Spring /Summer 24 - Music thread

[northerngoldilocks]

The old thread was filling up, so here's a new one to talk about music activities. Come and talk about music lessons, choosing instruments, exams, auditions, specialist schools, orchestras or whatever other music activities are going on. Everyone is welcome, from those with total beginners to those whose children are studying music at advanced levels. Ask for advice or share successes or struggles. There's loads of experience across a wide variety of instruments too(though bassoon's are weirdly popular on here - you'd think that every second child plays one!).

Well my second child certainly does. Thanks for starting this one @northerngoldilocks - just place marking here

Well done @northerngoldilocks! I saw some blossoms today and wondered whether it was time for a new thread .

Thanks for the new thread

Ooh, thanks for new thread, it's definitely not Autumn anymore! It's all about the double reeds in our house. Youngest would also have a contrabassoon if we let her/ sold our house and lived in a tent to afford one. Easter holidays brings two camps and then the headlong rush towards highers ( much earlier than a levels)

Thank you@northerngoldilocks sadly no bassoon here but DD does play clarinet.

We had 'music parents evening' last night, a new feature in which peri music teachers attempt to stick to a five minute Zoom meeting. Went about as well as you can expect given they really like to talk and haven't got used to the whole 'being cut off at exactly five minutes' thing yet.

I've never met any of them - boarding school and DD new this year - so it was probably good that we did get to see what they look like. All v good - major frustration merely the way DDs lessons are scheduled, so that she does two hours on first instrument, half an hour on each of the other two. However, that's the deal, so I guess we all just have to make the best of it.

Thanks northern, Autumn was starting to seem a little inaccurate 😅No reeds at all here I'm sorry to say. Wish they had, their ensembles are sadly lacking in bassoons and oboes.

Thanks @northerngoldilocks for the new thread.

Just attaching a post I made on the last thread as am still looking for opinions. New cello shopping happening next Thursday. Dd very excited.

We have had many kind offers from various music people. One gentleman accompanied my DC in a competition, doing a few practice sessions because he said he enjoys it. I also heard this from someone else he told it to. We got him garden centre vouchers. I did offer to pay for the actual time but he said he genuinely enjoys it. I'm asking him again soon and will again offer to pay. I imagine He might accept payment for an exam accompaniment but not a short performance at a social club. Dds teacher often does extra lessons, I always offer to pay but he sometimes ignores the questions and sometimes tells me an amount! I think people do enjoy helping but it's good to offer as it presumably pays their bills. And just pay things forward when you can, maybe not not but in the future. I teach a wee girl from church recorder for free. I've also offered to lend an instrument for Lian until we need to sell.

*loan obviously

@QueenMabby we were lucky in that we managed to buy DD's new cello from a colleague of her teacher and he tried it out first and checked it for us. We did go to Stringers for her bow and a new case though and I would recommend them - we had the new bow for two weeks on trial to make sure that it was a good fit.

I'm a big believer in paying it forward. Dh has a career today because of the opportunities he was able to access and also teachers going the extra mile/free lessons etc.

So I fundraise to help provide lessons for those from disadvantaged backgrounds, dh has given free music theory lessons and I also contributed to a bursary fund for a music college.

I hope that in the future some of these young people also pay it forward.

Happy Spring/Summer everyone. I'm still lurking. My child is home for Easter, preparing for second year recital at the moment.

Afternoon all!

I'm the bassoon player in this house!

DS is as a film/acting course this week, and seemingly having a whale of a time.

We have a challenge to complete. For a while, his piano teacher has been saying DS will take his piano diploma this summer term (end of year 10), as long as DS does an hour of practice a day. Now he's saying he won't be ready. This is no doubt because DS does nowhere near an hour of practice a day! He does play, but it's mainly noodling about, with the occasional play-through of his pieces. Not much actual hands-apart, or really working on the tricky passages.

DS is keen to get it done while he's still 14. So I've said, right. Do an hour a day, and I bet you could. So he's going to challenge his music teacher - I bet I can do it, just you watch me...

I don't think I'm going to see much of ds this Easter.

I went up to see him conduct a jazz based band he had put together at uni for a musical theatre project but he stayed up there as he has got a job playing for an amateur show this week.

He is then going to be stopping with a couple of friends/bandmates in other cities as he has gigs with his band this weekend and next week in their uni cities.

@herbaceous sounds like the challenge might be enough to get him to practice then! Neither of my kids manage an hour a day on any instrument (honestly probably not in aggregate if I was honest - either individually or combined) though neither are working for a diploma either, and suspect both would make faster progress with more practice too!

DS had his Gr 6 piano exam today. He said it was ok - he messed up a couple of scales at the beginning (assume nerves / unused to the piano) but after that was ok. Now just the waiting game for the results. Think he's ready for a bit of a break so looking forward to a week away where no instruments come with us. Second week of the Easter holidays is Youth Orchestra for both of them though.

@QueenMabby I haven't got any experience of teachers helping choose instruments, but i'd probably offer to pay their standard rate for the time they're helping perhaps and if they push back offer lunch / buy a thank you gift. I think the fact that he's 'making a day of it' with his wife might mean that they won't both want to join you for lunch, but depends on your relationship i guess?

If it's helpful to compare @herbaceous Dd2's flute teacher now says 'certainly not' to her ARSM this summer - as she has not got enough time for practice. She's would also have been 14- took her G8 last summer, I think at the same time as your son. I think we're just going with it (I mean we never really get much choice but I wasn't planning to push back at ALL!)- especially since if she practises flute too much she makes the bassoon teacher cross...

I don't think anyone is ever going to care when/if they take it, are they? DD fancies the prestige, which really isn't prestige at her new school where everyone is better than her anyway- but I've told her that's not really what this is about.

I'm currently down at music hogwarts -working in the rain the local Wetherspoons - as the only ticket I could get for the school concert was last night and I'm bringing her home Thursday. For a beautiful city it sure is grim in the rain.

Concert was superb (Mozart's requiem and some Tchaikovsky) and DD2 still seems happy. It appears when spring rears its head at music school everyone's thoughts turn to lurrrvve... well, going for walks with specific boys from other houses anyway - so she was full of gossip last night. She's also learned to make reeds. Badly, so far!

We missed tickets for both concerts, minisnowballs - first concert we've missed - so we're doing a grab and run tomorrow.
If you want somewhere a bit nicer than Wetherspoons, Fosso Lounge is nice and chill and the food is good.

Funny you should mention spring being boy season there - another mum messaged me today to say that her 14 year old daughter has informed her that DS is considered " well fit". 😂

Aww, what a shame. @Alwaysplayspicc - it was superb and your DS played beautifully. We've missed tons of concerts already so you're doing better than me! I'm a great fan of Fosso Lounge, but Wetherspoons has free tea refills and excellent wifi. And a very interesting clientele who don't seem to mostly consist of DD's teachers, accompanists and assorted other acquaintances.

Glad to hear your DS is 'well fit'. Am amused that DD2 has gained some 'admirers' that she has no idea what to do with.. she's worried that she's given someone the wrong idea by agreeing to go to Tesco with them, even though she 'doesn't like them that way'.

It all seems a bit Jane Austen - if only Mr Darcy had told Elizabeth that he 'greatly esteemed' her in the middle of the cleaning products aisle.

Aww, teen love.

DS is the victim of his first hearbreak. He wasn't really interested in girls, until he moved to his new school and met N. It was obvious he really liked her, in that he'd blush and get dimples as soon as I mentioned her name.

But now she's going out with his friend A! Even though she knows DS likes her. DS is in various music ensembles with A, including a piano trio, which is obvs v small and intimate! He's managed to stay friends, but I think it's been REALLY hard for him and he's been stuggling a bit.

So I went and told him at the weekend that I knew he liked N, that it must have been very hard for him to see N and A together, but that he's navigated it well to be still good friends with both of them, and that I was very proud of him, not just for what he does (music) but for who he is.

Obvs he just grunted and went red, but has been very cheery the past few days, so I think it gave him a boost!

The romance at music boarding schools is rife if 6th form at my son's was anything to go by!
Re diploma, mine did grade 8 age 15. We assumed he'd do diploma in 6th form but didn't. Now 2nd year degree and neither he nor his tutor are looking at him doing it. He might get round to it if he can use an end of year recital repertoire but otherwise I don't think he'll bother.

I agree there's no rush, but his teacher does like to hustle them through the grades, and previous confidence in DS's abilities feels like it's evaporated. Though this could be because he's realised DS doesn't do the necessary practice!

We're not at diploma stage yet but my understanding of the repertoire is that the majority of it is grade 8 standard (in fact a lot of it is actually on the grade 8 syllabus) so its probably less a reflection of concerns about ability and more a reflection of confidence that there would be sufficient time to prepare a program of 30 mins (prep and stamina).

14 seems young for romance to me @Siriusmuggle - perhaps I'm oldfashioned. I've told DD2 she can only be in a committed relationship with her bassoon and her GCSEs!

Thanks for the new thread: I dropped off the old one so hello everyone! I have a DS who plays bassoon, and has just given up violin but has just taken up tenor saxophone.

He's Y10 so it's quite a juggle with school and music and all the other extra curriculars (silver D of E in particular!).

He's been far too busy recently so I'm hoping for a more relaxing Easter all round. He just has a three day music residential down the road in Leeds, and otherwise can just relax. Hope everyone has a restful bank holiday weekend!