Spring Term 2020 music thread

[squintsoftheworldunite]

Thought I would start the ball rolling on the first 2020 music thread since I’m awake. Happy New Year all of you and your lovely little musicians. Carrying on the long tradition of music threads here begun moons ago by wafflenose .... hoping our threads continue to be a place that’s welcoming to all, whatever standard, experience, backgrounds or situations of music bring you here.

2019 brought incredible music experiences for us, our biggest year to date. Exhausting but incredible. We said goodbye to the year with a final music lesson to end what has been an amazing first year on a new, and now first study, instrument. We’ve had a year free from practical exams but full of auditions and performances and so much to look back on with gratitude. I certainly couldn’t have predicted 2019 this time last year! I hope we can say the same of 2020 this time next year. Happy New Year xx

Also seen the NYRO; although I got quite excited about it, dd less so...

One student text me yesterday to say she's signed up for the whole week!

@hopelesschildren I don't imagine they'll close booking if she changes her mind.

Hi from an occasional poster and occasional lurker. Congratulations to islander and Juggling My DS did 2 years at RCS juniors islander and is about to go into his 4th year of his BMus degree at the Guildhall. He is very envious of the beautiful surroundings of the Trinity Juggling .
I teach piano up to G5. About half my pupils have continued their lessons using Zoom mostly, which has worked fairly well, though it's frustrating not being able to count along, play along etc in real time. Tbh, despite finding it exhausting I think I've got as much out of it as my pupils. Seeing their cheery faces each week and knowing they've continued to progress has been an absolute tonic in these difficult times. It's useful to see and hear what and where they're playing too. And parents of littlies being closely involved is enormously helpful.

I recently discovered a new exam board called the Music Teachers' Board. I haven't used them yet, but intend to. It is accepting videoed exams conducted online by the teacher. The choice of pieces is exceptionally flexible and I think they don't require much notice, so the candidate and teacher can decide when to do an exam. They also accept duets instead of sightreading, which can be played with anyone or to a backing track! I'm so excited about my new find.

DS is very fed up about having to pay full fees. He's studying jazz, so it's especially difficult at the moment.

When we're allowed in other people's homes with social distancing I am hoping to offer a mix of online lessons and lessons in my home, using the piano and keyboard. Keyboard would be just inside the front door of the room so minimal touching of surfaces and I would be happy to wear a mask if parents feel happier. No back to back lessons. Obviously I would wipe down the stool, and keyboard. I will encourage pupils to leave coats in their car and only bring in books, notepad and pencil. Any thoughts ?

Hello everyone, it's been a long while since I last posted on here. But do follow everyone's progress and lovely news, at lest those that I still recognise and haven't name changed!

DD is going into Y12, still involved heavily in music life although will not study music formally beyond GCSE. Sax now added as she would love to participate more in jazz ensembles at HE as well as classical/latin/pop stuff.

Thank you all for bringing my attention to the new performance assessed exams. She was due to take piano G8 last autumn but postponed to get GCSEs and heavy other stuff schedule out the way. Best laid plans and all that...so here we are again, but now this new option has really excited her, and so we're waiting for further news on how to proceed, and when they can be sat/who mandates the 4th piece list at G8 standard etc.

Agree with PP that completing 4 pieces in one take is a challenge, but we are under no expectations for her to complete a submission fault free, just like a practical exam wouldn't be, but having undergone the pros and cons of not sitting GCSEs this year, she's more philosophical on different approaches/methods to success and as Raspberry says, it won't suit everyone. Indeed she would not ever have opted for the new format for violin for any of the grades. But piano presents different challenges, and she underperforms as a result of not being able to overcome examiner nerves in the higher grades, that's not reflective of her on-going work.

Rogue; best of luck with picking up teaching again in the new world. The only issue I'd raise is the risk on leaving coats/belongings in cars. Maybe it's a London thing (and I speak from PLENTY of first hand experience!), but opportunists do break into cars for coats, with potential for phones/wallets etc left in pockets. You want to avoid your clients blaming you...

I’m not sure if we’re accurate ealing but dd is hoping to take the new online performance exam (g5) in early September. Her piano teacher has had a chat about a fourth piece with her and they have together selected one to round out the programme. Presumably her piano teacher has assessed it at the right level as it’s quite an obscure modern piece. It does have a glissando in it which dd is v excited to play!
I’m hoping we’re not jumping the gun as dd loves her new piece!

That sounds perfect Queen; very best of luck to her. It's great that they have the option to pick a piece that can complement their individual personality and not come straight from a syllabus!

DD has decided to do remote assessment for piano exam and has been looking for a fourth piece to complement the others. Still no start date on the Abrsm website yet. She’s also decide to do the normal exam in the autumn for violin as there’s the accompanist to factor in so makes it more difficult.
Does anyone know if after the 4th July face to face music lessons will be able to take place? I haven’t seen anything that says either way.

I know the ISM are looking into it because I've had a few emails this week.

I guess it's technically within the rules depending on what instrument. Possibly not woodwind/brass/vocal?

Can't wait to have our wood wind teacher back face to face. We have seen him once as he cycled over to drop off reeds and fix a bassoon but zoom is wearing thin now. Our piano teacher lives across the road so zoom is so frustrating. Think she will start face to face soon hopefully. In Scotland so rules different. Can't decide if it will be better for her to come to us or vv. She teaches three of my kids so that is nearly all her pupils for that day, only has one other normally.

My daughter is taking her LTCL at the end of this year and is preparing to take her LRSM in 2021 - if she can actually sit it.

Good luck to your daughter, hopefully all the exams will take place! Surely in NZ there is a good chance that they will happen?

I check in occasionally and am glad to see a few familiar names ... as well as lots of new ones.

My youngest (DS17) who was a very late starter (guitar 3 years ago and piano about 18 months) has taken advantage of lockdown to do enormous amounts of piano practice and to learn the bass guitar. We are in France so lockdown has ended and he was able to take his "second cycle" (roughly grade 8) piano exam this week. He hopes to audition for a big city conservatoire in September.

Someone was talking about differences between children lower down the thread and it's definitely true here - oldest is naturally musical, but lazy about practice, DS is less of a natural but a hard worker and very detail-oriented. He is probably overall the better pianist now.

@horseymum
Zoom is wearing thin now.
Hi - I used to lurk on here when DS was in the NCO, name changed since.
With two more JD Saturdays via Zoom and MS Teams remaining this term, we are also at that point.
Does anyone else have offspring who are feeling despondent and fearful that there will ever anything like the old "normal" again?

sorry ...ever be anything.

Yes, middle DD has missed so many things and slowly realising that orchestra, wind groups etc may not start back for ages. Youngest DD would have been due to start wind and, not many prospects of that. We try not to talk too much about it, they have done well practising with no end in sight so far. Same for everything I guess but would be nice to have an idea of timescales, would make it easier.

I’m aware that we are in a vege privileged position here in New Zealand, the diplomas - Trinity is going to use NZ based examiners (instead of flying in UK based ones) and moderate as usual in London. ABRSM hasn’t decided yet.
Schools have been back for weeks here and all the cases are people returning from overseas who are testing positive in quarantine.
The youth bands and orchestras have been back for a few weeks, but we are heading into a two week holiday so they’ll resume (hopefully) in term 3. Btw we have 4 terms here.
Lessons are face to face again which is lovely.
I really feel for everyone in the UK. We still have lots of friends and family there. Those who are elderly and still sheltering are thoroughly fed up!
The only thing for us is that books are taking ages to arrive. Having said that, the music from June Emerson arrived in less than a week!

Vege! Haha. Very. Sorry.

Im not in the uk either and we managed to get some way back to normal before we hit the summer holidays and everything stopped again. We were back to face to face teaching for individual lessons - Lots of disinfection and 2m distance between teacher and pupils (or 1m dependant on which organisation was in charge). Quartet teaching along the same lines. Large group stuff has been more challenging, we've managed some stuff but the various restrictions mean it's not quite the same. Our junior wind band have really struggled for example with not being allowed a fruit break in the middle of practise, they arent great at focussing without the pause and they really benefit from the social aspect. The older ones cope better, they seem to be able to get the social aspect by chatting while seated in their positions whereas the juniors seem to need to fun around like loons and pile on top of each other.....
We cant recruit for band at the moment because we're not allowed to let potential recruits try out wind instruments....

@horseymum - it's so difficult when you have everything planned on a certain timescale to then not have one at all, isn't it? Our lives, with children, are so centred around academic years and terms that you do tend to have milestones, like starting an instrument in year such and such or having a grade done by a certain year to be on target.
@shakyisles - It's fantastic that life is returning to normal for you now, albeit with slow music deliveries! re June Emerson, at the height of lockdown, we received an order from a musical supplier in Germany in four days flat from placing the order to delivery!
@mendingfences, it's encouraging that you have started ensembles again as well as face to face teaching. They're the real challenge and the thing that DS is missing above all.
I think his biggest fear is that JDs will continue via zoom in September and the orchestra in particular won't happen.

Does anyone else have offspring who are feeling despondent and fearful that there will ever anything like the old "normal" again?

I wouldn’t say despondent (mine are still little-ish though, so maybe more ‘in the moment’ than older DC) but, music-wise, I have a disappointed 6yo who wanted to start trombone and a 10yo who’s missed out on her G2 flute exam. Hardly seems worth the faff and expense of doing G2 (however ABRSM plan to do it online) now that she’s working towards G3, so onwards and upwards.

Credit due to the flute teacher who seems to be doing a decent job via Zoom - how she can tell which stray finger is messing up a note, without being there in person, remains a mystery!

Feeling sorry for all the older DC I read about on the thread who’ve had their musical wings clipped

I'm so glad we have had various virtual projects on the go, if anyone is looking, the showcase virtual orchestra is great fun. If anyone spots any recorder ones other than NYRo, which is already on my radar, would be good to know. By the end of this they will be great at playing with a backing track but not know what a conductor is!

@horseymum sorry if you've said but how old/what level are your DC? Wood house also doing an online recorder course but gr8+ I think.

Thanks, DD is 12 and probably about grade 4/5 on recorders, no lessons but plays herself and can play from garklein to bass passably well so thought it would be nice to find a fun activity with recorders, rather than something too tricky.

Saw this today that might be fun.

Thanks, will take a look.

Shakyisles - that gave me a slight thrill to see Trinity mentioned in NZ.
As my DS is going to Trinity Laban, the London Conservatoire for music and dance, which grew from the Trinity Music College when it joined with the Laban School of Dance.
They are also now based in the beautiful Old buildings of the Old Royal Naval College near the Queens House, Greenwich Park, and the Cutty Sark in Greenwich, on the banks of the Thames.
I think the Trinity exams are pretty independent of the Conservatoire now - I expect as they've become so huge all around the world. But I still love that sense of heritage and history.
No scales either has to be a bonus LOL! (Am I right about that for the Trinity exams? As it happens DS always did the ABRSM ones. Trinity might well have suited him slightly better)

Anyway, also glad for you that they're going to be able to find a way to continue with NZ assessors. I'm really surprised they've not been doing that already!

I have no idea for scales with Trinity exams. But I can tell you that the ATCL and LTCL no longer require programme notes (all the research) and just a programme of works in order, timed. My sax playing daughter took AB grades and then did ATCL then DipABRSM the following year.
She was one of the last groups for ATCL to need those full programme notes!
As for Trinity exams here - they were appealing for more examiners. I was very tempted as I have what they require but Covid and my children being school age stopped me applying. Maybe in a couple more years time I will!