February Music Thread

[Wafflenose]

Overdue again, this time due to our local music festival. I put in 32 entries, and am now finished for this year, but haven't had a lot of sleep recently!

I am a teacher of woodwind - mostly recorder and clarinet at the moment - and have two DDs. Goo (short for Kajagoogoo in case anyone was wondering - and no, that isn't her actual name!!) is 11 and plays the flute, recorder and piano. Rara is 8 and plays the cello, recorder and clarinet. We are heading towards a half size cello soon, and I think we might have found a suitable one. We're going to try it out this weekend.

The girls have been entered for Grade 7 Flute and Grade 1 Clarinet this term, and I am really regretting it, as they are so under-prepared. But hopefully after a slightly quieter weekend, we can all get back on track.

Please jump right in, ask questions, moan about practice/ scales/ attitude, tell us about your DCs or your own learning... and new members/ beginners are always welcome!

I guess if they can play more difficult pieces then she should be able to play the exam pieces confidently. Also it can get a bit boring only playing exam pieces even in the run up to the exam although I wasn't brave enough to follow ds's teachers advice last year just to not play the exam pieces at all( about 2 weeks before the exam !! ) so that they didn't sound stale but he did play loads of other stuff too which I think helped
Regarding music and sport ds does sport at school but not out of school there just wouldn't be time . I think sport is also important but with homework as well ( and his need to play computer games 😆) I pointed out that he couldn't do everything so he chose jazz band over playing for the local football team

Dd's teacher does same - builds confidence and also means they are v secure at the grade when he enters them.

Dd swims and will do more so this year - loves it, plus great for stretching muscles/ relaxing brain etc - and sleeps v well afterwards!

Thanks everyone, that is good to know

So many posts already!

Marking place.

So dd has just got a role in a local production of the musical "gypsy" which is hugely exciting for her as she loves musical theatre and has never been in a proper show before. Not sure how we are going to fit it all in with trumpet boy !! But where there's a will there's a way I'm sure

Trumpetboy,

As I have music boy and dance girl, both of whom do their 'thing' 6 days a week (as well as school + school sports teams) I feel your pain! The years when DD did 36 performances of pantomime are particularly blurred in my memory.....

On the sport v music, i think it is easier if they have to just 'not take something up'.

DD is like that - she has always done her thing - dance - many, may hours per week, and things like county netball etc have had to be discounted because she simply can't fit them in.

With DS, the fact that he did do lots of football, and then had to drop some of it - and see his football mates pulling away from him - in order to take up more music - where again he is behind those who always made that their first priority - has been much tougher.

Can'tkeep I'm not surprised that was a bit of a blur panto is particularly gruelling luckily this show is only on for 4 days I think so not too bad

I rarely post on these threads but enjoy reading them.

I have DD1 who is 12 and loving Y7 (music aptitude place at a fairly local state school) and the JD she started in September. She plays trumpet and sings but would like to play double bass/bass guitar too. This term she'll take AB G5 jazz trumpet.

DD2 is 7 and started tenor horn lessons at school in the autumn. She's taken to it like a duck to water and on the advice of the music service teacher, moved out of group lessons after #8 and now has a 1:1 lesson.

At DD1's JD audition she played a piece she'd heard performed at the Albert Hall aged 10, loved and later transcribed from the CD (a bit of a feat when you've never really had any written theory input). She also turned down the option of an accompanist but it would seem they liked her even if she didn't present as the most conventional candidate - apparently they don't have many 11-yr-old girls declaring their desire to specialise in jazz trumpet.

What a good news Trumpetboysmum, congratuations to your mini!

What an interesting music path SE13Mummy!

Back to music vs sport.... With the school hours like all our dc have.... I don't know how dc could manage to be great even at one activity unless they are the most disciplined responsible dc ever! I didn't read many music biographies but what I learned from those I read - all greatest world soloists out there were home educated or attended school part time. Does not surprise me.....

SE13 that's great ds does quite a lot if jazz ( though also likes his classical music) if you have time next year it might be worth investigating the jazz courses run by NYJC at kings place in London ds is on this years course playing trumpet and loves it!!
Only Ds is always asking to be home schooled but I always say no on social grounds so far school are being really supportive and so I think he has the best of both worlds though fitting in the homework is tough at times but we'll get there
Dd is so excited and it was really good for her to get picked as it must be hard being the younger sister to ds who seems to excel at whatever he turns his mind to

In general (and my experience only), I find people are more kind and appreciative towards children that excel in music vs sport. Recently, a school parent got very exasperated with me when declining a class group social event due to clash dates on DD's training, commenting: well it's not as if she's going to be an olympian now is it. Had I said that about her DC on it's unlikely he's going to be a world soloist she would have gone nuts. And I would actually never dream of thinking of such a thing about someone else's child.

In our case, one is more time critical to success than the other due to the development stages of the sport, and although she gets disappointed she cannot dedicate as much time as she would like to music, we have learned to roll with what she can do, other wise I am in danger of creating a screwed up mess in a few years time. I get embarrassed to state what time she leaves and returns each day, but somehow, she does it because she's pretty driven and has an organised mum behind the scenes

Ealing west I hear you on the organised Mum!

Must admit to chuckling to myself last week at work. A colleague was saying what a long day her DD (17) had, as she wouldn't get home until after 7 due to helping with school sixth form information evening!

Ealingwest at that comment about being an Olympian!

Though I don't know how it compares to chances of becoming a world-famous soloist ...

Me neither Neverever! Though I think the likelihood of DD being at competitions with future Olympians is actually far higher due to the competing structure of the sport!

That's an awful thing to say to you Ealing though I'm not sure that everyone understands the commitment that some of our dcs make to music either. Secondary school so far seem more supportive than primary school though I think they will be ok about dd being in the musical this summer ( until I ask for time off that is but seeing as performing arts / music plays such a small / non existent part of my dds primary education I don't see it as a problem at all!!)

Sounds like a fantastic opportunity Trumpet, and it's great that the school is so supportive.

Raspberry, it's all so relative isn't it, I can imagine you keeping quiet to your DCs' numerous chorister and instrumental commitments, especially those 7pm concert starts straight after those 2 hours post school/uni rehearsals

Whatever our dcs end up doing in the long term I think their time management skills will be excellent though I feel pushed to the limits at times!!

Thank you for those who shared your thoughts on the music v sport topic. I start to realise that my struggle to find a peaceful balance may not be only the music and sport involvements, but it may also be (and perhaps hugely) due to my eccentric HD's eccentric actions. He is a busy-minded person, super active, and, not very practical... He plans things without careful consideration so always ends up rushing or doing things half way or cancelling at the last minute. DS (and me), on the other hand, likes to do things properly and feels unhappy about the impossibly busy situations DH creates. It's very hard to plan things properly whenever my DH gets involved. I loved his spontaneous and unpredictable natures when he was my boyfriend. However, as a life partner... Mmmm

Getting involved in music seriously is quite a hard task when you have a family member like that (and he has the loudest voice in our household)...

Has anyone taken Grade 4 Piano with Trinity? The teacher has just asked me to buy the book, and told Goo to pick one to start learning before her next lesson. I have no idea which ones are nice, or not, so any guidance would be appreciated. I am impressed, as Goo has only been learning for nine months. Goo is panicking in case that means she has to do an exam. I think she thought the end was in sight, as she is likely to do two Grade 7s this year and two Grade 8s next year. I have assured her that she doesn't have to do any piano exams if she doesn't want to, but told her to learn the pieces and decide in a few months.

I'm always slightly surprised when I'm asked whether DS1 is "finishing" his cello study. Can you ever finish? Perhaps that's the danger of taking exams too regimentedly (is this a word??) I do know quite a few people who finish grade 8 quite young and then don't play any more, which makes me sad...

waffle I don't know Trinity but will have a look at the pieces later.