6th Grade Band PLC

Today we have a full band rehearsal for 6th Grade during PLC

You will come in to a recordings of Dance of the Jabberwocky and Wipe Out.

Our beginning of the rehearsal routine is always the same. Come in: check off your name on the sign in sheet, quietly take out your instrument and take your seat while listening to the recording. You should have copies of Variations, Wipe Out, and Dance of the Jabberwocky already. If you need an extra copy, see Mr. Akter while the music is playing and everyone is getting set up.

We will begin our rehearsal with a run through of Wipe Out. Drummers can volunteer for the drum set part. Let's have new drummers today!

After warming up with Wipe Out, we will play a Bb major scale, and move on to Dance of the Jabberwocky (10 Minutes for all the above)

We will begin with a recording/assessment of Dance of the Jabberwocky, and then do some direct instruction: 10 minutes

Student Conductors: 10 Minutes

Break into groups. Discuss assessment. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes.

Sectionals: 10 Minutes.

Final run through and assessment:10 minutes

At this point we will switch to the Western Region Audition Etude. We will all perform the first section (10 minutes) and then break into sectionals. (10 Minutes)

Reminder about western region and band council: Closure: 5 min.

8th Grade PLC

Hello 8th Grade Band!

Today we will have band during PLC. We are currently working on our medley, "A Holiday Swing Along."

You will come in to band hearing nice recordings of "Let It Snow,""Jingle Bells," and "Frosty the Snow Man." This will be the last rehearsal dedicated solely to this piece for a while. Today we are working on polishing. Next class I will be handing out "Pirates."

Today's goal is to "polish" all the sections of "A Holiday Swing Along." We will also be discussing Western Region and Band Council. today.

The check in procedure is always the same. You will enter the room with a recording of the piece we are working on today playing in the background. Volunteers will make sure everyone has a copy of the Western Region Audition Etude. Quietly take out your instruments, and take your seats. By this time, everyone should have received a copy of "A Holiday Swing Along." Please remember your music!

Direct Instruction: Play through introduction. 5 minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale)

Play model recording. Compare our recording to the model recording. (5 minutes)

Break into groups. Discuss assessment/model recording. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes. (focus on dynamics and articulations)

Sectionals: 5 Minutes.

Final run through: Record and reassess.

Break for lunch

When we return from lunch, Ms. King will be down from the high school to speak with us about band next year. The remaining of the time will be spent follow the same process we did before lunch for all three sections of the piece. We will do at least 2 sections this way today. We must assess ourselves by comparing to the model recording, and then work towards approaching the model.

Closure, discussion of Band Council and Western Regon: 5 Minutes.

Looking forward to seeing you!
Mr. A

7th Grade PLC

Hello 7th Grade Band!

Today we will have band during PLC. We are currently working on our medley, "A Holiday Swing Along."

You will come in to band hearing nice recordings of "Let It Snow,""Jingle Bells," and "Frosty the Snow Man." This will be the last rehearsal dedicated solely to this piece for a while. Today we are working on polishing. Next class I will be handing out "Pirates."

Today's goal is to "polish" all the sections of "A Holiday Swing Along." We will also be discussing Western Region and Band Council. today.

The check in procedure is always the same. You will enter the room with a recording of the piece we are working on today playing in the background. Volunteers will make sure everyone has a copy of the Western Region Audition Etude. Quietly take out your instruments, and take your seats. By this time, everyone should have received a copy of "A Holiday Swing Along." Please remember your music!

Direct Instruction: Play through introduction. 5 minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale)

Play model recording. Compare our recording to the model recording. (5 minutes)

Break into groups. Discuss assessment/model recording. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes. (focus on dynamics and articulations)

Sectionals: 5 Minutes.

Final run through: Record and reassess.

We will follow the same process for all three sections so long as there is time. We will do at least 2 sections this way today. We must assess ourselves by comparing to the model recording, and then work towards approaching the model.

Closure, discussion of Band Council and Western Regon: 5 Minutes.

6th Grade Band PLC

Today we have a full band rehearsal for 6th Grade during PLC

You will come in to a recordings of Dance of the Jabberwocky and Wipe Out.

Our beginning of the rehearsal routine is always the same. Come in: check off your name on the sign in sheet, quietly take out your instrument and take your seat while listening to the recording. You should have copies of Variations, Wipe Out, and Dance of the Jabberwocky already. If you need an extra copy, see Mr. Akter while the music is playing and everyone is getting set up.

We will begin our rehearsal with a run through of Wipe Out. Drummers can volunteer for the drum set part.

After warming up with Wipe Out, we will play a Bb major scale, and move on to Dance of the Jabberwocky (10 Minutes for all the above)

Direct Instruction: 10 Minutes

Student Conductors: 10 Minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale): 5 Minutes

Break into groups. Discuss assessment. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes.

Sectionals: 10 Minutes.

Final run through and assessment:10 minutes

At this point we will switch to the Western Region Audition Etude. We will all perform the first section (10 minutes) and then break into sectionals. (10 Minutes)

Reminder about western region and band council: Closure: 5 min.

7th Grade Band PLC

Hello 7th Grade Band!

Today we will have band during PLC. We are currently working on our medley, "A Holiday Swing Along."

You will come in to band hearing nice recordings of "Let It Snow," the portion of our medley we will be working on today. Today's goal is to "rough in" the the Let it Snow section of "A Holiday Swing Along," and also be able to play Frosty, Jingle Bells, and Introduction successfully. We will also be discussing Western Region and Band Council. today.

The check in procedure is always the same. You will enter the room with a recording of the piece we are working on today playing in the background. Volunteers will make sure everyone has a copy of the Western Region Audition Etude. Quietly take out your instruments, and take your seats. By this time, everyone should have received a copy of "A Holiday Swing Along." Please remember your music!

Direct Instruction: Read through from the beginning, and then Let it Snow: 10 Minutes

Student Conductors: 10 Minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale): 5 Minutes

Break into groups. Discuss assessment. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes.

Sectionals: 10 Minutes.

Final run through: 5 Minutes:

At this point, we will discuss Western Region. You will take out our Western Region Audition Etude, and I will play it for you: 5 Minutes

Break into groups. I will walk around and coach: 10 Minutes

Whole class instruction on first section of Etude: 10 Minutes.

Closure, discussion of Band Council: 5 Minutes. 

6th Grade Band PLC

Today we have a full band rehearsal for 6th Grade during PLC

You will come in to a recording of Dance of the Jabberwocky. 

Our beginning of the rehearsal routine is always the same. Come in, check off your name on the sign in sheet, quietly take out your instrument and take your seat while listening to the recording. Librarians will be handing out the music while the music is playing. You will be getting 2 pieces today. The Western Region Audition Etude, called "Variations" and also "Dance of the Jabberwocky."

We will begin our rehearsal with Dance of the Jabberwocky.

Direct Instruction: 10 Minutes

Student Conductors: 10 Minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale): 5 Minutes

Break into groups. Discuss assessment. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes.

Sectionals: 10 Minutes.

Final run through and assessment:10 minutes

At this point we will switch to the Western Region Audition Etude.

I will perform the etude for you on Saxophone while you look at it. I then explain Western Regionals. 10

We will break into groups and I will walk around and coach. 10

Closure: 5 min.

8th Grade Band - PLC

Hello 8th Grade Band!

Today we will have band during PLC. We are currently working on our medley, "A Holiday Swing Along."

You will come in to band hearing nice recordings of "Jingle Bells," the portion of our medley we will be working on today. Today's goal is to "rough in" the introduction to "A Holiday Swing Along," and also be able to play through the "Jingle Bells" section. There is time built into the plan to also address "Let It Snow" if we move quickly. We will also be discussing our student selected pieces and Band Council. today.

The check in procedure is always the same. You will enter the room with a recording of the piece we are working on today playing in the background. At this point everyone should have a copy of the music. Please come prepared! You will be receiving new music today.

Direct Instruction (Jingle Bells): 10 Minutes

Student Conductors: 10 Minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale): 5 Minutes

Break into groups. Discuss assessment. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes.

Sectionals: 10 Minutes.

Direct Instruction: Intro., Frost, and Jingle Bells (10 Minutes)

At this point, it will be time to discuss Western Region Auditions and the new western region audition piece. Volunteers will distribute the music while I model the audition piece on saxophone. We will then break into sectionals to work on mastery.

Closure: discussion of the pieces you selected, and discussion of Band Council.

7th Grade PLC

Hello 7th Grade Band!

Today we will have band during PLC. We are currently working on our medley, "A Holiday Swing Along."

You will come in to band hearing nice recordings of "Jingle Bells," the portion of our medley we will be working on today. Today's goal is to "rough in" the introduction to "A Holiday Swing Along," and also be able to play through the "Jingle Bells" section. There is time built into the plan to also address "Let It Snow" if we move quickly. We will also be discussing our student selected pieces and Band Council. today.

The check in procedure is always the same. You will enter the room with a recording of the piece we are working on today playing in the background. Volunteers will make sure everyone has a copy. Quietly take out your instruments, and take your seats.

Direct Instruction (Jingle Bells): 10 Minutes

Student Conductors: 10 Minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale): 5 Minutes

Break into groups. Discuss assessment. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes.

Sectionals: 10 Minutes.

Direct Instruction: Intro., Frost, and Jingle Bells (10 Minutes)

At this point, if more work is needed, we will bring up student conductors and rehearse more on the sections we have already addressed. If not, we will move on to Let It Snow, start with 10 minutes of direct instruction, and move forward from there.

Closure, discussion of the pieces you selected, and discussion of Band Council. 

6th Grade PLC

Today we have a full band rehearsal for 6th Grade during PLC

You will come in to a recording of Wipe Out. Today we will finish "roughing in" Wipe Out, and we should be able to perform entire piece successfully by the end of today's rehearsal. It is time to start talking about dynamics (volume), articulations (how we approach the notes), intonation (how in tune we are) and balance (how the band sounds as a group). Today I want to also have drummers start volunteering to play the drum set. We will also be finding out what student selected pieces we will be performing, and reviewing the lesson schedule for the week.

Our beginning of the rehearsal routine is always the same. Come in, check off your name on the sign in sheet, quietly take out your instrument and take your seat while listening to the recording. We will then begin rehearsal. Ou

Direct Instruction: 10 Minutes

Student Conductors: 20 Minutes

Assessment (recording and rating scale): 10 Minutes

Break into groups. Discuss assessment. Decide which 2 things your section needs the most work on: 5 Minutes.

Sectionals: 10 Minutes.

Final run through and assessment:10 minutes

Closure and discussion of the pieces you selected.

7th Grade Band

Finally, our new schedule is starting!

Monday, October 7th, the 7th grade band will have its first PLC rehearsal. This year the seventh and eighth grade band will be combined for concerts.

Here is what we will do on Monday.

Volunteers will make sure everyone has a copy of "A Holiday Swing-Along." When you come in, I will have a recording of "Frosty the Snowman" playing, so quietly come in, take your instrument out and get your music and have a seat in your section. While waiting for volunteers to make sure everyone has a copy, listen to the tune and try and follow along in your music. I will also do attendance quietly while you are listening and getting set up. The check in spread sheet will by the front door.

I will conduct and do some direct teaching at the beginning of the period. 10 (min)  But then it will be time for a student conductor!

Conducting Review: I will review conducting with the band: how to conduct in 4/4 time at loud, soft, and medium dynamic levels. (10 min) You you will ALL conduct!

Volunteers will come up to conduct the band on A Holiday Swing Along (The intro. and "Frosty the Snowman"). I will go around the room and play the various instruments with you. (15 min)

Assessment time! I will record us performing the intro and "Frosty the Snowman." We will listen to ourselves and self-assess. You will give feedback on the areas of the intro and the Frosty need the most work. We will take notes on a Google doc and this will help drive our rehearsals later on.

Time for a new section! I will play a recording of "Jingle Bells." It is the second song on this medley. I will then conduct and and we will do direct teaching. (10 min)

Student conductors! Volunteers will conduct the band on "Jingle Bells" and I will walk around and play the various instruments with you. (15 min)

Closure! We will review our Google doc, and make sure our notes are to everyone's liking. That document will drive our next rehearsal.

I will be emailing all of you a reminder about our rehearsal, and tweeting a link to this blog entry as well!

Mr. A

6th Grade PLC!

It's finally here! The new band schedule is beginning! I am thrilled, and looking forward to seeing all of you today!

6th graders, there is a LOT to do and only 75 minutes to do it. We need to stay on task.

Volunteers will make sure everyone has a copy of Wipe Out. When you come in, I will again have a recording of it playing, so quietly come in, take your instrument out and get your music and have a seat where you sat last week. While waiting for volunteers to make sure everyone has a copy, listen to the tune and try and follow along in your music. I will also do attendance quietly while you are listening and getting set up (5 - 10 min). Here is the attendance procedure: as you walk in the band spread sheet will be on the cabinet by the door. Please put a check next to your name, get your instrument out, and have a seat. 


I will conduct and do some direct teaching at the beginning of the period. 15 (min)  But then it will be time for a student conductor! 

Conducting Lesson: I will teach a conducting lesson: how to conduct in 4/4 time at loud, soft, and medium volumes and at various tempos. (10 min) You you will ALL conduct! Then volunteers will come up to conduct the band on Wipe Out. I will go around the room and play the various instruments with you. (10 min) 

At this point we will discuss student selected pieces. Each section will have a meeting. Your job in your group is to generate 2 songs that are appropriate for band that you would like to play this year. (5 minutes)
After our meeting we will report out. Each section will have a reporter. We will generate a list of pieces. (5 minutes)

I will use this list of pieces to generate a google survey which I will email to you so you can vote on which pieces you would like to play. First though I will do research to make sure they are available for band, are appropriate for our learning objectives, and also are at our difficulty level.

After we enjoy our discussion it will be time to play again. I call this part of the rehearsal "Assessment Time!"

You will play and I will conduct. We will be making a recording of ourselves playing "Wipe Out" using the iPad. I then will connect the iPad to the band room stereo and we will hear ourselves playing "Wipe Out."

I will share with you at this point our 4 point rating scale, the descriptors, and what they mean. YOU will be rating our performance, and giving me a list of things we can improve upon. You are leaders, and you need to exercise leadership if this band is to be everything it can be. We will use this list to drive future rehearsals on this piece.

If there is time remaining, with student conductors we will begin to address the weaknesses we identified. At the end of rehearsal I will share a Google form with you asking you what you learned in rehearsal today. You will use your device to fill out the form before leaving.

First Jazz Ensemble Rehearsal

It is time for our first Jazz Ensemble rehearsal! I can't wait!

When you come in today you will hear a recording of "Jive Samba" playing. You can find the tune, chords, scales, and other information on pages 27 and 28 of the "Real Easy Book."

Here is a recording for you to check out. PLEASE listen to it. Jazz is a music that you must listen to in order to play it correctly. In fact, all music is like that!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xaLkodk6Qo

While you listen to the recording come on in and get your instruments out. I will tell you where to sit. You will need to sign in on the sign-in sheet by the classroom door.

While you are getting set up, volunteers will make sure you all have a copy of the music. If you have not done so yet, you will need to get a copy of "The Real Easy Book: Tunes for Beginning Improvisers." It is basically our Jazz Band text book.

Once we are all set up we will break down Jazz Samba and begin to learn it. I will work with the Rhythm section while horn players practice, and then with horn players while the rhythm section practices. After we work in sections, then we will come together to play the entire thing.

Once we understand the "head" (melody, chords, percussion parts) then we will go to the second page and discuss improvising. We will do an improvisation lesson, and then move forward from there into a full performance of the piece, including improvisations.

Once that is done, I will be collecting feedback regarding student selected pieces.

We will also be receiving a copy of the Western Region audition etude today so we can begin learning it, and we will be discussing Western Region auditions.

8th Grade Rehearsal!

Finally, our new schedule is starting!

Friday, October 3rd, the 8th grade band will have its first PLC rehearsal.

Here is what we will do on Friday

Volunteers will make sure everyone has a copy of "A Holiday Swing-Along." When you come in, I will have a recording of "Frosty the Snowman" playing, so quietly come in, take your instrument out and get your music and have a seat in your section. While waiting for volunteers to make sure everyone has a copy, listen to the tune and try and follow along in your music. I will also do attendance quietly while you are listening and getting set up. The check in spread sheet will by the front door.

I will conduct and do some direct teaching at the beginning of the period. 10 (min)  But then it will be time for a student conductor!

Conducting Review: I will review conducting with the band: how to conduct in 4/4 time at loud, soft, and medium dynamic levels. (10 min) You you will ALL conduct!

LUNCH TIME!!!! We will break for lunch.

When we return from lunch,  volunteers will come up to conduct the band on A Holiday Swing Along (The intro. and "Frosty the Snowman"). I will go around the room and play the various instruments with you. (15 min)

Assessment time! I will record us performing the intro and "Frosty the Snowman." We will listen to ourselves and self-assess. You will give feedback on the areas of the intro and the Frosty need the most work. We will take notes on a Google doc and this will help drive our rehearsals later on.

Time for a new section! I will play a recording of "Jingle Bells." It is the second song on this medley. I will then conduct and and we will do direct teaching. (10 min)

Student conductors! Volunteers will conduct the band on "Jingle Bells" and I will walk around and play the various instruments with you. (15 min)

Closure! We will review our Google doc, and make sure our notes are to everyone's liking. That document will drive our next rehearsal.

I will be emailing all of you a reminder about our rehearsal, and tweeting a link to this blog entry as well! See you all on Friday during PLC. PLEASE bring your instruments. Drummers PLEASE bring your sticks and mallets!

Mr. A