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.

OK, so my dc are not at a level of your dc, and sometimes I feel a fraud posting on these threads.
But as far as more than 1 instrument goes. dc2 plays more piano than her second instrument, but with her second instrument she can play in a group which she also enjoys doing.
dc3 same, plays piano on her own but with recorder she can play together with me.
So basically with different instruments you can do different things/enjoy it for different reasons, if that make sense.

with different instruments you can do different things/enjoy it for different reasons, if that make sense.

Yes that's exactly it in my experience (except for children pursing a specialist music education like NewLife's DD).

DD does "proper" piano lessons at the conservatoire, sax is (or was because it's been neglected this year) at the local municipal music school, and guitar is a group class once a week (that she doesn't practice for) plus songwriting and rehearsals for concerts.

I agree.

I regret not learning an orchestral instrument alongside the piano. But I do enjoy playing on my own and sometimes think it would be inconvenient to have to find someone else to play with. In my dreams I can play the piano and the violin.

exam

Ha, Ha, sometimes I feel a fraud posting on here because my dd doesn't fit the normal mould.
They are all different and will have different reasons for wanting to play.
I like that we have a common thread in the music and that as parents we can support each other.
I will always add that dd is different, because I'd hate new parents to feel out of place, that her amount of practice was normal. I certainly don't think she is any better than anybody else. In fact it's great that when on here there are so many children that on paper are miles ahead of my dd
Still waiting for grade 5 theory exam, will know more after results from her dyslexia assessment tomorrow.

Thank you for your answers! I feel almost lucky now as dd only has two instruments and ds just one
Yes, it does make sense that they enjoy it for various reasons... Perhaps I should relax a bit and if they want to take it seriously later on they will have some grounding anyway and nothing will stop them if it is their own wish....

Test tomorrow, not results.
Hoping for theory test in October.

NewLife4Me I think it is good that there are parents or children with the different level of expertise and involvement :). And musical teachers :). Some parents may not write here but read what is discussed and you never know who can benefit from your experience :) So you are definitely not a fraud but a very important member of community! :)
I sometimes feel that our experience is not relevant to some questions raised - I just don't answer in this case :)

Newlife - not fraud at all! That would be me - I know so little about all this music stuff I hesitate to share as will probably lead people down the proverbial garden path😀

Only - DD definitely swings around in her first love instrument wise, and that is reflected in her practice. She does pick up and play both instruments many times a day for a quick burst as we are due to head out the door to something....

So JD dept audition later this week, and everything is 'ready'; school has again recommended we think about specialist school for secondary but I am not sure at all. Think I owe it to DD to let her do some advise auditions, but I still don't think she wants to be a full time musician ...

Musicmom1

Good luck and just imo good idea to let her do auditions, as it's her choice then.
We worked on the principle that dd wasn't really old enough to determine what she wanted, even though she kept telling us
If you encourage neither you nor she can say any different as time goes on.

These threads are a credit to Waffle and the only second regular thread I post on that hasn't had deletions for nastiness, strangely enough my old boarding thread was the other

I like hearing what others are doing and about the differences in provision, although this can be saddening when the range is displayed.

Has anyone's Dc done residential music camp? Considering for next year ...

Mine is the same Only. She normally plays very little of each and if there is an exam then the other one is nearly forgotten. I am so thankful for the exams even its a little bit stressful at times however without them mine would hardly practise and there might be super duper slow progress

We are only back and there was very very little practise and some past papers were done but the marks were only 76-80 mostly because she forgot the whole session and/or they asked for a UP transpose she did DOWN. Chords and Cadence were still our issues

I've learned an awful lot from these threads and find them very supportive. My experience is beware the fun instrument - it can become the favourite. DS1 loves bass guitar, which was meant to be a bit of light relief, and never has to be told to practise. He has decided to do a composition for his EPQ and has begun with the bass guitar line in F sharp minor. He plays drums and is sure he can do a good drum line for it. However, he now realises the rather flash bass line has set him up with a bit of a challenge! technically, his main instrument is tuned percussion so maybe he can work out something for xylophone. He's got plenty of time but it will be interesting to see what he decides to do.
DS2 took up cello after starting piano so he could play in an orchestra and partly because he loved the sound it makes, but he doesn't have a favourite. Like Green we find the intensity of practice has a lot to do with when an exam is looming! if DS2 does a third instrument, it's likely to be saxophone and I am going to emphasise the 'fun' aspect. he likes jazz and it would be nice for him to get good enough to join a group. I won't be pushing exams for it at all.

Goo's 'fun' instrument has become her favourite, after 5 lessons. She does about 40 minutes a day on that one (piano, her 3rd instrument). Her teacher caught me at lunch the other day and said she didn't think exams were a good idea yet, because she is progressing fast and needs to find her level. I said good, Goo doesn't want to do any piano exams for ages yet, because it would take some of the fun out of it, and she has already had a music exam in each of the last five sessions! Teacher alluded to Grade 3 or 4 next year. We'll see.

Delighted Goo is enjoying piano so much! I think it must feel like a reward for all that theory work in some respects and quite liberating not to be doing an exam. DS1 is going to do grade 6 in bass guitar as his first grade in it and then take as long as it takes to do grade 8. After that he wants guitar lessons, he says!
I managed to practise one grade 4 piece over half term, need to do a bit of grade 4 theory tomorrow before the piano lesson. The music school is now offering some summer lessons so ds1 and I might extend our term a couple of weeks!

We try to keep all instruments going at the same level which is a challenge. He really likes everything the same. When recently told that he would have to choose some day he said he couldn't yet. Piano takes more practice time because it's the most challenging one at gr8 I think. Problem with orchestral and tuned percussion is you're not talking about one instrument but six or more! It's all a big marathon. Composition is the one that suffers most. Of course that will have to change for GCSE when it becomes compulsory.
Concentrating on academics this week and next for school final exams. Practice has continued because it was a welcome break from revising.
Good luck everyone.

Hi everyone. This is a bit of a long shot, but I was wondering if anyone can suggest a book for me about Baroque composer Jean-Philippe Rameau. Something like John Eliot Gardiner's Music In The Castle Of Heaven (about Bach's life & music) would be ideal, but any recommendation would do, really.

I'm going through a Rameau phase - listening to & playing his piano (well, harpsichord) music. A nice change from Bach & Couperin whom I have been concentrating on lately

Drummersmum - it kinds of depends where he want to get to. If just for fun then can carry on and not specialise. If he wants to go to music college, maybe be professional then will have to give more weight to percussion or piano in the end or else he won't have the time to be good enough at either. Even within the percussion field in the end have to specialise to some extent - jazz drums vs orchestral percussion being the first big choice. In a similar position to you and going through the same issues.....

My son did a one week camp recently as well. He thoroughly enjoyed and got a very intensive musical experience, ensemble and solo with a range of teachers.

Hi all, have just found this, maybe most have seen it but thought worth linking. The last one I did had closed, so look quickly.

gb.abrsm.org/en/about-abrsm/news-articles-and-comment/latest-news/article/be-part-of-the-bbcs-last-night-of-the-proms-celebrations/694/

NeverEver, not sure where in the UK you are, but Kent Music Summer School is also good for children from 9 to 18...orchestral and choir (no solo/ensemble).

Had a long post but lost while posting it, so gutted!

Wanted to say thank you Newlife for sharing, will look at it during lunch today!

Regarding about music camp, will look for it next summer and I am sure mine will be loving it.

There will be some serious violin practice tonight as we are not doing too well on it yet!!!