November Music Thread

[Wafflenose]

New month, new thread! This is a place for musicians and parents of musicians, from complete beginners to experienced and everything in between, to talk about everything to do with music! Previous threads have covered exams, practice, scales, instrument hire and purchase, theory, composition, aural woes, auditions, scholarship preparation and much more.

I started these threads when my 12 year old daughter Goo was 6 and preparing for Grade 1. I never thought we'd still be going, 6 years later! I appreciated all the advice I was given back then, and try to repay that when I can.

Goo plays the flute and piano (she has been learning the piano for 18 months but has yet to perform - ever) and has no exams lined up at the moment. I also have Rara who is 9, and working towards her third Grade 3, on the clarinet. The other two were on the cello and recorder. She's more interested in art and reading, and currently swims five times a week.

I am a teacher of woodwind, and Wednesday is my day from you-know-where... full-on from 6.30 am until 10 pm, and about to get worse!!

loose I would like to know more about this cover on the snare please ☺!

drummers I will definitely ask for more details! You may have guessed I have no idea if there’s a technical term for it.

Life as a percussionist

Very silly, I know, but DS likes those guys' silly channel... Just for a laugh!

kutik. Her other pieces are the Chopin, and Sonata in B Minor. Exam is a week Tues. I am not getting involved. Weekend gone, having forgotten her music for her home lesson mid wk (she has a very forgiving piano teacher) she forgot to bring it home at the weekend also.

I got a don't worry mum, I've got it covered response, then noticed the printer going for ever. Kind boy at school had Whatsapped images of each page . Never got a complaint that it was way too small to read, and I did secretly admire her resourcefulness to avoid a run in with me!

kutik

This one is not bad - perfect for this thread:

ealing good luck to mini. She won't drown, she's a swimmer

ah yes, but that is the joy of the percussion group - the noise stays there!
ha ha loose, famous last words. That's what I said when DS started his percussion group age 6... fast forward ten years

drummers. And how did you find me with that clip...all of mes!

And me ( if i show ds I wonder which one he would say I am - don't think I will ask it won't be complementary!!)

drummers

earling, it sounds like miniealing has lesson at school so you don't normally see the teacher? We go to the teacher's house, but there are lessons before and after DS without any break so I don't normally have any chance to talk to her. DS liked Chopin, but the teacher was quite negative about the arrangement. She even went to find the original from her bookshelf and was showing DS the difference. She was talking about the trill bits, but I have no idea what the big deal about it. Any chance you know anything of this?

Piano lesson is private at our home kutik with violin and voice at school though violin is also supplemented with a more infrequent violin teacher at home (controversial but now accepted under her scholarship terms).

I do know what you mean re the different arrangements, her Chopin collection book (can't remember the publisher) seems to have the preferred arrangements, and one of the reasons why her home violin teacher doesn't touch ABRSM pieces and refers to them as butchered. Unfortunately I can't tell you much more as I do not get involved anymore, other than to pay!

Piano teacher and DD tend to select pieces based on genre balance and purely what she likes - he plays them for her and she selects. Very different to school violin selection, which are more based on what the teacher likes to teach, DD's preference not being relevant. Very different approaches and styles, but somehow they work.

kutik that Chopin Nocturne has trills, that's for sure. Without knowing what her problem is regarding the arrangement of the trills, it's difficult to find a solution. DS Mozart sonata for g8 Trinity had slightly different notation depending on publisher and we wrote to Trinity and they approved the version we had and he was allowed to use it in the exam. It's a pity your DS can't do the piece if he likes it. I'm still to hear a Chopin piece I don't like. And it usually requires them to work hard on their expression which is very good. Maybe you could make a detailed note of your teacher's preferred version and contact ABRSM?

Thank you earling and drummers.

I think the teacher was saying she didn't like the way the trills happened (starting note? Or timing?). She was making some more negative comments on something else but cannot remember...

I spoke to DS about it just now and have fond out he learnt this Chopin piece a while ago! He went through some Chopin seasons earlier this year (which I do remember!) and apparently this one was covered at the time (which I'm kind of starting to remember...). He didn't go into the depth for this one in particular as it was part of many other things and eventually other pieces took over so it was a very brief study that's why it didn't stay in my memory I suppose.

He likes Chopin (he is rather, well, romantic for his age..). So it may be good to go back and learn properly. The teacher is not so rigid normally, so if he really wants I guess she would let him (but as drummers suggested we may have to contact ABRSM).

at the videos!
True drummers the Y4 samba drum group had some unintended consequences!

Since there are quite a few parents of keen percussionists on this thread... Or actually anyone who is quite confident at rhythm... Here you go.... Please try and let me know how it went....

drummersmum a percussion question that might actually be a folk music question.

At playgroup the percussion box includes all the usual cymbals, triangles, claves etc., but also a set of three little very heavy cups, probably made of bronze? They're a bit like Tibetan tingsha, but they're hemispherical rather than cymbal-like. Maybe 7 cm diameter, about 3 or 4 mm thick. Two are tuned, to a and f, one is not tuned. The way they're hung (on shoelaces) it looks like the untuned one is meant to swing and hit the tuned ones in turn. They make a ringing tone, very pure if hit with a wooden mallet, lots of overtones if hit by the untuned cup. Any idea what they might be?

The lack of decoration, and acoustic credibility and completeness of all the other percussion, makes me think they're likely to be western orchestral instruments rather than folk instruments, but I can't find a description that matches them.

schwan it doesn't ring a bell
can you find it here? ipfs.io/ipfs/QmXoypizjW3WknFiJnKLwHCnL72vedxjQkDDP1mXWo6uco/wiki/List_of_percussion_instruments.html

Our piano tuner is here today. DS has been complaining about some keys being out of tune. The tuner confirmed it was really time to have it done. This is the third time we have had the piano tuned since we bought it a year ago. Is it normal? I know some people get away with just once a year. I hope our environment is not so unfriendly to the acoustic piano...

Anyway, DS will be happy that they are nicely in tune now. My wallet is not so happy though... I am fingers-crossing there is still plenty time for the need of re-hairing and re-stringing for the violin. Yet we have only two instruments that require regular maintenance. Those who have many at home, the maintenance cost can be quite significant?!

Ha, we have the piano tuner coming today too. Dd (10) informed me last week that it needed tuning. I didn’t have a clue- so will interesting to see if she was right
Nothing too exciting this end, two exams this term for dd (8), gr 2 piano, gr4 drums rock school.

kutik, that sounds like a lot of tuning! I thought it was every couple of years, but someone who knows about these things would probably be more helpful..

kutik our first piano was old, rubbish and terrible. The tuner said it would need done every three months for probably the first year to get it as near to pitch as poss (never reached perfect). We have a Yamaha now and it was done in April after a settling in period. He said it would be fine for probably a year.

G5 violin in three weeks, so DD is working on her pieces.

I have a question: so far DD has had high distinctions for all violin exams, and I am wondering if it would be a good idea to do g6 summer next year and g7 one year later (taking her to the end of Year 6 and primary school), or do g6 one year from now and g7 the following summer. Both will have the same result by the end of year 6, but I am not sure which grade to give the extra time!

I think there’s quite a jump between gr5-6/7.
Dd (10) doesn’t do any exams anymore, as her teacher isn’t that bothered with them.
She did gr5 at 8 yrs old, but is still working on gr7 pieces (not actually gr7 exam pieces- although some are past pieces -but I mean she’s working on pieces of that level).
Although she regularly tells me (and quite rightly so too) that’s it’s not the piece you are playing and what standard it is, but the WAY you play it that matters. Hahaha

Piano is out of tune, she was right.

So I would see how it goes with gr 6- obviously enter her when she’s ready x

Paul, ha ha, I was also a bit suspicious about DS's claim. He often says things very very confidently as if he knows the world inside out, even when it's quite clear he should not know (because he's never seen or been or exposed to the subject discussing). So I often listen to him half of what he is saying. But this time he was correct.

He has a good ear though I think his case is more of having a very good relative pitch rather than a perfect pitch. I know a girl who has it. She is a tiny little madam, but can sing any note without a guided note. Things she can is so interesting.

Mini, ours is also Yamaha. We deliberately went for the maker due to the stability and reliability (and DS was practising on Clavinova until then so he was used to the bright sounds). Oh well, let's hope it lasts this time!

Niggle, good luck to her. She will do well! Sorry cannot answer to the questions as DS has no experience with violin exams. Hopefully someone who is more knowledgeable will come forward.

I was too slow to post mine. Missed Paul's posts! Sorry.