September Music Thread

[Wafflenose]

Hello, and welcome to a new thread for September. This is a lovely, calm and supportive corner of Mumsnet where we can talk about everything to do with music lessons, exams, practice, auditions, and whatever else you like. Contributors of ALL standards and ages welcome. There are lots of experienced music parents on here, but we also have a steady stream of beginners, and the collective knowledge on here is impressive.

I'm Waffle, teacher of woodwind - mainly clarinet and recorder these days. My DH plays the guitar for fun. We have two DDs - sensitive, highly strung and accident-prone Goo (11) who plays the flute and piano, and starts secondary school next week, and laid back, funny Rara (9) who plays the cello and clarinet, and is also a reading machine.

There's not too much going on for us musically this term, apart from auditioning for NCO in October. My main priority will be getting Goo settled in a much bigger school, with a longer day, and she's getting there under her own steam, eek! Luckily for us, we don't have any music exams or secondary school entrance stuff going on, but I know that lots of you do. I am anticipating Grade 8 Flute and Grade 3 Clarinet next term, and Grade 5 Piano in the summer term. I've no idea if Rara will do any more cello exams after the drama of the last one! At the moment, she says she's sticking to the odd numbers. Nutcase.

I do wonder when they are actually going to enforce the new age groups then, if they do that for every orchestra this year? Goo would be devastated if string's DD went up too, as that would leave her with no-one at all. Well, not exactly, as she'd have to start all over again, but you know what I mean. We have talked about it though, she knows she would struggle in U13s, potentially end her NCO 'career' earlier than she could have, and it's just not right for her at this time. I also want her split up from the person who has been chipping away at her confidence.

Waffle - we had assumed dd would be in U12s if successful; i think the oddity would be if they put people in one or other depending on whether a parent asks them too. Can't imagine they would allocate that way. Also I suppose it depends on how many of the Main are staying - if quite a few then u13s may need to repeat as no Main seats and thus U12s etc too. So am not sure how anyone can know until the auditions are done really especially for the sections with less places

That's what I was thinking string. Ds has probably got it wrong and I would imagine that with perhaps the odd exception it would be easier if they used the new age bands straight away I guess we will all find out in December. I'm not really looking forward to the next few weeks ds isn't at his best when he's preparing for something that he really wants to go well !

Thank you for the new thread Waffle.

Just took DS2 to try clarinets. We found a Buffet E13 he was happy with, and managed to get some change from £1000, so everyone's happy.

Does anyone have insurance recommendations? Is it better to include it in the house contents, or insure separately?

Before I forget, good luck to the DD of Fleurdelise and any other DCs with upcoming music aptitude tests or 11+

I'm with Allianz, TheSecond. I've had the policy for 25 years, and only recently made my first claim.

Thank you, will have a look

TheSecond - Allianz here too

From Rara: "if grades came in quarters, what grade would I be on the clarinet?" LOL! (Answer: Grade 2 1/4). She has of luck had one cello lesson since her exam on July 12th, so I would have to say Grade 3.0 for cello, lol!

Thank you for the new thread waffle. It sounds like your DD will definitely be better off in a group her age, rather than the youngest one in an older group. It can be a difficult age, not a child any more, but not quite adolescent either.

Hoping for tips on getting DC to actually read the dots on the page. DS is really slowed down by it. He seems to only look at the notes the first time he looks at a piece.

My DD16 does this on piano ... one of her objectives this year is to start actually reading music rather than memorising everything (she has a phenomenal musical memory). She has some books of easier music and I am encouraging her to play one easy piece from the sheet music every practice session. She is a good sight reader on her other instruments, but reading two lines of music simultaneously is obviously a much harder proposition. I also think that sight-reading piano requires more strategy (use of intervals etc) than when reading only one line of music. As a late starter she has simply not read enough piano music to be good at it.

Anyway, DD just got back from a month away with her boyfriend, she has a couple of weeks to catch up with holiday "homework" before piano lessons start. She goes back to school next Wed, for her final year before higher ed. If all goes well then she will be in Paris this time next year!

I also have DS14 who has just started guitar and has crammed a couple of years' worth of guitar classes into the summer holidays. I take lessons in an adult group where all the musicians have been playing for at least 3 years and quite honestly he's as already nearly as good as us. He will start group classes this year at the same guitar school that DD and I go to.

I am still waiting to hear whether I have an adult place to study piano at the municipal music school. Have been practising over the hols and it's coming back, slowly.

Of luck?! ONLY is what I meant to say!

Misti you have inspired me to start practising something again! It sounds like you and your DS have both made excellent progress this summer.

Hello all! I hope today went well for those who were back at school and good luck to Goo and all the other new year 7s (and their mums!) And to Fleur's DS starting sixth form!
I am back to piano lessons on Monday, can't believe I have got as far as the grade 5 book but definitely not taking any exams for a while. DS1 reminded me he will be 16 in a couple of months - how on earth did that happen? He is carrying on with post-grade 8 bass lessons, along with drum kit and tuned percussion. He could take G6 in December but if he doesn't we may leave that exam altogether as he has GCSEs this year.
DS2 is 12 1/2 and is already 5' 8. He plays cello and may take G5 in December if he can get the hang of the scales, but if not I will suggest working on them properly and taking it in May. He also plays piano and is about to embark on G5 and some theory. DS2 wants to have some guitar lessons as his brother mocked him for his cello-inspired guitar technique! He actually sounds quite good but I must admit it looks wrong.
Thanks for the Justinguitar recommendation, Misti - he has been viewed a few times by DH! I would have a go myself but I am useless with strings. The other three have maths brains and just seem to get it!

I was back at school today, but DC's don't go back til next Wednesday.

DS2 (14) is planning Grade 6 theory in November, Grade 8 piano not before next summer. His organ teacher was thinking about an exam, but he'd been expecting practice over the summer, he doesn't know about the fracture yet! So we'll see.

He has decided to stop singing lessons for now, but will still be singing in the Cathedral Youth Choir, and as a junior Choral Scholar with full Choir.

DD is carrying on with sax lessons, final year at school and just enjoying her lessons as a chill out time

I think I've managed to upload DS2 singing when he was still a treble. Not brilliant recording, I didn't know how to edit the end.

Hi all, happy new school year... I've got a few days before term starts and after a busy summer driving around the UK to various music events, I am looking forward to normality!!
My DS (12) is going into year 8 - G7 cello (trinity) last summer, taking G5 theory and will be auditioning for NCO for the 4th time this autumn. He is a typical lazy laid back boy, but is now talking about auditioning for Junior College next year - not sure if he is good enough though.
My DD (10) is going into Year 6.... 11plus exams next week, she's just making a start on G8 violin preparation, and her piano teacher is gritting her teeth at lack of practice for her G4 exam which she should be taking this term.
Any advice about standard for JD entry at Year 9 much appreciated

Wow this thread moves fast! Thanks for the good advice waffle and trumpetboysmum. That's a good point about the second instrument helping with sightreading. I thought DS would say no because of the practicing thing, he's previously always said "not yet". But ... I had a chat with him again and he's keen to get going now. He got to try a tuba earlier in the summer and loved it, perhaps that's why :) I think he'd like playing in a band. I mentioned to DD that when she's a bit better she could join the local string group, DS was quite miffed there wasn't a band for pianos!

Will talk to school/CMS for a starting point I think. We have busy after schools, if he could do it in school it would make life easier. And they hire out instruments so he could try something for a term and return it if it doesn't work out.

Good luck to the kids preparing for auditions! Interesting reading about all the NCO stuff, I have a few friends with children doing various bits of NCO but have never worked out all the different versions and levels.

Not sure about strings musicdoc which might be more competitive but when I looked into it for ds you needed to be around grade 5 distinction aged 10/11 and then at least grade 8 distinction standard by year 11 for entry in the 6 th form. This was pretty much across the board for the London ones . It sounds like your ds is the right standard you can have advice auditions and the open days are mostly after Christmas I think . Guildhall don't have open days but you can book an appointment to look around . Hope that helps was your ds in the under 12s this year ?

Thanks trumpetboysmum Yes, he was in U12s this year but only played in the summer course as a reserve when someone dropped out. He passed grade 5 (merit) at end of year 5 and grade 7 (merit) at end of year 7.... since then he has had a renewed enthusiasm to practice more improve so I think an advice audition might be the way forwards - Guildhall would be easiest for us to get to on a Sat morning but we know some of the RCM violin tutors and so going that way would be better if and when DD wants to go the JD route.

Yes musicdoc sometimes a bit of forward planning do that your life is easier in the long run. In the end ds has ended up at AYM in snape as it's much closer to us and had less of an impact on the whole family. I'll ask if my ds knows your ds he had lots of friends in the strings

Musicdoc, as long as I know, RCM has only one open day a year and it's usually in Oct/Nov. the booking is needed. So I would advise you have a look at the website and make any necessary booking in advance.

Wow Kutik... no pressure then! Actually, it could be relatively relaxing if he has no choice but to pull out some old pieces. He could always withdraw nearer the time if he wasn't keen or ready, but it's all good experience anyway, isn't it?

We had our last South Westerlies today, before the concert (and that day is going to need a thread in itself!!). They are sounding great. DH is doing a 12.5 hour shift, so Goo had to come to Rara's long swimming lesson in another town, then we got straight on the motorway with a packed lunch to eat in the car, and Rara had to sit through NCO. She had cake and a book, and was really well behaved. She really liked Pirates of the Caribbean. I tried to interest her in what the clarinets and cellos were doing, but she just said, "that's nice, Mummy" and went back to reading her book!

Catkind I'd find your local brass band and ask what instruments they have to loan. If you can steer him to trombone or cornet then he has the possibility of joining an orchestra later (on trumpet rather than cornet but the fingering is the same). If your local band is a high performer and not suitable for people starting out they will be able to tell you of somewhere that has a training band. The piano is a solitary instrument and being in an ensemble is a social thing.

DS is 17 now, he's been away for a week over the summer with a music service wind band and we were surprised to see him on the video as principal because he went with his second instrument. We were even more surprised when he came home with a prize for being the most organised player. I did my best Victor Meldrew impression at that one.

I am still driving mum's musical taxi for the time being although the L plates are out and I'm hoping to be made redundant soon.

Do brass bands loan instruments Icould? I had no idea! Said I didn't know anything about brass. I think there are a few brass bands around here, there seems to be a different one every week in our local park in summer, so I will have further consultation with DS about which instrument and enquire. Or does one start with the teacher and they work out which instrument?
Well done your DS for playing principal! and lol at the most organised player.