December Music Thread

[Wafflenose]

Have a new thread for December!

This is an ongoing chat group for musicians, parents of musicians and anyone interested in music. We talk about practice, scales, theory, instrument hire and purchase, concerts, exams, auditions and loads more. Newcomers and beginners are extra specially welcome - yes, a lot of us now have children who are getting quite advanced, but we all had beginners once. I started the conversation when my eldest was 6 and working towards Grade 1, and we now have learners of all ages and standards on here.

I am a teacher of woodwind, and have two daughters. Goo is 12 and in Year 7. She loves her new school, and has grown up fast since she started. The first few weeks were overwhelming and confusing. She loved the challenge of new subjects, new faces, lots of different sports, etc. Unfortunately, she is a poster child for complacency, is now finding it all very easy, and doing the bare minimum again, sigh. She extends this approach to music too, putting in a bit of effort at the last minute, and often making an eleventh hour bid to change piece for important performances. She is gregarious, intense and obsessed with her phone. Oops, I forgot to say, she plays the flute and piano. Grade 8 flute is pencilled in for some time next year (teacher is campaigning to wait until train tracks come off) and she hasn't performed on the piano or taken any exams yet.

Rara is 9, and a completely different kettle of fish. She likes music, but she likes reading, art and making things even more. She's talkative, eccentric and highly creative. I have no idea how her mind works. She is in Year 5 at the village primary, and couldn't really care less about academics. She plays the cello (working at an early Grade 4 level) and clarinet. Some of her clarinet pieces are Grade 4, but she is having some technical problems at the moment, mainly due to her size and incorrect placement of her fingers. So the next exam she does will probably be Grade 3.

Both girls are members of South West Music School (Rara starting next month) and both auditioned for the NCO. Goo was very pleased with herself, but Rara had an absolute disaster. She bounced back within a day though.

Just realised we don't really have many free days during the holiday because of three festive events condensed together - Christmas, birthday and New Year (the biggest celebration of a year in my country). DS's school won't break until mid week next week... Grrrr!

And he goes back to school on the 3rd Jan. Double Grrrr!

How do people find JD in London? It looks pretty competitive to get in.

DD will most likely go next year to

a) a grammar school
b) an independent possibly on a music scholarship

I was thinking that if it ends up being the grammar school, we get the results in March, she might be best off at a JD rather than trying to fit it all in after school.

However I don’t know really. Looks like I would have to apply before I know about the school. The independents we are considering have lots of in school music and transport is easier, plus we wouldn’t be able to afford both sets of fees. So I am only really interested in JD if she goes the grammar route.

How have people found it? Are there good ensembles and orchestras? Does the kid have to do lots of hanging around or do the activities follow one another? Would it be fine to just leave an 11 year old there to get on with it?

DD is currently enthusiastic about the idea of spending Saturdays doing music.

Charis no advice really as no experience with JD, but am following as we might be in the same boat next year with my middle DS.

NCO fretting is over and I am excited for my middle DS doing. He will get to experience for the first time regional and then the summer camps for U10. Hope he makes friends at regionals! We will try and get to our normal practice routine as the kids break on the 21st Dec (quite late this year).
Next term or summer one depending on how they go, I'll have one G6 piano (for middle one) and G8 horn (for eldest). Lots and lots of practice will be needed though.

Exam done. She played her scales and pieces really well, fell apart totally in sight reading (didn’t do it!) but recovered well for aural. Fingers crossed she did enough to pass....

Folk that's great news and I'm sure she did enough to pass - it's a shame she didn't have a go at the sight reading as I think you get marks just for attempting it - but I was always really scared of sight reading so she has my sympathies with that one . In fact I hated exams, playing in public and any sort of test -as an adult it took me a really long time to find a choir that sounded good but didn't need an audition. I have no idea where my 2 get all their courage to perform from ( not me) but I remember yesterday you saying that your 2 were very different hopefully your dd can find lots of ways to enjoy music without all the pressure

Thanks trumpet. She just froze, bless her. She reads really well, just hit a mental block I think. Oh well... I did hear a few notes, maybe they'll give her a sympathy mark or two! I hope given the way she played through the rest of it that she will scrape through. No pressure definitely the way forward I think..

Love this group and all the support x

Oh and folk although my 2 love to perform I have to do a lot of hand holding with dd as she is constantly comparing herself to ds and then feeling that she falls short. The stupid thing is she is an amazing singer and performer with just as much talent as her brother just in a different way. She is also supposed to be doing grade 1 piano next year and I have no idea how we are going to get on with that one even though I know she can do it( it may also be in the same sitting as her grade 3 in performance which strangely she probably won't worry about at all !!)

It's hard when they've got a pretty awesome older sibling isn't it? Littlest has such low self esteem! I'm so proud that she pulled herself together enough to do ok in the aural. She could have just dissolved at that point. Oh well, done now. Off to Toysrus we go....

It is and yet again tonight will be all about her brother ...luckily dd is also one of the loveliest people I have met ( though of course I would say that) and so will tonight be rooting for her brother in his solo performance and was so excited when he got back into NCO last week . I just need to keep bigging her up have fun in toys r us

I'm sure we will! Good luck to your DS this evening, I'm sure he will ace it!!

Don't know about that but he just sees it as a good learning experience which I think is the right way to think about it

trumpet, its so hard not to isnt it, especially he has been so successful!

Charish: we are thinking of JD too, we are not sure if we could get a place, there needs to be an offer first then choices to follow. Mine also said she loves the idea of having more like minded/musical friends and spend her Saturday playing. I love the idea of not having to arrange her lessons and have everything in 1 place. I also hope later on she could go by herself once she is in secondary(yr5 now).

We havent done the Hamleys Regent street trip this year yet, I am thinking of bringing them this week, they have been begging for it and I am just too lazy. We have been doing it the last 10 yrs or so. We had our lovely Xmas concert last night, there are couple more to come this week.

folk well done to your DD and trumpet good luck tonight!
green I am so glad Hamleys is out of my life...

charis I understand it completely. If DS had joined a grammar he would've started jd sooner. But as a music scholar in his school he was just too busy. Then everything changed and he wanted the school music PLUS jd, but it took a few years for him to decide that. How have people found it?
He's loving it. And I love the atmosphere there, although I don't go very often as he's totally independent now. It's been hard to give up Saturdays as a family day, the early wake up, etc. And the fact that Sundays is homework day as a result, so no family day either. I won't deny that it's hard on us parents. I end up working all weekend as a result!
Are there good ensembles and orchestras?
Yes. The level is shockingly high. It's inspiring for them to be with those children. The tutors and teachers are committed and take what they're doing very seriously. They know they're dealing with children who may want to pursue this professionally. It's beyond "a nice thing to do". They're great with the kids and there's joking around too. I have heard that for certain instruments (particularly strings) it can be quite competitive later on among the students. Don't know if it's true. But we don't get that because the percussionists are used to working as a team and take turns all the time and they haven't been trained with the concept of reaching "virtuosity" like some string players have.
Does the kid have to do lots of hanging around or do the activities follow one another?
Every child had a personalised schedule. In the case of DS he attends 9 to 5 and only stops 1 hour for lunch. He literally has to run from one thing to another all day.
Would it be fine to just leave an 11 year old there to get on with it?
I would think you would have to do the first 3 or 4 weeks with her and then she can be alone. It would just be like being in school. No need for you if you sort out lunch for her (either give her money or a packed lunch).

Not all jds are the same, though. This is just our experience

Drummers: whats a love and informative post as usual, will show my husband and someone tonight as I have been telling them the idea and they are not too sure.(yes, giving up Saturdays and dropping and picking ups until she could be on her own).

Drummers thank you for a super helpful and informative post. Mumsnet at it’s finest!

Charis, ds who is 11 plays violin and is approx grade 6. We went and looked round Guildhall this time last year and he loved it. He had a pre audition assessment with the Head of Junior Strings which costs around £80 for an hour but it is worth the money as he told us exactly what ds needed to work on which was basically more practice. They expect an hour a day 😵. Ds does nothing like that. He is gifted aurally and has perfect pitch. The HoS waanted ds to audition 8n the spring and said he has the potential to be exceptional.

In the new year ds decided that he wanted to leave it a year or so so we will apply in January again. In the meantime I've emailed them to see if he can do another trial day which they were very happy to sort out. Guildhall seems smaller than the others and it's closer for us. If he were to get in, I would stay wit( him for the first few weeks till he's settled and then leave him.

I'd love to hear from others who have kids that age and would like to know how much practice they do at h9me as this is the th8ng that is holding him back.

I'd love to hear of others

Hi disorganised ds doesn't go to a jd in London but AYM at Snape instead A slightly different set up but a CAT with same funding etc . They mostly want them to focus on being exceptional one 1 instrument and ds currently does about an hour sometimes a bit more a day on trumpet. His teacher reckons an hour to an hour and a half is fine for now ( as it's physically demanding on the lips !!) . Interestingly ds has a quick lesson with a world famous trumpet player last month and he was encouraging ds to do at least an hour and a half a day as that's what he remembers doing at ds's age . With advice from AYM we have dropped one if ds's evening band commitments so that he can fit in more practice . I'm not sure if strings and piano are encouraged to practice more ? I'm sure ds will ne

Posted too soon !! will need to up his practice again as he gets older it's just sort of steadily increased each year

Charis, a boy I know has just started a super selective grammar this academic year, and he is loving all the music he gets at school. The mum said the standard was very high and she especially seemed to be very satisfied with the fact that her son was no longer the top musician even though he had g8 in piano and violin prior to starting the school. You might be surprised high satisfying the music provision at the grammar your DD may go.

Having said that, I think starting the process now just in case may be a good idea. Once you secure a place in JD, you can think if you like to take the offer or not later. I believe the younger you are the easier to get in (although you will face to a serious assessment at 12 if you started at primary school age).

DS (Y6) has just joined and done a term now. He is loving it. As drummers said, each has an individualised programme but it doesn't seem many has 'hanging around time'. Their day is very much condensed. DS learns only one instrument there so his day is relatively compact (with little break between). I deliberately started this way so that he could have a gentle start, but now he proved that he would cope perfectly fine, so we are moving his second study there from the next academic year. He played both instruments at the audition so the head knew his standard (they originally suggested joint first study) so when I asked them about it they sent me a written approval of taking him in for the second study from the second year. Many kids study two, three or more instruments and obviously the more instruments you study there the busier and longer their Saturday would be.

DS is planning to add composition as his third study after passing g6 theory. So his day will be longer and busier as he goes.

DS is 10 years old, but he is pretty much independent. He doesn't need me other than drop off and pick up (and he will be fine going there alone soon). As drummers said, it's like school. They know where to go, what to do. But I tend to hang around there as there are classes I could observe and interesting performances are always on and I prefer spending my time there reading books or studying or doing some admin work rather than going back and forward for school-run. DH sometimes joins me (after his cycling or serious work-out...), then three of us go for crepe or something on way home - a nice way to finish Saturdays!

All the kids we met are very gifted but very much normal. I haven't met any scarily competitive person yet. No tiger mum. They are all nice, and again, very much normal.

One parent at DS's school seemed to have had a stereo type image of those kind of places and asked DS how he would be coping and must be so hard to face up to the reality and the competitiveness at such a young age. DS was puzzled because he didn't feel JD was a scary place but for pure fun!

DD is currently enthusiastic about the idea of spending Saturdays doing music
I think JD is for those kind of kids like your DD. Being passionate, eager and enthusiastic.

There is a competition between drummers and me for who can write the longest post...

Trumpetboysmum, thanks for your post. Ds is finding it really tough to do that much practice a day. He has Aspergers which I think impacts his ability to focus for that long. Plus he doesn't really know where to start even if I sit with him and guide him. Not really sure how to go forward as his violin teacher is out of action at the moment. We've been told by the tutors in the orchestras that he plays in that he really needs to be looking at JD rather than his local council run Music school which has had its funding cut 😡. So hard to know what to do. Ds wants to go to JD but struggles with change and the unknown.

As someone who has spent a number of years now working in aspergers and autism support I totally get where you are coming from disorganised . I would sit down and have a serious chat with both current music teachers and the jd and explain exactly what the problems and barriers are for your ds. My Ds is really self motivated but even I have had to ask his teacher for more guidance with what he needs to do in terms of technical work - he's written it down now on handy sheets and I was planning on turning it into a resource similar to that that I have made for pupils in the past. I think some sort of practice schedule written down with times for different aspects of practice ( and breaks built in) might help your ds IF he really wants to go for music ( he's certainly talented enough) . He's also really young still so as he matures it might all fall into place , but sometimes for children with Aspergers it's hard to transfer the skills from say schoolwork to music practice ( or indeed to focus on music practice not at school or in a music lesson) hope that helps

Ladies, I would be so grateful for some advice. DD (14) has been working towards her grade 7 piano- she was meant to be taking it in feb/march next year.

Anyway, after listening to her murder Chopin night after night, I spoke with her teacher who agrees with me that she is not going to be ready for the spring exam diet and that her aural and sight reading also needs work. She says that half an hour lesson a week isn’t enough to cope with the demands of grade 7 and that’s why DD will need longer to cope with the technical demands of the pieces. She suggested her oboe and singing teacher pick up aural/sight reading.

However those lessons are also only 30 mins a week and aural for those exams is usually crammed in at the end so I doubt that is going to be the solution. My question is this- should I consider going externally to find another teacher to plug the gap and teach aural/sight reading (in so far as that can be taught) - has anyone else gone down this route? She takes lessons at school so getting more lesson time from current piano teacher is a non starter (although we could try or some private lessons with the teacher at home as we did for her theory exam).

Or, any other advice welcome!

Ds did grade 7 trumpet earlier this year - his teacher worked on the pieces and technical work I did most if the aural prep and sight reading and his teacher explained any tricky bits. Ds did prepare for the exam in a couple of months but even with an hours lesson a week it was a push so I would try and get some extra lessons if possible. I'm not a music teacher just applied my general primary school teaching principals and used all the sight reading and aural prep materials from trinity ( and Abram ) that I could find