Here we go again! February 6, 2008
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Lessons for Grade 7 Flute and Trumpet are canceled tomorrow-no teachers available. All other grade 7 lessons are on unless we are cancelled or have a weather delay. Please check the Band Blog before setting out tomorrow in the event I need to cancel all grade 7 lessons. Remember, in the event of a 2 hour delay we will not have lessons..Thanks!~Mr. S
Wild Weather! February 5, 2008
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I am very, very sorry to those who bravely came out to lessons today! Your perseverance was much appreciated! Unfortunately, the weather conditions prevented the UNH Music Students from leaving campus and nearly kept me from arriving as well. In the future if this kind of weather event should occur, and no school delay happens, I will post whether or not to come to lessons on the NHS BAND BLOG from home. Please get in the habit of checking it before heading out the door to lessons. A UNH teacher may not make it or be sick, for instance, and in that case I might cancel lessons for just that section. Thanks and again my apologies!~Mr. S
Dates to remember! February 3, 2008
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-The NHS Jazz Band will play at 6:30pm on Saturday, Feb. 16th at part of the NHS Dessert Theater. Please let me know ASAP if you cannot attend. The Grades 7 & 8 bands will participate in the annual SAU #21 Band Festival March 6th at 6:30pm@WHS. Students will need to arrive at the WHS Auditorium at 3:45pm and a pizza dinner will be available for a small fee. The Festival should conclude by 8:00pm. Concert dress will be black and white.
Practice! February 3, 2008
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Six Keys to Successful Practice
Practice is essential to learning music; the more you practice, the more quickly you will grow as a musician. We strongly recommend a minimum of twenty minutes of practice a day, five days a week.Please set aside a regularly scheduled practice time each day. Do not leave practicing to chance, or wait until you have some “free time.” Especially for beginners, several short practice periods per day may be more effective than one longer one. At times, the going may get rough, and you may get discouraged, but this is normal. If you will persevere through the tough times, you will experience the tremendous satisfaction that comes with achieving your goals.
- Practice slowly and carefully, thinking constantly of what you are trying to accomplish. Concentrate on the work at hand, and avoid automatic practice.
- Practice short sections of a song at a time. Keyboard players should practice hands separately first, then hands together. Wind players should practice fingering a difficult passage before actually playing it.
- Repeat each difficult part in the music until it can be played three times in a row correctly (once is accidental, twice is coincidental, three times is mastery). Merely playing one’s music through once does not constitute practicing.
- Incorporate the proper rhythm, fingering, phrasing, articulation and dynamics in your practice from the very first time you play a piece. Playing the correct notes is only a very small part of learning music.
- A few minutes of thorough practice are worth hours of haphazard, careless work. You’ve heard it said that “practice makes perfect;” the truth is that only perfect practice makes perfect.
- Remember, no question you might have is unimportant. That’s why you take lessons! Communication between student and instructor is essential to learning.
