Having only realized today that we are supposed to have been blogging about our group practices, Ill be completing the information for each one so far.
We have had 4 rehearsals so far where all of our group members have been present. Our first session was stressful, trying to sight-read some pieces, with some mild disputes over which songs we would be playing. We finally settled on one for sure, and played through Frolicher Landmann a few times until it began to sound more impressive. We worked well on trying to fit together as a group, rather than overplayed and drowning out the less significant parts. By the end of the practice session, we had selected three songs for sure that we could play competently, and decided to settle on a fourth the next day.
Our next session was very successful. We efficiently powered through our four pieces and had the rest of the time to work on areas we struggled with. By having one person lead us in, taking apart 4 bar sections, and by repetition, we worked out the kinks and started to sound much better as a group. Unfortunately, the second half of the session wasn’t as productive as we would have liked, due to loss of interest in playing some slow pieces several times, but we were confident in the improvements we had made.
The next session was shortly after we had been informed of the professional level of this performance. We focused on timing. Each piece, we took apart who would bring us in and how, at what tempo we were playing pieces, and starting together. Again, this was a fairly frustrating practice session. We started and stopped instantly countless times because one of us would be off each attempt. It took a fair bit of work before we became consistent in our openings. Once we became more confident in this, our playing as a group continued to improve.
Today was probably the most challenging, in terms of working on specifics. We treated our presentation like a performance. If we made a mistake, then wed get up, come back in, and try again. Sitting down took a few tries. Starting pieces became a challenge because of the set up on the stage, and we had to figure out our best situation for coming in together. We played through every piece a couple of times, trying to get a feel for how we fit in together in the auditorium, how loud we needed to play, among other obvious new variables that the larger room brought into play. We finished well, felt confident for tomorrow, and look forward to our performance.
Playing in the quartet has certainly been more challenging that first anticipated due to the inaccuracies of not having someone to lead you. It presents many new complications in performance, and made this assignment quite entertaining in the learning process.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Thursday, June 4, 2009
1. What has been your biggest improvement this year as a player?
I have consistently worked at things that I have struggled with. In the past, I would ignore those issues, skip over the section, and leave it at that. If I struggled with something in particular, I figured I would end up fixing the kinks in band practice. Instead, this year, I was much better at practicing on my own time to perfect my difficult sections. Not only did I try to practice more, but due to my regularity of playing, I also was able to find strategies that worked for me when trying to improve on a piece. I managed to try several different suggestions before realizing that breaking a piece down bar by bar was the most effective way for me. If I made a mistake on a bar, Id go back to the beginning. I did this until I made as few mistakes as possible, before my lips fell off.
2. What is the area you most struggle with?
At this level of playing, this year was my first being the only tuba player in the band. As opposed to junior band, where I found it easy to assess the volume of the other sections and balance to them, this year I found the noise around me overwhelming. It was very difficult to find where I fit into some pieces. I struggled to match the band dynamically and would often catch myself - or Mr. Haq would catch me- playing far too loud for the band. The result creates an obnoxious unpleasant sound that I tried to avoid, but it was very frustrating to have that much difficulty interpreting the dynamics of the group, and I feel like it was my weakest aspect this year.
3. What was your greatest musical highlight this year and why?
The final concert was my musical highlight. Although it was long in duration, I didn’t even realize that fact. Everything went so smoothly, every event, comment, speaker, and performance was funny, entertaining, and enjoyable. Whether I was on stage or in the audience, I enjoyed every moment of the concert. Seeing the look on Mrs. Stewart’s face was pretty priceless as well. I will never forget Mr. Stevenson doing “the hustle”....in that wig haha.
4. What areas do you feel the band accels at and what area do we struggle? Give specific examples.
I think as a band, we play very well together. The odd section stands out at certain troublesome areas of a song, but it is inconsistent in which group is struggling. When we notice an issue, it only takes a small piece of advice to correct, and the mistake is rarely made again. I also think we all play with confidence. As was observed at Nationals, we sight read a piece quite accurately, with hardly any mistakes. Obviously, with strong encouragement from the percussion section, but yet, we still succeed in playing with confidence. Whenever performing Rumble on the High Plains, we showed this quite clearly, with our intensity.
There are some things that could help us be an even better band, however. We don’t practice, collectively as a group. It hurts us when rehearsal comes along, because we can’t run pieces due to simple mistakes that are unnecessary. We aren’t able to get through our entire repertoire due to this fact, and a great deal of time is spent on note and rhythm errors needlessly. Another thing we struggle with is attendance. This, in particular bothers me. As I already struggle with finding balance in the band, being so inconsistent in the sections frustrates me. One day Ill play at a certain level, which is then too loud the next time. This issue was apparent at several rehearsals for me, and I hope that improves in the future. It also led ot certain sections falling apart at times, because some people in the section have worked on something at the last practice and others have missed. Therefore contributing to more inconsistency, and is a negative impact on the band as a whole.
I have consistently worked at things that I have struggled with. In the past, I would ignore those issues, skip over the section, and leave it at that. If I struggled with something in particular, I figured I would end up fixing the kinks in band practice. Instead, this year, I was much better at practicing on my own time to perfect my difficult sections. Not only did I try to practice more, but due to my regularity of playing, I also was able to find strategies that worked for me when trying to improve on a piece. I managed to try several different suggestions before realizing that breaking a piece down bar by bar was the most effective way for me. If I made a mistake on a bar, Id go back to the beginning. I did this until I made as few mistakes as possible, before my lips fell off.
2. What is the area you most struggle with?
At this level of playing, this year was my first being the only tuba player in the band. As opposed to junior band, where I found it easy to assess the volume of the other sections and balance to them, this year I found the noise around me overwhelming. It was very difficult to find where I fit into some pieces. I struggled to match the band dynamically and would often catch myself - or Mr. Haq would catch me- playing far too loud for the band. The result creates an obnoxious unpleasant sound that I tried to avoid, but it was very frustrating to have that much difficulty interpreting the dynamics of the group, and I feel like it was my weakest aspect this year.
3. What was your greatest musical highlight this year and why?
The final concert was my musical highlight. Although it was long in duration, I didn’t even realize that fact. Everything went so smoothly, every event, comment, speaker, and performance was funny, entertaining, and enjoyable. Whether I was on stage or in the audience, I enjoyed every moment of the concert. Seeing the look on Mrs. Stewart’s face was pretty priceless as well. I will never forget Mr. Stevenson doing “the hustle”....in that wig haha.
4. What areas do you feel the band accels at and what area do we struggle? Give specific examples.
I think as a band, we play very well together. The odd section stands out at certain troublesome areas of a song, but it is inconsistent in which group is struggling. When we notice an issue, it only takes a small piece of advice to correct, and the mistake is rarely made again. I also think we all play with confidence. As was observed at Nationals, we sight read a piece quite accurately, with hardly any mistakes. Obviously, with strong encouragement from the percussion section, but yet, we still succeed in playing with confidence. Whenever performing Rumble on the High Plains, we showed this quite clearly, with our intensity.
There are some things that could help us be an even better band, however. We don’t practice, collectively as a group. It hurts us when rehearsal comes along, because we can’t run pieces due to simple mistakes that are unnecessary. We aren’t able to get through our entire repertoire due to this fact, and a great deal of time is spent on note and rhythm errors needlessly. Another thing we struggle with is attendance. This, in particular bothers me. As I already struggle with finding balance in the band, being so inconsistent in the sections frustrates me. One day Ill play at a certain level, which is then too loud the next time. This issue was apparent at several rehearsals for me, and I hope that improves in the future. It also led ot certain sections falling apart at times, because some people in the section have worked on something at the last practice and others have missed. Therefore contributing to more inconsistency, and is a negative impact on the band as a whole.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Mr. Stevenson, i Know i haven't blogged in a while.
I truly apologize, and I don't mean to make excuses, but practicing has been very limited lately. Ive been trying my best to squeeze in 15 minutes after school when i get home, and that has worked a few days a week. But I am up to football or work every day of the week, and I am swamped. Practicing usually is going over chromatics and the study number 8 that I'm struggling with. gradually improving in accuracy and speed on both.
Thanks
Scott
I truly apologize, and I don't mean to make excuses, but practicing has been very limited lately. Ive been trying my best to squeeze in 15 minutes after school when i get home, and that has worked a few days a week. But I am up to football or work every day of the week, and I am swamped. Practicing usually is going over chromatics and the study number 8 that I'm struggling with. gradually improving in accuracy and speed on both.
Thanks
Scott
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
For my blogging post I have chosen Oystein Baadsvik; the only tuba player to make a career exclusively as a soloist, rather than becoming a teacher or joining an orchestra.
At age fifteen, he picked up the tuba for the first time, and instantly loved the instrument. At 18, he competed in a national soloist competition in his home country of Norway, at which he won first prize. This started off his dream of a future musical career. Baadsvik studied under tubists Harvey Phillips and Arnold Jacobs for several years, until he finally achieved his goal and became a professional soloist on the tuba. In 1991, he launched his new career with 2 awards at an international competition in Geneva.
Today, he is most well known for his masters classes and tuba clinics held throughout Universities in the USA. Baadsvik is also becoming remarkably well known due to his facebook, myspace, and youtube pages. His goal is to expand the musical aspects of the tuba, continuing to play solo rep for tuba and orchestra, and sometimes collaborating with jazz and rock musicians.
In his work, Baadsvik has even created several new tuba-playing techniques, that can be listened to on any of his 5 CD’s, or viewed in his several videos online.
In his performances, he is most well liked for his ability to connect with his audience and make them laugh with his impressive playing and humorous facial expressions.
His most famous piece is one that he composed, entitled Fnugg, which is Norwegian for snowflake. This piece includes a variety of unique tuba performance skills, several of which were developed by Baadsvik himself. Some examples of these are “lip beats” and multiphonics. The piece was later modified for brass band or concert band and entitled Fnugg Blue. The challenging parts in the piece have fascinated me since the first time I heard it. The player is so phenomenal, that I could not stop watching it over and over again. No matter the range, Baadsvik has great sound. Not only will he play peddle tones or notes in the upper register flawlessly, he will double tongue while playing them. I don’t believe that a tuba piece gets much more technically complicated than this piece.
The piece that is in the clip that follows is actually Czardas. I find this piece just as or even more impressive than Fnugg due to its complexity. The tempo of this piece changes before you can blink, and Baadsvik goes from a slow, drawling melody to an upbeat racing fanfare. His mere ability to adjust his fingers that quickly astounds me. This piece can be traced back to the Hungarian army in the 18th century, but this representation makes it lively and exciting. My favourite part about this piece is how well he paints the image of the music just on the tuba. He is accompanied by an orchestra, but plays only as a soloist throughout the piece. Just trying this piece would probably be the end of my lips as a tuba player. I wonder how he double tongues so quickly. I would also like to know how he hits the note that he does at the end of the piece, and the peddle tone about halfway through as he is lying on the floor. The range of his playing is unreal. There is not one point throughout the piece where a listener cannot be drawn to the screen. I love his ability to remember all of these pieces, along with dance around the stage while doing so. Please enjoy the following clip, it will Blow your mind !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYOsNp4O7AU
At age fifteen, he picked up the tuba for the first time, and instantly loved the instrument. At 18, he competed in a national soloist competition in his home country of Norway, at which he won first prize. This started off his dream of a future musical career. Baadsvik studied under tubists Harvey Phillips and Arnold Jacobs for several years, until he finally achieved his goal and became a professional soloist on the tuba. In 1991, he launched his new career with 2 awards at an international competition in Geneva.
Today, he is most well known for his masters classes and tuba clinics held throughout Universities in the USA. Baadsvik is also becoming remarkably well known due to his facebook, myspace, and youtube pages. His goal is to expand the musical aspects of the tuba, continuing to play solo rep for tuba and orchestra, and sometimes collaborating with jazz and rock musicians.
In his work, Baadsvik has even created several new tuba-playing techniques, that can be listened to on any of his 5 CD’s, or viewed in his several videos online.
In his performances, he is most well liked for his ability to connect with his audience and make them laugh with his impressive playing and humorous facial expressions.
His most famous piece is one that he composed, entitled Fnugg, which is Norwegian for snowflake. This piece includes a variety of unique tuba performance skills, several of which were developed by Baadsvik himself. Some examples of these are “lip beats” and multiphonics. The piece was later modified for brass band or concert band and entitled Fnugg Blue. The challenging parts in the piece have fascinated me since the first time I heard it. The player is so phenomenal, that I could not stop watching it over and over again. No matter the range, Baadsvik has great sound. Not only will he play peddle tones or notes in the upper register flawlessly, he will double tongue while playing them. I don’t believe that a tuba piece gets much more technically complicated than this piece.
The piece that is in the clip that follows is actually Czardas. I find this piece just as or even more impressive than Fnugg due to its complexity. The tempo of this piece changes before you can blink, and Baadsvik goes from a slow, drawling melody to an upbeat racing fanfare. His mere ability to adjust his fingers that quickly astounds me. This piece can be traced back to the Hungarian army in the 18th century, but this representation makes it lively and exciting. My favourite part about this piece is how well he paints the image of the music just on the tuba. He is accompanied by an orchestra, but plays only as a soloist throughout the piece. Just trying this piece would probably be the end of my lips as a tuba player. I wonder how he double tongues so quickly. I would also like to know how he hits the note that he does at the end of the piece, and the peddle tone about halfway through as he is lying on the floor. The range of his playing is unreal. There is not one point throughout the piece where a listener cannot be drawn to the screen. I love his ability to remember all of these pieces, along with dance around the stage while doing so. Please enjoy the following clip, it will Blow your mind !
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYOsNp4O7AU
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
Short post here.
I apologize, and Im not trying to make excuses. I practiced heavy duty all around the Variety Is concert for honour band. I practiced when I could in there for band and music class, work on some scales and played through rep. However, since then, I booked a week off of work to have Kyle with me, then because my week was off, I had to fill in a bunch of time after they were here. I have had to work late several days, and I am not allowed to play after my sister is in bed. Unfortunately, have not practiced much in the last little bit.
I apologize, and Im not trying to make excuses. I practiced heavy duty all around the Variety Is concert for honour band. I practiced when I could in there for band and music class, work on some scales and played through rep. However, since then, I booked a week off of work to have Kyle with me, then because my week was off, I had to fill in a bunch of time after they were here. I have had to work late several days, and I am not allowed to play after my sister is in bed. Unfortunately, have not practiced much in the last little bit.
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Practiced last night like crazy.
Honour Band this weekend. Performance was phenomenal. Dr. Richardson blows my mind with her ability to take 100 of us and make us into a great band in two days.
It was a great experience to play with 5 tubas instead of just me, it was quite a change. Working with Dr. Richardson i s a constant challenge, for she never conducts a piece the same way twice. For the second time, Honour band has been an incredible experience that I got a lot out of, and truly enjoyed.
The clinic where we worked with a music teacher who plays tuba was very enlightneing as well. He pointed out things that Ive never even considered before, and gave some amazing techniques to improve embrochure, range, etc. Without the difficulties of wrong notes (usually) and poorly played rhythms, the band comes together in a way that has amazed me twice now.
Im very glad I went, it was a wonderful experience.
I believe we played for a total of 50000 gajillion hours though.
Honour Band this weekend. Performance was phenomenal. Dr. Richardson blows my mind with her ability to take 100 of us and make us into a great band in two days.
It was a great experience to play with 5 tubas instead of just me, it was quite a change. Working with Dr. Richardson i s a constant challenge, for she never conducts a piece the same way twice. For the second time, Honour band has been an incredible experience that I got a lot out of, and truly enjoyed.
The clinic where we worked with a music teacher who plays tuba was very enlightneing as well. He pointed out things that Ive never even considered before, and gave some amazing techniques to improve embrochure, range, etc. Without the difficulties of wrong notes (usually) and poorly played rhythms, the band comes together in a way that has amazed me twice now.
Im very glad I went, it was a wonderful experience.
I believe we played for a total of 50000 gajillion hours though.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Practiced last night and tonight, for about 15 minutes and 25 minutes.
A lot of going over honour band rep. Again, slowly went through Holst suite, and improving fingerings of accidentals, but making sure not to put too much focus on the piece every night, and Ive been going back to Fusion. Ive struggled with the complex rhythm from the beginning, and gradually been improving. I did this in order to improve my "sight reading" skills, considering I havent seen it in 2 months, but I was really pleased to face the challenge of a very complicated rhythm that I struggled with. It made working to improve that much more fun.
PLayed through chromatics both nights as a warm up, and been going throguh some of the new scales in the purple book that Ms. Stinson has been getting us to look at. My knowledge of accidentals and in playing in different scales is improving quite well. I noticed this today when we sight-read the circus piece and I was able to pick up on it very quickly.
Very pleased overall. Need to work on dynamic contrast more effectively still. Unfotunately, the parents dont agree with forte on the tuba late at night when my sisters tring to sleep haha.
A lot of going over honour band rep. Again, slowly went through Holst suite, and improving fingerings of accidentals, but making sure not to put too much focus on the piece every night, and Ive been going back to Fusion. Ive struggled with the complex rhythm from the beginning, and gradually been improving. I did this in order to improve my "sight reading" skills, considering I havent seen it in 2 months, but I was really pleased to face the challenge of a very complicated rhythm that I struggled with. It made working to improve that much more fun.
PLayed through chromatics both nights as a warm up, and been going throguh some of the new scales in the purple book that Ms. Stinson has been getting us to look at. My knowledge of accidentals and in playing in different scales is improving quite well. I noticed this today when we sight-read the circus piece and I was able to pick up on it very quickly.
Very pleased overall. Need to work on dynamic contrast more effectively still. Unfotunately, the parents dont agree with forte on the tuba late at night when my sisters tring to sleep haha.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
35 minutes today.
A lot of my practice was sent on honour band rep. After listening to the music several times, I tried playing along with it. I found that this helped a great deal. I could easily stop and restart any parts that were challenging and listen to them at the recorded tempo, then slowly work to improve my ability to play those particular challenging rhythms.
I played through our band rep. Did my best to keep dynamics in check so as to not disturb the neighbours. Im avoiding the splat! effect. I found that after playing on a few different tubas that Ive played since grade 9, I came to a conclusion that choir has really improved my lung capacity and the ease at which I can play very loud or very soft for a prolonged period. Without the intention of making an excuse, I am quite certain that this, combined with my added efforts in the large auditorium, were the reasons why my playing was so obnoxious during music fest.
I think I am developing a poor habit of working on one challenging part of any piece, regardless of what Im struggling with, for much too long of a period. I work on it until my lips are sore sometimes, and by that point, Im not any further in my development as a player. I need to cointinue to improve breaking up my practice time into sections, and coming back to the parts Im struggling with. However, inly working on those parts for 5-10 minutes at a time.
Overall, noticing a great deal of improvement with practice. Quite pleased with myself
A lot of my practice was sent on honour band rep. After listening to the music several times, I tried playing along with it. I found that this helped a great deal. I could easily stop and restart any parts that were challenging and listen to them at the recorded tempo, then slowly work to improve my ability to play those particular challenging rhythms.
I played through our band rep. Did my best to keep dynamics in check so as to not disturb the neighbours. Im avoiding the splat! effect. I found that after playing on a few different tubas that Ive played since grade 9, I came to a conclusion that choir has really improved my lung capacity and the ease at which I can play very loud or very soft for a prolonged period. Without the intention of making an excuse, I am quite certain that this, combined with my added efforts in the large auditorium, were the reasons why my playing was so obnoxious during music fest.
I think I am developing a poor habit of working on one challenging part of any piece, regardless of what Im struggling with, for much too long of a period. I work on it until my lips are sore sometimes, and by that point, Im not any further in my development as a player. I need to cointinue to improve breaking up my practice time into sections, and coming back to the parts Im struggling with. However, inly working on those parts for 5-10 minutes at a time.
Overall, noticing a great deal of improvement with practice. Quite pleased with myself
Monday, March 23, 2009
Practiced from time to time over March Break. Mostly just 15-20 minute practices, but all just for fun. Played through my favourite band rep and other things that I have memorized.
Ive been listening to the honour band recording almost every day. When I pick up my tuba to play it, the result was that sight reading became very easy. I only struggled through some difficult rhythms. Again, to take away from this, listening to a piece several times beforehand to get a handle on how it sounds and where you fit in with the group is extremely beneficial.
Ive been listening to the honour band recording almost every day. When I pick up my tuba to play it, the result was that sight reading became very easy. I only struggled through some difficult rhythms. Again, to take away from this, listening to a piece several times beforehand to get a handle on how it sounds and where you fit in with the group is extremely beneficial.
Monday, March 9, 2009
2o minutes today. Went over grade 10 band rep. Went over some of the awkward rhythmic sections. played through chromatic scales and scale skill again. Confidence improving on these, especially compared to conserved playing during the test.
I have noticed that choir has improved the duration that I can hold notes for on my instrument. Im impressed.
Played through our band rep quickly. Same trouble spots, but improving.
I have noticed that choir has improved the duration that I can hold notes for on my instrument. Im impressed.
Played through our band rep quickly. Same trouble spots, but improving.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Practiced for 35 minutes today. Started with line 5 on page 11 of purple book. I tried to run it at a reasonable tempo to see where it needed some work. I struggle to hit the accidental in the 3rd to last bar, as well as the slurring rhythm isn't always played consistently. So I worked on it. First i played bar by bar, and started over when I made a mistake, then I went to the metronome once I had a better feel for the study. I ran it a few times at a slow tempo, and gradually increased. Some mistakes started to fade, but others came into play. The slurs were more challenging to play accurately at a faster tempo. So I stopped and sang it. Then played through it again once I had the rhythm in my head. it became easier. By the time it got too late to hear my dog barking at the obnoxious noise, it wasn't perfect, but I was pleased with the improvement. Need to work on getting an unusual rhythm with greater ease and less time, but that will come with practice.
I spent about 10 minutes of interspersed time to play some band rep. Finally getting the Holst piece down pat, and its going well. Quite pleased with it. Need to check fingerings for accidental sharps in ascending pattern..it doesn't sound nice.
Overall happy, could be a little more confident in the scale study, but I won't get much farther tonight.
I spent about 10 minutes of interspersed time to play some band rep. Finally getting the Holst piece down pat, and its going well. Quite pleased with it. Need to check fingerings for accidental sharps in ascending pattern..it doesn't sound nice.
Overall happy, could be a little more confident in the scale study, but I won't get much farther tonight.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
yesterday I practiced for 15 minutes on the grade 10 band pieces. I ran all three with very little difficulty, I just had to slow down a difficult rhythm.
Today I sang along to the scale study on page 11 while playing the metronome at the same time. This helped me get a better feel for the tempo I was looking at, and to force me to figure out the fingerings without my tuba. This way, as soon as I picked up the instrment, I was ready to play it fluidly. Little difficulty, just need to work out some fingering issues. (20 minutes)
Today I sang along to the scale study on page 11 while playing the metronome at the same time. This helped me get a better feel for the tempo I was looking at, and to force me to figure out the fingerings without my tuba. This way, as soon as I picked up the instrment, I was ready to play it fluidly. Little difficulty, just need to work out some fingering issues. (20 minutes)
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Practiced for 10 minutes today. Did not have significant time to dedicate to playing, so I did some breathing exercises then went through some rhythms I was struggling with just on my mouthpiece. Mentally I was making connections to the fingerings that went along with the rhythms, and after doing this for a 6 or 7 minutes, I ran through the parts I was struggling with rhythmically (see last post) flawlessly (in terms of rhythm). Very successful with this stratey, and and quite pleased with how well it worked.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Feb 21, 22
Practiced for 25 minutes yesterday, 30 minutes today.
Yesterday
Worked on band rep mostly. Walked through all of Light Eternal, couldn't figure out why it didn't sound right. Turns out I had a fingering wrong after checking the whole phrase. Played through all of Light Eternal a few times, after about 3 run-throughs it was without error. Worked on Rhosemedre again, tried to focus on sounding less like a tuba, and taking Mr. Haq's advice into account. It's getting better, and I sound slightly more like a string bass, but stringing the notes together fluidly almost causes me to put no separtaion in the notes whatseover. Still working on it, its imprvoing. Walked through solo in 4th movement of Holst, I still need ot take it under tempo to get the slurring more accurate, but my speed is improving with practice. Bars 9-16 of section E in the 4th movement is difficult, and I work through it very slowly. Speed in the low range in gradually increasing, but still working on rhythm perfection at this point. Plan to continue breaking down the difficult sections and work up to playing at tempo.
Today
Scale day. Spent 25 minutes on scales, mainly chromatics on page nine. Really struggled with number 2. So much so that I wrote out the fingerings just to get used to the key signature/accidentals of the line. Worked through it very slowly, about 66 on online metronome until I nailed the fingerings. Sharps are still challenging, but with continued practice at a slow pace, I am improving and will continue to do so. Chromatic scale #1 was much easier, very little difficulty, worked up to a very fast tempo quite quickly. Broke both scales into measure-by-measure. If I made a mistake, I started over. Successful, yet tedious. Im quite pleased with the subtle improvents after a few sessions of practice, and ease with these pieces increases every day. Finished the practice with some "Stand By Me", and a few Christmas Carols just for Mr. Stevenson's sake.
Yesterday
Worked on band rep mostly. Walked through all of Light Eternal, couldn't figure out why it didn't sound right. Turns out I had a fingering wrong after checking the whole phrase. Played through all of Light Eternal a few times, after about 3 run-throughs it was without error. Worked on Rhosemedre again, tried to focus on sounding less like a tuba, and taking Mr. Haq's advice into account. It's getting better, and I sound slightly more like a string bass, but stringing the notes together fluidly almost causes me to put no separtaion in the notes whatseover. Still working on it, its imprvoing. Walked through solo in 4th movement of Holst, I still need ot take it under tempo to get the slurring more accurate, but my speed is improving with practice. Bars 9-16 of section E in the 4th movement is difficult, and I work through it very slowly. Speed in the low range in gradually increasing, but still working on rhythm perfection at this point. Plan to continue breaking down the difficult sections and work up to playing at tempo.
Today
Scale day. Spent 25 minutes on scales, mainly chromatics on page nine. Really struggled with number 2. So much so that I wrote out the fingerings just to get used to the key signature/accidentals of the line. Worked through it very slowly, about 66 on online metronome until I nailed the fingerings. Sharps are still challenging, but with continued practice at a slow pace, I am improving and will continue to do so. Chromatic scale #1 was much easier, very little difficulty, worked up to a very fast tempo quite quickly. Broke both scales into measure-by-measure. If I made a mistake, I started over. Successful, yet tedious. Im quite pleased with the subtle improvents after a few sessions of practice, and ease with these pieces increases every day. Finished the practice with some "Stand By Me", and a few Christmas Carols just for Mr. Stevenson's sake.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Feb 19
I practiced for 20 minutes tonight after work. About 10 minutes on each of the following : band music and chromatic scales. Progress is slow on sharps in both lines 1 and 2 on page 9 of the purple book. I have been trying to look up the fewest notes possible. Slowly I am making fewer mistakes, but need to work on playing more consistently in the sharps. Flats are less challenging, and can play through them much more quickly. To improve the parts I am struggling with, I will take the time to memorize the fingerings from my fingering chart, and begin to practice the song. Bar by bar, and if I make a mistake, I start all over. Progress is not significant yet, but it was only 10 minutes of playing. It is comforting when trying to work out the kinks of a scale that I know I can play with little difficulty once I learn the notes better, and I look forward to when i hit that point in the near future.
I played the solo at the end of 2nd Suite in F and am slowly getting improving at playing the slurred rhythm accurately, but I take it apart very slowly. I'm hitting notes correctly with the exception of the high g in bar 24 of letter H. Still need to work on the high range. Thinking about the note in my head beforehand helps. Gradual improvement and faster tempo is becoming easier to play. Also worked on "played less like a tuba player" for Rhosymedre, after working with Mr. Haq for 10 minutes after class yesterday.
I played the solo at the end of 2nd Suite in F and am slowly getting improving at playing the slurred rhythm accurately, but I take it apart very slowly. I'm hitting notes correctly with the exception of the high g in bar 24 of letter H. Still need to work on the high range. Thinking about the note in my head beforehand helps. Gradual improvement and faster tempo is becoming easier to play. Also worked on "played less like a tuba player" for Rhosymedre, after working with Mr. Haq for 10 minutes after class yesterday.
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