(Mostly) August Music Thread

[Wafflenose]

Here's a new thread for August, but we're starting it a few days early, because you lot have managed to be super chatty this month! I wonder if things will slow down in August due to people going away... maybe or maybe not?

I'm Waffle, a teacher of woodwind - mostly recorders and clarinet, but I have a couple of flutes currently, and teach saxophone, piano and theory when required. I am determined that the music threads should be open to ALL, including complete beginners and adult learners. It's a good place to discuss lessons, practice, concerts, exams and our generally hectic lives!

I have a DH who plays the guitar for pleasure (no lessons) and two girls. Goo is 11 and has her Grade 7 Flute (March 2017) and Grade 6 Recorder (December 2015 and now pretty much stopped ). She has been learning the piano for 15 months, is refusing to perform in any way, shape or form, but will probably take Grade 5 next year. Rara is 9 and has Grade 3 Cello (July 2017), Grade 3 Recorder (December 2016 and also ceased) and is working towards her Grade 3 Clarinet... probably next spring. Goo is off to NCO Under 12s on Sunday, and we need to pop out to get her some shoes and general supplies in a bit.

I have just realised that we will probably have Grade 8 Flute and Grade 3 Clarinet going on in the same session, Spring 2018. Oh dear! If Rara bothers with Grade 4 Cello, we'll probably have that at the same time as Grade 5 Piano, next summer. Double oh dear!

Sorry, playing tennis AFTER rain!

Oh, DS's other love is golf. I don't mind golf at all. I think it's one of the safest.

I reckon cricket is fine (I'm a fan, though!) but agree with you about cycling.
Yes, definitely to dancing although I couldn't persuade mine to do it.
Only time DS1 has been too injured for music is ironically when overdoing the circuit training (or whatever they call it) in PE and then not being able to lift his arms to do his percussion lesson! Too many aching muscles rather than getting hurt...

Loose, are you talking about the players or the game? I'm an admirer of cricketers (gents in white on the green grass...). Mine is not particularly interested in dancing neither. But I'm secretly planning to teach him some Latin moves.

Struggle to keep up, but as to sports... where dc3 does a sport, you have sign a form that you are aware that that sport can result in injuries and death.

found

kutik the game, mostly! I'm less well informed these days, though...
was the scary form for climbing? I've had to sign a couple of those for climbing parties.

Oh yes, I did signed those scary forms for climbing activities. I also signed for trampoline parties.

This is the first year that the cello, flute and recorders haven't been camping with us, and we've been twice! The kids are becoming too self conscious, and too absorbed in activities with friends to bother with practice.

Speaking of which, they've been rubbish lately. Goo has done 45 minutes of flute since returning from NCO 9 days ago, and hasn't looked at the piano for 3 weeks. Rara has hardly done any for 2-3 weeks, and they have just gone to stay at my mum's until Friday. Oh well!

DS is not yet to be so self conscious, but yes he gets too absorbent in activities (quite rightly) so practice won't happen when we are away. He still insists taking his violin though. It's more for entertainment than diligent practice. Sometime he doesn't touch it at all (or, even completely forgets about it), but sometimes he plays for pure pleasure - he wouldn't usually play for people like he did at the campsite. But it may happen more as he seemed to enjoy getting reaction from people at the informal concert by the campfire!

DD is putting in a lot of practice time at the moment whilst she has lots of time. She finds it much less stressful in the holidays when she doesn't have to cram it in around so many other things. She is boarding from Sept and knows it will take a little while to establish a routine at a new school; with a couple of auditions early in the term she wants make sure everything is ready in advance. Both auditions for things she really really wants to do, so great incentive and it is nice to see her putting the work in!

Lots of dancing for my girl, other than that her main sports are running and swimming. She's got a skating party at the end of the month and I'm dreading her breaking something right before the various important things she has next half term!

Fortunately DD's main sporty love is swimming - I'm sure it helps with the breath control for silly big instruments she likes to play. She has given me plenty of anxious moments playing hockey and netball over the years - although she did pull herself out of A-team hockey two seasons ago when she a big music thing coming up. I have never said no to anything - she is only young and should have a crack at whatever she likes, and I don't want her to resent her music at all for being the reason she couldn't do whatever.

All of mine do gymnastics and the younger 2 dance. The only 'before a music event' injury we've har was from PE at school though

I won't even bother to list Goo's ridiculous injuries, but during a 5-month period in Year 6, we had a nasty wrist injury and two broken fingers. She is clumsy, but I can't slap a ban on the sports she loves (netball, dodgeball and running).

Speaking of Goo... she has just grown 3/4 of an inch in 17 DAYS and is now 1/2 an inch taller than me. She's still 11!!

Ah yes, the cycling. It turns out cycling along a country road is hazardous! DS had his cast replaced with a resin full cast, for another 2 weeks. He has had a go playing his pbone and got on ok, so will at least be ok for the festival his jazz group is playing in. DH is especially pleased as he gets a full weekend ticket as guardian.

DS1 used to do Taekwondo, which worries me occasionally. His worst injury was dealing a toe falling over his own feet (before DofE expedition!).

breaking a toe!

I used to do taekwondo! I have a national championships medal from 2003 - Bronze in Patterns. I was crap, but you didn't have to qualify or anything - just register and roll up. I found it all very male dominated, and in my Ladies' Patterns division, there were only five of us, and I managed to come third! I did a couple of sparring competitions too, and was soundly thrashed. I gave up (at blue and red stripe level) because I was sick of being injured!

DS1 got to black stripe. His club didn't do a lot of external competitions, or possibly they did and we weren't involved! There plenty of girls involved too.

He wasn't fantastic at it, but enjoyed it. He gave up when he had to go into the adult classes as they were on the same night as his concert bands. And not bothered enough to find a different club.

DS 2 got to green I think.

I liked it because in the children's classes, you bought so many lessons a month and could go to which fitted each week.

Just arrived at first of two consecutive violin camps. This one is in Dublin, just DD2 and myself. We fitted in some Retail therapy on the journey up. DD2 got lovely red Jack Wills dress, reduced from €169 to €51!!! Great start to the camp. It's a little big, but she's planning to wear it for her solo regardless.

We received a review list weeks ago, and just focussed on her top 2 pieces from that list. Oops, she has groups on 2 earlier pieces too. And we left books at home for DD1 to practice... I have advised that expected response to any problems is 'I got a lovely new dress! Take the rough with the smooth and don't complain to me!! Ha ha

We leave here Saturday night, 2.5 hours drive home and 10:30am flight following morning to Southampton for Bryanston Suzuki camp next week. DD1 coming with us. Second set of bags all packed and almost ready to go!

Fingers crossed for two very enjoyable camps!!!

Does anyone else have dc going to the NCO U11 residential this weekend? DD2 is going along with the 2 other bassoonists that she did U10s with. They all have the same teacher now and play together each week in a double reed group, so have got to know each other, but there is a fourth one this year and it's a boy.... They are not sure how to deal with that.

There's a girl from our area going. She attends the same centre of advanced training as Goo, and they sometimes compete against each other. They will end up in Under 12s together next year if both get in, as Goo will be repeating.

DD has broken her collar bone 3 times but she was never doing anything dangerous at the time! Just unpredictable accidents first at nursery, then later in holiday club then at middle school. We've had it all checked out - X-rays and MRI and they said it was just bad luck 🙄

Day 1 of Camp 1 was a big success! But very intense, an awful lot packed in. The two pieces that weren't revised were no problem in group setting.
DD2 really enjoyed herself.

No practice at all going on here since DD16 has been away for 2 weeks with her boyfriend's family and doesn't get home until August 31st! It's good empty nest practice ;)

OTOH I am working on reviving my piano skills in case an adult place is available at the local "conservatoire" this year. And DS14 is busy cramming a year's worth of guitar lessons into the month of August (started last week - can already play all the open chords, accompany simple songs and has one pentatonic scale down pat!).

I do think that expectations, ability, parental support and good teaching have far more effect than age. Not discounting the slight effects of age on the population as a whole

Yes, this - big source of worry for middle class parents, most of whose children are unlikely to see any difference due to age, except the practical differences pointed out. Age differences tend to magnify disadvantage (social or in terms of underlying ability or learning disbility); where there is no underlying disadvantage, I think age is largely irrelevant.

In DD's class (selective class in a French lycée) the two students who consistently get the best results across the board will start the equivalent of Y13 aged just 16 and 15 1/2 respectively.

From DD's perspective the main difference is practical - driving, voting, being considered an adult for financial purposes (she will only turn 18 right at the end of her first year in higher ed).

kutik re sport, DD is not sporty AT ALL, but DS who plays guitar has been racing BMX bikes since he was 6. Fortunately he is a naturally prudent rider (which means that although he is able - currently ranked third in the regional classification in his age group - he will never be national standard). He's never had a BMX injury. It depends so much on personality, attitude to risk taking, ability to assess risks, and to ride within your ability, etc.