Year 4 Orchestra

I have said it before and I will say it again....Year 4 are the most exceptional year for music. Very talented bunch, so much so, that we have one lesson per week given over to our Year 4 orchestra. This week, I decided to have the whole year group together....I must be off my rocker! But they arrived promptly, instruments in hand...and eager to get going on 'William Tell'. Having placed them as per a standard orchestra we were off and running...! They were fabulous. It is quite a taxing piece and all of the parts have been written especially for the children but they all involved independent parts, bars rest and confidence is most certainly required. All of the children demonstrated improvement during the course of the one hour session, they all earned stars for their houses and once again, I am thrilled with the standard achieved by them all. Thank you Year 4!

 

 

 

 

 

Birthday surprise!

 

Always nice to get one over on Jo Westlake! Last year she turned 40 and I surprised her with over 70 children playing Happy Birthday on the top terrace. This year, I decided to be slightly less over the top, but still wanted to catch her out! So, having enlisted the help of the Headmaster - he had to delay her slightly before Concert Band - and the children, it was all systems go! The children were amazing as ever....no one spilt the beans and they all secreted their music away surreptitiously...until Jo walked into concert band and was greeted with an excellent performance of Happy Birthday, along with chocolate cake: mercifully enough for all of the band! I am already planning next year's....!!

DRUMMING!

This term Year 3 have been looking many different instruments and how sounds are produced on each of them. This week the inevitable had arrived and it was the turn of the drums and an understanding of what each particular drum does. Children very excited... Mrs A armed with coffee and headache pills.....!
Coordination is one of the main ingredients here and so we started the lesson with all of the children rubbing their tummies with one hand and patting their heads with the other. Then they had to swap over...less easy! One hand is clearly easier than the other to accomplish this task.
Then we started learning the bass drum by beating on beats 1 and 3 with our right foot. To complicate matters further we then introduced the snare drum with our left hand on beats 2 and 4...! Biggest challenge here was correctly to identify our right from our left......!!! Finally we added in 8 quavers with our right hand on the high hat! Sounds easy right? Well, in theory...but in practice....? Much laughter and merriment from the children and a new understanding about how tricky the drum kit really is!

 

 

 

 

 

Reading

As a member of staff, we all have to take additional duties and subjects, out of our comfort zone. As I do not have responsibility for my own match team,on both a Wednesday and Saturday I have the dubious honour of taking 'reading' for    any children not participating in matches or home teams with a late start. As any of my colleagues will tell you, wet match days or the start of a new term are hideous days to have to take a reading duty, as in general it involves the supervision of the whole school reading in silence in the theatre: no mean feat! 

Today however, the sun is shining so all matches are going ahead as planned. I have only 13 children to babysit for reading so have treated them to a session in our stunning grounds. 

Welcome to summer at Brambletye! 

First week back!

Have we only been back for ten days? That's gone quickly! The music department is now heading full speed towards: an assembly in the pre prep, Associated board and Trinty music exams, a performance at Clinton Lodge in Fletching, year 5 musical, music for sports day and a summer concert! All very busy but great fun!

This week has seen the commencement of new music schemes of work: year 8 are starting Minimalism, year 7 are starting Gamelan, year 6 are learning to play the angkloons, year 5 are rehearsing for their musical, year 4 have started. Graphic scores as well as their own orchestra and year 3 are trying a whole series of different instruments!