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Extra-curricular activities

Find advice on the best extra curricular activities in secondary schools and primary schools here.

Original poster

February Music Thread

525 replies

Wafflenose · 01/02/2018 22:06

Have a new thread for February!

This is a place for our ongoing conversation about music, instruments, lessons, ensembles, scales, practice, exams, aural, theory and whatever else you'd like to talk about. Everyone is welcome - new and older members, beginners and advanced.

I have two daughters - Goo (12) flute and piano, in a bit of a slump at the moment, and Rara (9) cello, clarinet and recorder (yes, she's picked it up again) on a roll at the moment. I teach woodwind and have my own little clarinet group called the B Flat Blues, who don't rehearse together regularly, but played in a festival this week.

I also have quite a bit of news, mostly good, but am so tired that it will have to wait until tomorrow now. Hopefully it's worth waiting for (and before anyone asks, no, Goo didn't get the desire of her heart).

OP posts:
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Kutik73 · 20/02/2018 09:41

Waffle, yes please report me back! I like to know if there is any venue with a good piano really exists... Changing a centre may not solve the problem as it really seems to be a common problem everywhere. Although there are those who still achieve high distinction in such a poor condition... That's what DS's teacher says - apparently you've still got to be able to play well on any kind of piano...

I don't quite remember who it was. I think Menuhin. His pupil was taking too long to get ready for a lesson so Menuhin asked him to hurry up. The pupil said his A string was still too flat, to which Menuhin replied that violinists must have good ears so should be able to play in tune on a out of tune violin without problem. The pupil had to play slightly # all the A sting notes during the entire lesson...

So, musicians make any instrument sings, not other way round!

Kutik73 · 20/02/2018 10:10

Ooooh, Prada, you made me re-think!

I like oblong cases as you don't need to fiddle around to find space for a shoulder pad or any other bits and bobs. But thinking about DS's journey alone to and from school on a bus and tube, and that you seem to need to carry quite a lot of things for school (PE and so on), I concluded a smaller and lighter shaped case would be better. But not as small as BAM Cabin as you have to carry a bow case separately which is just so no way.

GEWA Air shaped one is small and light but still has space for two bows and a shoulder pad and more. No pocket for music but DS needs so many books/music for his lesson we need a separate bag to carry them anyway. So I didn't see it as an essential item.

But, I need to think of him taking his violin to school rather than to jd/lessons as it's when he has to manage all by himself.

Currently we are not planning to arrange any lesson at school (although it comes free for a scholar) so the music he needs for school would be for orchestra/chamber clubs only. Their music usually come in a bunch of A4 papers so a little pocket attached to a case would be sufficient enough. AND as you pointed, there will be less chance he leaves them behind as they all go in one case.

Back to research...

Kutik73 · 20/02/2018 10:11

Flowers to Loose's DS2.

TaggieOHara · 20/02/2018 10:24

congrats Green! It is great to have one 'in the bag' as it were. Really reduces the pressure. Flowers to all the ill DC. It always happens at the most inconvenient time Sad

drummersmum · 20/02/2018 11:41

Hoping your DS2 gets better soon loose

Greenleave · 20/02/2018 11:52

Hoping DS2 is getting better LooseFlowers!

Paying the fee we expect to have a nice experience, at least a decent venue so ABRSM should do something about it. If the same experience happens in other venue in the future I will request for a refund and void of the result and an alternative apointment in a “proper” venue. After all, they are providing a service. I really think they should have 2 examiners in the exam room too.

Original poster
Wafflenose · 20/02/2018 11:58

Rara's exam is with Trinity, and this is the fourth venue I've been sent to. You can't exactly choose which venue you want here, just specify some preferences. Which I didn't get.

Our ABRSM centre has a lovely grand piano, which is the same one that I play for the festival. It's hard to play quietly on it though - it's quite loud.

OP posts:
LooseAtTheSeams · 20/02/2018 12:13

We can specify the place if we book through a borough music service but independent teachers take pot luck - although for abrsm it's one of 2 venues with nice pianos.
Trinity, on the other hand, seem to use quite a spread of places.
Thanks all for good wishes for DS2 - he has lucozade so will survive! Smile

stringchild · 20/02/2018 12:51

Kutik - dd gets free lessons as a music scholar, and we are allowed to take the cash and use against JD or other external music things. Assume you can do the same? It’s nice to reduce the JD costs.

Kutik73 · 20/02/2018 13:59

Waffle and Loose, that's nice to know decent pianos are available at some venues!

Green, if it really bothers you a lot, the best thing you can do is to have a teacher who arranges exams. Any private teacher can arrange them as long as she/he has the minimum numbers of pupils booked in to call an examiner from ABRSM. This way the pupils can play on the piano they know very well.

strings, yes we can do it. DS will continue his lessons at jd, so he doesn't need additional lessons on the same instruments at school. Well, unless he has a strong desire to take up the 3rd or 4th instruments! But, even if he wants to learn more instruments, I think it'll be physically a challenge. He will want to continue committing to non-musical activities also, so with the extra journey + homework, I assume there won't be much space left.

stringchild · 20/02/2018 15:13

Kutik - yes we have found it pretty busy in yr7 esp as dd also wants to do non music things esp around science;

Can’t believe it’s exam time already again. Noting until summer session for us 😀

Pradaqueen · 20/02/2018 16:17

Think I've caught up! Well done minigreen! Kutik - have you decided on minikutik's school? How exciting. Re: music scholarship, we cannot transfer the award to either fees or a JD. Only costs towards school lessons (which is very helpful and teachers are excellent).

Re:pianos at ABRSM centres, we've only had nice grand pianos at the local ones here for piano exams. Shame if they are not up to scratch everywhere, I assumed there was a minimum standard?

Good luck to everyone with exams this term! Get well soon Loose's DS!

catkind · 20/02/2018 17:05

Got DC's exam date too, we have a few weeks yet and I'm told our local Trinity centre has a lovely piano. Now just need to work out where I can park, and how much time to allow for my traffic paranoia. They're one after the other so at least no hanging around! Do you generally take them straight from school or let them have a play through first? I suspect schools are going to be a lot fussier about time out than when I was a kid.

Greenleave · 20/02/2018 17:34

No exam for us this year, we might have couple next years though.

drummersmum · 20/02/2018 20:40

kutik please note that one of the schools you are considering give cash for the music scholarship. You can use it to pay for lessons in school or you can use it outside for example for jd.

Kutik73 · 20/02/2018 20:46

Prada, no we haven't decided yet, though DS and I are leaning towards the state option (and DH is opposite). We are visiting both schools this week and next week. Hopefully DH likes the state school then the decision will be easily made! And we can start house hunting finally!

cat, I think you will be offered warm-up in a separate room usually so you can have a play through at the venue before entering the exam room.

Green, I can't think of any plan for next year yet! Suspect DS will be very busy being at a big school then. I'm impressed with ministring that she is going to sit summer session in the year she started her big school. She must be ultra busy being a scholar, being Y7 generally, studying two instruments as her first study at jd, and doing lots other things! Such a seriously super girl!!

drummers, yes, I realised that. On top of the reduction of the fee. Very generous, indeed... But I feel it'll still be a stretch. 5 years of financial commitments that only increase each year...

WindMum · 20/02/2018 21:29

Green - I’ve wondered about 2 examiners, or at least a chaperone. Feels odd sending child (DD) into a room with no windows and a closed door with a strange man. Not sure what the child protection stuff is now I think about it. I know they’ll be DBS checked - but that’s just a record check and no guarantee of safety. Recommendations elsewhere are that doors are left open when 1:1 with children and window blinds open so child isn’t alone with a strange man, but not so in exam rooms?

WindMum · 20/02/2018 21:34

Congrats to all with good news and scholarships etc. DD is going to take up scholarship at first choice school in music and another co-curricula discipline. No free music lessons though, didn’t realise this was a ‘thing’ elsewhere. Must find out if it’s something which can be negotiated!

We are now 10 days away from start of festival performances, 2 concertos in one day - one on piano and one on clarinet! One with music and one from memory!

Then 10 days until the rest of the festival classes.

drummersmum · 20/02/2018 21:59

WindMum yes you could try negotiate it as I always understood it to be the norm everywhere. All the scholarship offers we got came with free lessons on at least two instruments. Plus DS had 1-2-1 theory g5 added, extra composing sessions, masterclasses, etc.

Greenleave · 20/02/2018 21:59

I had someone who did some practice this evening, it was lovely to hear eventhough the sound wasnt as good as what it was two weeks ago.

Exactly Windmum, leaving a 9/10 years old girl upstair in a closed room by herself with a man( the previous examiner) whom I didnt see the face was a little uneasy even he must be DBS checked. The child can also feel more at ease if there are two other people in the room. I really wish parent/teacher is allowed to be in the room too as I really wanted to see her performance. We will take G8 piano next year, after 11+ and hopefully might be G7 violin if she is progressing with bowl holding corrections etc. For now my focus is only full on having health care and child care planned as our childminder who helps to drop and pick my 3 yrs old has just resigned(we still need someone to drop and pick her on top of the usual nursery schedule).

raspberryrippleicecream · 20/02/2018 23:43

cat I usually pick up early enough for them to have time to chill a bit. I have never had any issues at junior or secondary about taking them out.

That said, the school session exams they do, they come out of class just in time to warm up and straight in, so I'm probably molly-coddling them

The ABRSM piano is awful, DS2 tells me. The Trinity piano is lovely, they use it for our Festival so DS is used to it. It's also one of the churches DS uses for organ practice so he should have no problems in the organ class!

Kutik73 · 21/02/2018 10:03

WindMum, interesting that you mentioned window blinds open. One of the state schools where DS had a music aptitude audition was like that. A particular room was located on the ground floor with windows facing to where other applicants and their parents were waiting and queuing so every movement of the child and the teacher in the room was on show to many people. The child looked nervous and embarrassed! I felt no privacy for such an important audition and felt sorry for the child in the room being observed everything by strangers (who were obviously very curious what's going on in the room). But now I totally understand why they did that way and can see that would have made many parents at ease.

But I still think the school could have handled it better. Many DCs find aural embarrassing, never mind doing it in front of a large number of the audience...

Kutik73 · 21/02/2018 20:11

I've just booked the train tickets to Cardiff for DS and myself. We are going to visit a violin shop there next week. Sounds a bit crazy I know but I've decided no compromise in our violin research!

DH's great grandfather earned a medal during the WW1 and it's displayed in the museum in the castle. I am going to show DS that too. Anyone know anything about Cardiff? Any recommendation would be greatly appreciated!

Kutik73 · 21/02/2018 21:11

I thought we would have sorted DS's violin by now but it's going to be a longer journey than we expected, quite rightly.

However..., DS's 3/4 bow has broken a few days ago... So now he's using a crappy spare which cost less than £40. Every stroke end up killing a hair... We don't really have time nor energy to search for a bow on top of violin at the moment, especially now school has started. I am hoping his crappy bow lasts till the next school holiday...

LooseAtTheSeams · 21/02/2018 21:11

Kutik the castle is great - really enjoyed my visit there a couple of years ago even without any personal connections!
Do try the National Museum as well - it's well worth it.