6th Grade Winds
Nov. 18 - Worked on 38, 39, 78 and 79. Postponed a quiz for 38. Lots of students missing.
Nov. 6 - Named notes, fingered, played Jingle Bells. Talked about cleaning up the room.
Oct. 30 - Worked on Page 7. Rearranged the seating. Trumpets horns up front. Had small ensemble group one practice in the practice room. (Lindsay and Rachel) Quiz next week will be on number 25, Lightly Row.
Oct. 28 - talked about note durations, took notes on it. practiced whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth. notes. Instructed students that our goal will be all of page 7 with a playing quiz being for number 26.
Oct. 24 - Took a test on 5 notes that we’ve learned. Played up to page 7.
Oct. 14 - Talked about new practice records. Goal Setting. Also talked about auditions on Bb Major scale to determine who will have small ensemble help. Also, students should be willing to be leaders in the class. Went over first couple of pages.
—Updates at top—
How to Obtain a Band Instrument
Sept. 2 - Parents need to fill out parent information form and return it on Sept. 4. We passed out folders. Will discuss instruments next time.
Sept. 4 - Students passed in Parent info sheet and got credit for bringing their music folders. We talked about how to clean the flute, and how to make sounds on the flute, trumpet, and saxophone mouthpieces. Instrument Rental meeting is Sept. 17. Please see above, How to Obtain a Band Instrument. Taught the hand raising technique to get quiet.
Sept. 8 - Continued introduction to instruments with double reeds, single reeds. Learned vocabulary words: reed, ligature, embouchure, double reeds, reed strength, care of reed with reed holder. Hugo demonstrated french horn, clarinet, showed size of tenor sax. Students were sent home with the above handout: How to Obtain a Band Instrument. INSTRUMENTS ARE DUE IN CLASS SEPT. 18 or 19 whichever day you have band.
Sept. 10 - Students chose which student leader they would be, then wrote paragraphs as to why they would be good. Some put that they didn’t want to help. Listened to first two exercises on the cd. passed out music books. Played music math, reviewing time divisions.
Sept. 12 - Went over new restroom procedure. Talked about breathing properly. Talked about note divisions up to the eighth. Did foot tap/clapping exercise to show difference between “beat” and “rhythm.” Had a funny “pizza party.”
Sept. 16 - Reviewed restroom policy. Reviewed who is coming to rental meeting. Went over clefs and alphabet forward and backward. Lindsay played.
Sept. 18 - Made our first sounds as a group. Anyone who doesn’t have an instrument yet must get one this weekend. Practice: only opening case, setting up mouthpiece and making a sound. Flutes - remember to look in the mirror as you work with the head joint. Make sure your lower lip is covering one third of the hole, make sure the opening of your head joint is pointing toward your right. Clarinets and saxes, please make sure you are handling the reed as carefully as you can. DON’T touch the tip of the reed, whatever you do, and try to learn how to put the ligature on first and work the reed in backwards. When you blow into the mouthpiece, make sure clarinet mouthpieces pointed down, and sax mouthpieces pointed in front of you. Teeth on top of mouthpiece, lip on reed. Saxes, bulk up the bottom lip by pulling the corners of your mouth inward into a circle. Do not use teeth pressure to get the sound. French horn, trumpet, buzz only on the mouthpiece, remembering to use the lower chin muscles to pull the lip open in the center. Keep your cheeks in as you blow. Trombones, mouthpieces, your initial buzz should sound like a lawn mower or a real tired fly. EVERYONE: Keep cheeks in, sit tall, breath in slowly until you’re full of air, and blow as long as you can. Sit tall! Homework is to produce a sound that is 8 seconds long, steady and unwavering ! Also learned, ready, attention, horns up.
Sept. 22 - Checked mouthpiece setups. Made sure all were making a good sound on mouthpiece. Corrected a few trumpet embouchures and saxophone embouchures. Do not let cheeks puff out. Study pages 2 and 3 like it’s your bible of music playing. Read and re-read until you’ve memorized all the points about making the embouchure.. Worked on tonguing notes. Students are to practice tonguing notes on their mouthpiece. Beginners must not put instruments together yet. More advanced players can move ahead.
Sept. 24 - Hugo corrected mouthpiece setup for alto saxes, bass clarinet, tenor sax and clarinet. Still trying to get an unwavering steady pitch for at least 8 seconds. instructed saxes to look for the junction at which the reed comes away from the mouthpiece. This is where the lower lips should be. Same with clarinets, only mouthpiece is pointed down, so chin needs to be pointed to make up for the angle.
If any parent is willing to make copies of the practice records and bring them to class to share with the rest of the students, I would greatly appreciate it. KFMS is running low on copies.
Sept. 26 - Students should now be able to put their instrument together. Also taught the ready, attention and horns up. Next week: put mouthpieces on instruments, begin reading book. Also will need practice records.
Oct. 8 - Update: students are now putting instruments together, making sounds on mouthpiece, and should be playing up to number 10 in the book. Horns need work with buzzing the pitch. All brass should be buzzing constantly. Flutes beginning to focus sound better. Saxophones, watch neckstrap height. Clarinets, watch head angles, keeping head up and chin stretched tight.
Oct. 10 - I saw a lot of people working hard on worksheets when I came back from the Peanut Fest. Please make sure you bring them back, so we can talk about them and you can turn them in for a grade.