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Useful advice for teachers starting a new group
Starting Out
An orchestra or band can be a great asset to a school. Such a group has often been
quoted in an OFSTED report as being a `strength of the school`. Of course, it can
look good in your school brochure or on your website, but we must not forget it`s
primary function; that of a valuable learning experience for the children.
With this in mind, it is important not to choose music which is too difficult for the
players. In fact, an orchestra which is in it`s early stages of development will thrive on
the simplest pieces. Another thing to consider is the length of the pieces to be played.
It will give a much greater sense of achievement to have finished something during
the first rehearsal, rather than just got through the first few bars.
Click here for some easy music to get you started!
Use all of your players. Forget the traditional rules about how many of each
instrument an orchestra should have. Even players of the most basic standard can
take part, and their playing will quickly improve once they are members of the group.
Also, the more different instruments there are, the more interesting the experience
both for the players and the listeners.
Organising your rehearsals
There`s always the decision to be made in a school orchestra of whether the players
should sit or stand. This is largely a question of convenience, rehearsal time, and
whether chairs are available. Obviously `cellists and players of larger brass
instruments will need to sit down to play. String players should always have plenty of
room, whether sitting or standing. They will not play well if they cannot use all of
their bows without someone`s head getting in the way! I would not advise having
more than two string players on each music stand for this reason. Flautists, too, may
develop bad habits if they are not able to hold the instrument up properly due to lack
of space.
In most cases, there will be a pianist involved with the school orchestra. This will
usually be the teacher in charge of the group. If there is not a pianist, then it is useful
for the director to have their own instrument (whether it be recorder, violin, or
whatever) to play along with the group, and to demonstrate the parts.
Where there is no introduction included with the pieces that you are using, it is
suggested that the pianist plays the last two or four bars of each piece as an
introduction, perhaps counting the beats out loud in the last bar. With new groups
and inexperienced players, do not be tempted to go too fast. Select a nice steady
tempo; there is plenty of time for fast playing later.
After the first play through of a new piece, it is a good idea to go through each part
individually. This could be done with the pianist playing each individual part along
with the children. In a long piece, it is best to select a shorter section, e.g. 8 or 16 bars,
when going through the parts, so that the other players do not lose interest.
Once the children are use to the first few pieces, it is a great idea for the pianist to begin playing the first piece as soon as about ten children have arrived for rehearsal. As the other children arrive they are quite able to join in. This avoids any chattering and build up of extraneous noise from instruments.
Make it fun, and keep everyone interested
The question of keeping everyone occupied is an important one. In a large group, it
is easy for children to talk, fidget or take their instruments apart in the breaks
between playing. A good way to get round this is to repeat a short piece several times,
as if there were lots of verses. Start with everyone, then follow a prearranged order,
for example, flutes, strings, clarinets, recorders, etc. Obviously the exact groups will
depend on what you have available, and how far you want to divide them up. If you
have 20 clarinets divided into firsts, seconds and thirds, you may want to hear each
part separately during the rehearsals. (It will be worth hearing all 20 together
though, too!). Finish off with everyone together again. Using this method, the
children have to concentrate hard, so they don`t miss their entry. The pieces in The School Orchestra & Band Starter Kit from Music By Arrangement are ideally suited for this activity.
The plan outlined above saves a lot of time in rehearsals if you have a large group.
Also, seeing and hearing the different instruments and sections is interesting and
instructive for both the players, and for the audience when pieces are performed this
way in concerts or assembly.
If you keep a register for your group, read the names out, and get the players to play a note on their instrument instead of answering "yes". Everyone learns each other`s name, and finds out what instrument they play and what it sounds like. With a more advanced group, children could demonstrate a trill, arpeggio, or some other skill that has been recently learned; instead of just one note. Children really enjoy doing this, and are very quick to point out if I haven`t marked the register in a particular session.
Tuning
Tuning up can often be a problem, particularly with the strings. If you are not
confident about tuning stringed instruments yourself, it may be a good idea to have
your orchestra rehearsal on the same day that the string teacher visits! In most cases,
the stringed instruments will be tuned by a teacher, but it may well be possible for the
woodwind and brass to tune their own, with help from the director. If you have time,
all the players could queue up at the piano at the start of the rehearsal, to have their
instruments checked one at a time, however, this is not always practical.
Further Material
Further material
The pieces in the `Very Easy` category from Music By Arrangement, e.g. Brudenell Waltz, Half Minute Waltz, are mostly similar to those in The Orchestra Starter Kit, so would be useful if you need further practice at this level.
For something more challenging and a little longer, try the titles in the `Easy` category,
e.g. Two Jazzy Miniatures, Rumba, Bailey`s Blues and Junior Jazz.
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