Hands Free

Playing the bass is similar to talking on a cell phone while you are driving:  you need to be hands free.  This fearless beginning bass player loves to practice his hands free balancing while I am picking on the cello section.

Balancing the bass on your hipbone helps to free up the left hand so it can travel around the fingerboard, and let me tell you, the left hand has a lot of real estate to cover!!

The tricky part is to balance the bass even when the bow is on the string, but as you can see, this player balances like a pro. 

Waddle, Frolic, and Jiggle

It may appear as if these general music students are cowering in fear of their autocratic music teacher, but they have, in fact, just completed a performance of a short dance piece.

Sixth-grade students brainstormed in order to come up with verbs that describe various ways to move.  The students then divided into small groups and choreographed a dance based on these verbs.  Inspired by Michael Phelps, this group chose “jiggle” and “swim” to create their dance piece.  This picture was taken after diving into the pool:

Thanks to Prof. Pogonowski and the fabulous faculty of Creative Arts Laboratory at Teachers College for breathing new life into my general music curriculum!

The Lift and Shift

The school year is off to a great start for WI Orchestra students.  Huge compliments to all of the students who regularly attend rehearsals and lessons.  I notice a huge improvement in the level of the orchestra this year!

Advanced violinists have been learning to shift to third position.  In about two more weeks, the violinists should be able to play the “Can Can” melody in third, which is a huge accomplishment for sixth-grade students.

Third position exercises are beneficial for many reasons:  shifting helps violinists learn to scoop their elbows under their violin, encourages rainbows in the left-hand fingers, solidifies a tall violin posture, and loosens up the whole left arm.

When shifting from first to third position, remember to move the thumb along with the first finger and to slightly lift the shifting finger above the string so you can hear harmonics as the finger shifts.

Cha Cha Slide Bunny

Thanks to one of my sixth grade students for coming up with a new name for the bunny hop:  Cha Cha Slide Bunny.  When you are hopping a finger from string to string, be careful not to squish the wrist and roll the finger.  We call this “rolling in the mud”.  Instead, be sure to keep your curvy rainbow as the finger hops from string to string.

The beginning orchestra students just learned “Song of the Wind”, or “Song of the Winze”, as I call it.  Notice how this fabulous cellist leaves his first finger down on the A string while his fourth finger hops from the D string to the A string.

Congratulations on a fantastic year beginners!!!

Be Natural

One of the hardest notes to play in tune on the violin is B natural on the E string.

Chamber Orchestra violins are currently polishing two pieces that use 4th-finger B natural. We learned that the intonation of the B natural sparkles if we super scoop our left elbow under the violin, relax the left hand thumb, and remember to open our wrist.

The Shape Scale

Beginning violin and viola students are now using full bows! As you may know, scales are the best way to learn new techniques. Beginners learn to use their whole bow by studying the D Major shape scale. The math teacher, Mr. Large, confirmed that our arms make the shape of an acute triangle when the bow is at the frog, a square when the bow is placed at the middle, and an obtuse triangle when the bow is at the tip.

The shape scale is actually one of the most difficult concepts that we have learned so far, but it has helped us work on our platforms, stay in the sound spot, and increase our ability to focus.

Harmonic-Ahh!

There is an eerie whistle that happens when you gently touch the string in-between the bridge and the nut on a string instrument.  Now that our sound and bowing techniques have improved, beginning cellists were able to quickly learn a quick piece using harmonics.  At the end of the piece, when we circle our bows of the string, we can hear the ring of our open D string for at least 5 seconds.

First Annual Orchestra vs. Band Kickball Game

Yesterday, WI students were dismissed early for parent teacher conferences.  The music department used this precious time to prepare for our SPRING CONCERT on Wednesday, April 16th.  We also snacked, ate pizza, and played kickball.  The band had several amazing kickers, who helped to drive in 4 runs.  But their athletes were no match for our scrappy orchestra players.  After three innings, the orchestra won 6-4.  In the spirt of full disclosure, one of the band players who happens to be an outstanding athlete and an all around upstanding young man, agreed to play for the orchestra.  Thank you, D.!  You were instrumental in the orchestra’s successful kickball performance.

The orchestra challenges the band to another game.  We won’t need the ringers next time!

Graduation Song

The fourth grade string players have officially graduated from their status as beginners. As of March 1st, all of the students are playing D Major Scale and some kids have even learned everyone’s favorite beginner tune: “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star”. On Thursday, March 6th, we sight read our first orchestra piece.

The technique of the week is the left hand thumb, which should be loose and straight.

A bumpy thumb is great on the bow hand, but not on the violin hand. A curvy left-hand thumb means that you are squishing and squeezing the fingerboard.

As I have previously mentioned, always check to make sure your muscles are loose and relaxed!

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

WI beginning strings are currently working to polish the tune, “Heavenly Dances”. Notice how my student’s left hands is curled above the string like a perfect rainbow.

The hardest part of “Heavenly Dances” seems to be the heavy “D”. If you hear whistles while you are playing, chances are the third finger is not weighing down the string. The bow may also need to roll to the “A” string.

Keep practicing beginners!