have a lovely holiday!

Black, female, beastly. Your piano is "Shuri", ruler of Wakanda, Fleur
Check her out en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuri_%28comics%29

Enjoy the camping waffle

Green your DD sounds like a fantastic free spirit I recommend looking out for some Lindsey Stirling on youtube to inspire her.

Our piano is the only nameless instrument. One of the violins is called Tempest because there were so many tears and tantrums.

Just signed my 2 up for a week of Scottish folk music over the summer. Really interested to know what the folk provision is like outside Scotland?

And in other news DD2 is now playing the piece she is struggling with for her exam on repeat because I had such a rant at her for staying in bed till 11 and then expecting everyone else to organise themselves around her.

If I get her cross enough she practises properly just to spite me

don't change her green

howabout, that's the sum of my DD too on days...

Green your DD is herself and that is what matters most. And I am not ruling out DD playing the clarinet rolling on the floor, it just didn't cross her mind yet, she played it sitting down, and standing on the sofa (like on a stage).

Thanks for the suggestion drummersmum I'll give her the entries tonight, I am also thinking of Penny the piano but not very imaginative for a black beast.

Ladies, nothing much I could do especially seeing her carrying her friends(boys) running around the playground on several rare occasion when I came and picked her. (she although has long hair and super sweet face to disguide

The pic was so her that we stopped dancing because she invented her own dance and didn't listen to her teacher and wasted her friends time.

On the positive note she expresses herself well in writing and drawing and is very good at maths.

Then came to the second child who is also a girl and hardly ever sit rather than hanging up side down on the sofa with head down all the times who is so fearless and just have so much energy all the time.

My house is my pride and now I have to change my life perspective a little when all walls were beautifully drew by our 2 yrs old.

Nevertheless, I won't give up, hopefully they will change one day

How, will look up on you tube tonight, thank you!

Our new digi piano is called Dave

We have three clarinets ( Clara, Clarence and Annie)
Keith the keyboard is sadly neglected now that Dave has come along with his plethora of keys and fancy ways
We had Clarence serviced last Saturday and ( lol) as we walked away dd said " I don't like leaving him there "

What can I say...She is as odd as her mother

green careful what you wish for. You will miss the children when they change.

on the ballet theme, how about Petrova the Piano - or Posy
I must say I rather like Claire for a clarinet.
Green - MiniGreen cannot be changed! She is a force of nature! My youngest, like your youngest, spent a lot of time upside down on the sofa and he drew on the walls, the underside of the table etc. I don't think he'd dream of doing it now!

We are getting a dishwasher called Dave so I couldn't call an instrument that!

We would need to do some serious sight reading practice before an NCO audition! Dd is good at reading the notes quickly but doesn't pick up the note lengths etc so well. She says you don't have to at band, that's what the conductor tells you!

I love the idea of a piano being called Dave trout

DD decided on Penelope the piano! I am afraid I couldn't impress her with the other suggestions but then she shouted "Penelope". so there you are...

Penelope is excellent!
However, I have to say Dave the piano is genius!

I can see why you wouldn't want to get Dave the piano confused with Dave the dishwasher.

"Just shove all the dirty plates in Dave and I'll sort them out in the morning."

Naming instruments is weird . DD's guitars just get called by the type of guitar/ brand, so for eg I'd ask her if she was going to play the Taylor, the GS mini, or the Strat. The piano is just the piano (even though it's not really a piano ).

We are still struggling to work out a strategy for working on the fast bit of her piano piece. There is one bar she can't get up to speed, it's kind of a descending arpeggio that ends in a chord. It's fine at about two thirds speed. As soon as she starts to increase speed even slightly it introduces errors (whereas the rest of the page is now at the point where slowing down makes it worse). It doesn't help that she has small hands which means she can't use the recommended fingering. There is a lot of simultaneous movement in both hands, while playing a cross rhythm, which seems to result in a sort of cognitive overload. I'm not really sure what to suggest: this morning I got her to try doing the right hand with her eyes closed, to see if this would free up some attention for the left hand, but this results in errors about one time in three. Any suggestions welcome. It may be that it's just a question of time (but she doesn't have much of that left).

Misti Which piece which edition which bar?