Being Overwhelmed - It's OK!

It was only my second time conducting the choir when the hand went up for the third time in about as many minutes.  “Excuse me.”  Always so polite.  “I don’t think that harmony part is right.”  

Teaching Note Reading

A word of warning: This is going to be very treble clef-centric.  Alto, bass, and both treble/bass readers, adjust as necessary.

Teaching an instrument you don't play

Yesterday my phone rang.  On the line was the Musical Director of a local music school.  “What are you doing tomorrow afternoon?” he boomed down the phone.  My eyes narrowed.  I’d heard those words before and I knew to be wary.

“That depends,” I replied.  “Good,” he said, ignoring me.  “Can you take John’s guitar classes please.”

 And that is how I found myself teaching four guitar classes – from beginner to intermediate levels.

Be the person you needed

There’s a meme floating around online at the moment, sometime attributed to that fabulous writer “Unknown” and sometimes to former BuzzFeed writer Ayesha A. Siddiqi that says “Be the personyou needed when you were younger”.  Now, I’m not one to go crazy over these “inspirational” quotes that pop up on my facebook and Instagram feeds, but this one did make me think (so much so that it’s actually my current screen saver).

Choosing your words wisely

It’s important to choose your words wisely.

D# or Eb?  Why does that matter?[i]

Chamber Music Coaching - what to wear

Traditionally I get my younger groups to wear a white top and black trousers/skirt and my older groups to wear all black.  This is a formal occasion, so try hard to avoid black jeans, t shirts with writing and sneakers.  

I prefer hair tied back, but that’s just me.  Feel free to argue that one.  But it does look tidier.  I try to avoid “gimmicky” costumes.  It distracts from the music and the performances.  

Little unifying touches such as matching ties, waistcoats, hair ties are fine.  I once had a group perform a medley from “Carmen” and they wore a rose tucked discretely in their hair, which was a nice reference to the opera and identified them as a group.

Chamber Music - Stagecraft

Stagecraft:

I’ve watched many chamber music contests in my time.  Many.  And I feel that stagecraft is the thing that either gets left literally till the last moment (the teacher whispers a hurried “BOW!” just as the students are about to go on stage), or never gets addressed at all.  But for me, stage etiquette is just as important as preparing the music.

Coming on stage

Decide who will come on first.  Think about this logically.  If you are coaching a flute trio using three music stands, it makes sense to come on (if entering the stage from Stage Left)

Player 2        Player 1        Player 3

Why?

Because they’ll be coming on in front of their music stands to introduce their piece.  Then, after the introduction, Player 2 moves to their stand from the left, Player 1 follows, and Player 3 turns to the right and moves to their stand.  It’s kinda hard to explain in words.  Try it with three different coloured pens or something.  You’ll see what I mean.

If you are a flute quartet, you would come on

Player 2        Player 1        Player 4        Player 3

The same thing happens.  Players 2 and 1 move to the left.  Players 4 and 3 move to the right, then BOOM – you’re in the right order.

Think about your ensemble and what makes sense for where they are positioned on stage.  (Page turners – you’re not actually part of the ensemble.  This means you don’t come up the front when the performers are introducing the piece and you don’t take a bow at the end.  Just come on stage after the players and head straight for the piano).

When the group comes on stage, they should have their music in one hand and their instrument in the other.  If possible, I like to have their instrument in the hand that is facing the audience.  That way the audience (most of whom are proud mums and dads and aren’t necessarily musical) can see.  Music should be in a folder (at the very least) and ideally should be matching.  I have made up black folders that my students all share.  They are made of three pieces of black A4 cardboard that can be spread out for pieces that require 3 pages to reduce page turns.

Once on stage, don’t bow.  The audience will have started clapping the moment the players are on the stage and more often than not they have stopped clapping by the time the players are in the middle.  And then you get that awkward thing where they don’t know whether to clap again, so some do and others don’t then everyone laughs with awkward embarrassment and it’s just not worth it.  Just walk (briskly) on stage and smile.

You should have decided in advance who will speak and what they will say.  Something along the lines of: “Good [morning/afternoon/evening], we are [insert name here].  Today we will be performing [name of piece] by [composer].”  That’s it.  No “witty” in jokes, no explanations of the group name and no “We hope you enjoy our performance.”  Because you know what?  You say that to me, I lean back, cross my arms and think “Yeah? Make me.”  All you need to say is a greeting (and “hi” or “g’day” or “umm…yeah…” are NOT acceptable), who you are, what you’re going to do.  That’s it.  No-one cares about anything else. 

Once the introduction is over, go to your music stands.

Why not go to your music stands first, tune up, then address the audience?  Because it’s rude.  You don’t walk into someone’s house, make a cup of tea, sit down, then say hello.  Acknowledge your audience first.  It just makes sense.

Once at your stands, do adjust them so they’re in the right position and at the right height for you.  The stage manager will have done their best to put things the way you want them, but they’re not psychic.  DON’T put your flute on the floor.  Arrange beforehand which of your teammates you’ll give it to while you adjust yourself.  Then return the favour for them. If you’re not familiar with how the music stands operate, cast a look over at the stage manager.  They’ll help you.

Tune up, then begin the piece.

Finish the piece.

At the end, all lower your instruments at the same time (pianists excluded) and LEAVE YOUR MUSIC WHERE IT IS.  Seriously.  Don’t touch it.  Come back around to the front of your stands, in reverse order of how you got there.  Don’t come through the middle of them.  Hold your instruments in an appropriate manner.  One person needs to lead the bow.  Everyone else looks at them out the corner of their eyes and you bow together.  Make sure everyone is in the line before you start the bow.

How to bow?  Go straight down, then straight up again.  Pretend you’re in a barrel and can only move down and up.  Look at your feet and in your head say “Ooh! I’m wearing shoes.”  This is the correct amount of time to bow.  Don’t flick your hair out of the way on the way up, adjust it after you’ve stood back up if needed.

It’s a lot to explain in words.  Try it, step by step and hopefully it should make sense to you.[i]

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[i] If it makes you feel any better, one parent, observing me coaching a group in stage etiquette, did remark that it was like being in the army…

Chamber Music Coaching - Rehearsing

Rehearsal process/procedure:

Advanced players should be able to warm and tune up their own instruments.  Less experienced players will need your help.  If possible, have them come 5 – 10 minutes before the rehearsal time so you can do this. 

Chamber Music Coaching - what you'll need

What you’ll need for rehearsals:

Score and individual parts

Music stands for everyone

Tuner + metronome

Music dictionary

Pencils (not pens!)

Recording of music

Recording device (e.g. phone)

Coaching Chamber Music - initial set-up

It’s coming up to chamber music contest season[i].  You may have had some of your students request you find them some music, or they may have been given some music from school.

How to tell off a student

It’s tricky when you realise you have to discipline a student.  You want them to like you, and by telling someone off, you’re risking them not liking you.  Or so you think…

Group Lessons - Discipline

Ok – here we go.  Because, let’s be honest, sometimes you just have to tell someone off.

Group Lessons - Classroom Management

Ahh, the big one.  The question every beginner teacher asks: what if they’re naughty?

Firstly, let me remind you that corporal punishment is illegal…

Group Lessons - Dealing With Non-Students in the Room

Sometimes you have to deal with parents or other siblings in the room.  Feel free to tell them to shut-up or go away.  Be as polite as you feel you need to be.

Group Lessons - Differing Abilities

One disadvantage to group lessons is that it’s harder to cater individual students’ needs.  I try to structure lessons so all of the group are working at the same place in the book.  If a student is struggling, they will appreciate the extra time working on a particular song or concept, and if a student can play the notes correctly, there are still more things they could be working on or thinking about.

Group Lessons - What to Teach

What to teach in a group lesson really depends on the level of the students.  Beginners will spend more time on fundamentals of technique and using the tutor book.  More advanced students can work on their ensemble playing skills.

Group Lessons - Structuring a Lesson

I have outlined lesson structure in an earlier post, so this post is specifically about structuring a lesson for a group class.

Group Lessons - Creating a Community

Learning music in a group is such a fantastic way of becoming part of a community.  For me, this is what music is about.

Group Lessons - Physical Set-Up

The next few posts will be specifically about teaching groups.  Group teaching requires different skills than teaching 1-1.  I love that group lessons are social, and it’s easier to create that sense of community that the very essence of music.  Group lessons are ideal for teaching ensemble skills and provide a ready-made audience for solo playing.

The First Lesson

This is one of my favourite moments in the teaching year – the very first lesson of a beginner student.

They turn up, all shiny and new.  And the instruments turn up all shiny and new.  This might be the first time you’ve met the student/s and the first time they’ve met you.  Greet them in a friendly manner, ask their name (even if you already know it) and tell them your name – it’s super important. 

The first lesson is where you start to get to know your students.  Ask some personal questions – what school do you go to is always a good one.  If you know another student or a teacher or have some other connection with that school, mention it.  It’s a good ice-breaker and it shows that not only are you interested in the student, but on some level your worlds intersect.

Ask them why they want to play music, or your instrument in particular. What are their goals?  Do they already have experience with music?  Explain that while you get to know what they can do or can’t do, you’ll be asking lots of questions.  You might explain things that they already know (and it’s ok for them to say that they know it) or you might not explain things you think they know but don’t (again, tell them it’s ok to ask for clarification).

Then it’s time to get down to business.  Hand out instruments, or if they already have it, have them open the case (and teach them how to open the case if it’s not obvious!).  I start by just looking at the flute.  I get the student to touch the keys and see which key moves which other keys. I talk about the different parts of the flute and we play a silly game to learn the names of the parts.

Every instrument is different and your approach to the beginning of lessons will be different for each instrument.  With the flute, certainly the first lesson is spent just using the headjoint getting a clear, consistent sound.  You will need to think carefully about your instrument, and how to best begin.

The first lesson is also a good time to talk about taking care of instruments and where to store them at home.

Make sure you assign some kind of homework on this lesson – they’ll be excited and want to show off what they learned.  Keep it easy and manageable, but do let them know your expectations.  I’ll tell kids they need to play their flute to everyone who comes to their house during the week – mum, Grandpa, the cat, even the plumber.  Lucky plumber…!

Teaching in Someone Else’s Space

You may have a gig teaching in a school or an after school programme, where you’re actually in another teacher’s classroom.

Setting up a studio - what gear do you need?

Your instrument.  That’s pretty helpful (although there have been occasions when my flute has had a little unintentional holiday…).  Really, it depends on what you’re teaching, what style of music you teach, and your style of teaching.

Setting up a studio

Now it’s time to get going.  You need to decide where you’ll be teaching from.  You may have a space in your house, you may be able to use a space in a school or similar, or you may want to rent a studio.

Choosing repertoire

This post is about how to choose repertoire for your students (as opposed to how to teach it).

How to use a tutor book

Once you’ve decided on a book or books, you need to think carefully about how to make the best use of it.  Will you follow it slavishly, playing every single song and every single exercise?  Will you spend the entire lesson playing from the book?  Will you pick and choose – taking parts of the book to serve the point of the lesson?

What you do is up to you, but at the beginning of your teaching career I’d recommend following the book.  The author will be an experienced teacher/musician, and will have thought carefully about the order of progression.  The book will usually begin with how to produce a sound on the instrument and posture.  You don’t have to get through these pages in the first lesson.  With the flute, I don’t usually put the instrument together until at least the second lesson (maybe the third or fourth).  I need to be sure the student has got a good, consistent sound with just the headjoint, otherwise, the rest of their playing will sound awful.  During these first few lessons I spend the time in between trying to get a sound by talking about practising, where to store the flute, basic music theory (stave/crotchets etc), and how to NOT give your flute to your little sister to play.  Or if something goes wrong to bring the flute to me.  Dad is NOT allowed to touch it.

Sorry.  Rant over.[1]

I use the tutor book sparingly in the first 10 or so weeks of playing.  It’s more important to establish good habits in these weeks than it is to churn through pages of the book.  Once you get going with the book, it’s important to make sure the students understand each new concept.  In a group lesson I will use a whiteboard to explain things like time signatures and bars.  In a 1-1 lesson I write it directly in the students’ book.  Do be thorough and don’t accept sloppy playing. 

If a student doesn’t understand a concept, or can’t play the song independently, use the song as a “study”.  Take the trickiest part of the song and break it down to its core components.  Isolate rhythms or tricky fingerings.  I don’t recommend moving on in the book until the student can play the entire song independently.  In group lessons this is hard to find a balance.  I’ll discuss this in another post.

It can be fun to go over easy songs in the book.  Once in a while (e.g. at the beginning or end of a term) the class and I will play every song in the book until we can’t go any further.  This is great because it means we can see how far we’ve come (suddenly that “hard” song isn’t all that hard any more) and we can consolidate all the learning so far.

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[1] But seriously Dads, leave it alone.

Choosing a Tutor Book

Which tutor book you use for beginners depends on a few things.  If you are teaching through an established programme, the book may have been decided upon by someone else.  If you are teaching a particular method (e.g. Suzuki) then you will use the materials designed for that style.  However, if you are trying to decide on a tutor book for private students you may want to take the following into account.

What to Teach – Technique

Technique is an important factor of playing any instrument.  This should form a major part of your lesson.  Why? Because technique is the foundation on which we build our playing.  Because every piece we are going to play is going to contain technical elements and if you can isolate and perfect them, then playing the piece is going to be a million times easier.

The End of a Lesson

How to end a lesson.

The end of a lesson is a chance not only to consolidate what has been learned, but to also to extend knowledge.  Sometimes we need to use the skills we already have.  Think of it like reading – yes, your reading skills are probably pretty advanced, but you don’t always sit down to tackle Tolstoy.  What I’m saying, is that sometimes it’s just fun to play a piece for fun.

Main Body of the Lesson

The main body of the lesson is where the new learning happens.

Beginning of the Lesson

I begin every lesson, group or individual with a warm-up.  There are many purposes for a warm-up.  It physically warms the body up, ready for playing.  In a group setting the warm-up helps the players come together as an ensemble.  Some students may be late, and the warm-up serves as a time when they can get their instruments ready and join in without missing any new learning.  Psychologically a warm-up signals the beginning of the lesson, the time for non-related chat is over, and we need to get ready to work.

Structuring a Lesson

It’s important that a lesson has a structure to it.  The student gains comfort from this, alleviating any anxiety about what’s coming up next and you know that you are covering what you need to in the lesson.  Sometimes when you break from the regular structure there is a sense of freshness to the lesson.

It makes sense to structure the lesson.  The beginning activities/warm-ups can lead into the focus of the main part of the lesson.  The body of the lesson is where you will teach a particular concept and then the ending can reinforce the main concept or consolidate prior knowledge.  The flow of the lesson feels organic and logical.

Qualifications

What qualifications do you need to teach music?

Technically, nothing.  You could set yourself up right now as a music teacher, with no letters beside your name, no years of lessons behind you, no knowledge of your instrument or repertoire.  Of course, if you did that, you’d also have no students.

If you want to keep and retain students, you will need to have some kind of training behind you.  

Examining Your Own Musical Education

Your own music education.

In order to be an effective teacher, you need to look back before you can look forwards.  It’s helpful to examine your own musical background to determine how it affects your outlook on teaching.  Everything that you’ve experienced contributes to your attitude to teaching.  You have a unique set of experiences that you can draw on in order to become a teacher.  Most of your own history you have experienced as a learner and you haven’t thought about them through the lens of teaching.

Philosophy of Music Education

Philosophy of Music Education

There are different methods of teaching music that people have developed over the years (e.g. Suzuki, Kodaly, Orff).  I’ll look at them in further posts.  More often than not, studio teachers use various aspects of these methods, but generally they follow what their own teacher/s taught them, as unless they’ve made a specific study of that method, there are no established guidelines for studio music teachers.  No matter what method they use, their teaching will be based on their own musical philosophy.

Learn Their Names!

It’s not rocket science – learn the names of your students! (And make sure they know yours!)

Why is this important?  Mostly because it’s basic manners, isn’t it?

Your name is part of your identity.  It aligns you with your family and culture, and at the same time it distinguishes you as an individual.

When we hear someone saying our name (correctly – has anyone ever met Justin Pierce/Perry/Piree…?? I certainly haven't despite many people asking me...) it is meaningful to us.  It means someone has taken the time to get to know us, even if it’s just a little bit.  Saying someone’s name acknowledges their humanity.

So, even if you are just filling in for the regular teacher, make it a point to learn your students’ names.  

Theories of Learning

 It’s important to understand how people learn.  There are loads of theories about learning and human development.  Many of them encompass beliefs from many cultures.

Here’s a brief overview of some.  Have a think about how they fit in with your beliefs.

What Makes a Good Teacher?

Have a think about the best teachers you’ve ever had (all your teachers, not necessarily just your music teachers).  What made them good?  Did they make you learn more than other teachers?  How did they make you feel?  What kind of environment did they create in their classroom?  How did they feel about their subject?

Introduction

Well done!  You made it to F Sharks and Cannonballs.  I’m Justine and I’m the Captain of SS Music Teacher.  My aim is to lead you through the murky waters of music teaching.  To circumnavigate the seas of - actually, I might ditch that analogy…