Robinson's Percussion & Chamber Music at FAC: What's Happening in Late September

YOUR STUDENT'S CURRENT STUDIES & PRACTICE EXPECTATIONS

Your student is expected to demonstrate progress on his/her instrument, as well as on the related studies we are undertaking in their Fine Arts Center class, each and every day. At the start of each PERCUSSION I and PERCUSSION II class, in fact, I will often have students give reports on the previous evening's practice session. They must then demonstrate their accumulated abilities in a weekly "playing check," in which they perform for their peers, listen to their comments and observations, and receive a grade. My PERCUSSION I and PERCUSSION II students are supposed to gear their daily practice sessions so that they will arrive at these weekly summits at the peak of their abilities. Most of the time, playing checks will showcase their progress in:

• technique, such as hand development, stick control exercises, and rudiments
• reading, generally in the form of a snare drum etude he/she has been preparing over the course of the week, and
• a page or series of exercises on the drum set that demonstrate improved four-way coordination, tone and rhythmic control, and an ability to control reading

Your PERCUSSION I and PERCUSSION II student's practice sessions, therefore, should reflect these goals, and each practice session should encompass an hour or more in time. Typically, 20 minutes of technique, 20 minutes if reading (totaling 40 minutes on the practice pad) and then 20 minutes of drum set will give them time to warm up their specific skills and then move ahead into making progress. Given an evening without too much academic work, additional time beyond that minimum hour is particularly beneficial for your student's drum set development. Weekends should never be regarded as time off from study, but as two opportune days to put in extra practice time, to solidify skills established during the previous week, and to make significant individual progress.

Your PERCUSSION I and PERCUSSION II student's practice room should be free of distractions. IIn addition to instruments and a music stand, your student should have a mirror your to monitor his/her technique and a clock to time practice activities.

Members of the INSTRUMENTAL CHAMBER MUSIC CLASS are preparing for a pair of outreach concerts they will give at League Middle School Academy on Friday, October 9th. Because preparation for their concerts constitutes a term-long project, we have not had weekly playing checks. Every member of the "team, " however, is expected to be able to play ALL of the music they are scheduled to perform, to "pull their weight," not to hold his/her ensemble back, and to contribute to that group's progress. Your student's ensemble assignments include the following:

• Cripple Creek Counterpoint: everybody (Wesley, Moses, Robert, and Zach on marimbas; Merritt Amber on flutes, McKenzie on oboe and John on horn
• Vivaldi Flute Concerto: Wesley, Moses, Robert, and Zach on marimbas, Merritt on flute, John on keyboard
• Hand Clapping Piece: Robert, Wesley, Moses, McKenzie, Merritt, John, and Amber on hand clapping parts
• The Moon is Shining: Moses, Wesley and Robert on marimba, Merritt and Amber on flute, McKenzie on oboe, and John on keyboards
• Horn trios: John on horn, Wesley on vibraphone, Moses on marimba
• Woodwind trios: Merritt and Amber on flute, McKenzie on oboe

It is safe to say that each member of the INSTRUMENTAL CHAMBER MUSIC CLASS has a ways to go before before mastering his/her complete folder of music, and that everyone should be devoting time during daily practice sessions to this effort. Weekends should never be regarded as time off from study, but as two opportune days to put in extra practice time, to solidify skills established during the previous week, and to make significant individual progress. This is especially true of our marimba players, who have a large quantity of music to master, and to everyone involved in the hand clapping piece.

GETTING OVER THE HUMP

I have two PERCUSSION I classes at the Fine Arts Center this year. Not only does this mean that I have many students who are relatively new to formal instruction in drumming, but also new to the idea that they MUST make progress from one class to the next and then meet weekly performance expectations. Rather than move forward, PERCUSSION I students will sometimes give up in the face of a new and challenging skill, such as a drum set beat that demands a controlled use of all four limbs or a complicated rudiment that requires control of a number of different stroke types. But because the skills and concepts taught in class are progressive – learning the next skill requires mastery of the one studied the week before – PERCUSSION I students must "get over the hump" when they encounter it. Slow, patient practice that involves repetition, counting, and physical relaxation will generally help students to acquire a here-to-fore unfamiliar skill. Make sure that your student has plenty of practice time in these cases, as our brain's learning time is highly individual and can't be hurried.