Posted by David WK Johnson on April 08, 2008 at 10:06:51:
In Reply to: Slow pieces for Junior HIgh Bands posted by Caroline on April 08, 2008 at 00:20:16:
Yeah...the slow music phenomenon. Breaks my heart a little.
With my older students, I once related slow music to a situation. I said to them,
"There are times in our lives when a fast tempo isn't always appropriate. Making love, for example." Giggles and blushes resulted, but they got the idea.
Some of my favorite slow lyrical pieces with the junior high band have been:
Prospect - Pierre LaPlante
A Song for Friends - Larry Daehn
There Will Come Soft Rains - Robert Sheldon
Of Gentle Spirit - William Owens
Chorale Elegant - Elena Roussanova Lucas
Beyond the Meadow Green - George Farmer
Ahrirang - Arr. Robert Garafolo
May It Be (From Lord of the Rings) - Arr. Paul Murtha
Some Rehearsal Suggestions:
Be sure you always choose music that has interesting parts. Try and find music where each instrument section has the melody or counter-melody at least once in the piece. Another challenge with slow pieces is finding interesting percussion parts. Sometimes, percussion is left out altogether.
Whenever you rehearse a slower, more lyrical piece, typically, you'll find that much of the band is resting at the very beginning for several measures. At slower speeds, a 4-measure rest might as well be an eternity for a typical hormonally-driven middle schooler.
NEVER start rehearsing a slow, lyrical piece from the very beginning, especially during the early stages of reading a new piece. Instead, find the tutti climax of the piece and start rehearsing there with everyone playing. The tutti sections are usually the boldest statement of the main thematic material. Having everyone playing at the same time also gives the kids a lot of confidence right from the get-go. One advantage of slower pieces is that they are usually not as technically demanding, and so it's easy just to start playing without too many counting or pitch issues. Once you have a tutti section in their brains and bodies, work next on the ending. Your band is then ready to work on the opening measures because they'll begin with the end in mind. All the main themes have been explored already, and they're fresh in the brain. They'll have a strong preview of where their musical journey will lead them. Knowing what to expect is a great motivator for kids!
Never conduct the piece the same way. Slower pieces allow for a great deal of expressive freedom. Keep your kids on their toes by changing tempo, phrasing, dynamics, etc. Use slow works as an opportunity to increase their sensitivity to your conducting gestures.
When rehearsing slow music, liven up the rehearsal by employing more creative inner-listening strategies. This helps alleviate some of the feelings of boredom from having to count so many rests and things. Mix up their seating often. Try different and random combinations of instrumentation. (e.g. - Anyone who has an odd number of letters in their middle name, play at measure 12 while everyone counts...Anyone who ate breakfast today, please play at measure 9...People who don't have a pencil in their folder, please play at measure 18...etc.)
: I'm in my first year of teaching and am experiencing the "My band thinks slow music is boring!" phenomenon. I think that playing lyrical music is so important to my 8th graders' musical development, but I need help finding ways to keep them engaged. I've heard to limit rehearsal time each day on slow pieces, but I'm looking for any "fun" suggestions to try. The main tune in the "slow" piece we're working on now is a folk melody, and I thought maybe I could use this somehow to give them a better connection to the piece. Any suggestions would be appreciated!! Thanks!