Identifying and Solving Common Challenges in Rehearsing School Orchestras

Transcription

1 Identifying and Solving Common Challenges in Rehearsing School Orchestras Dr. Robert Gillespie with Blair Williams The Ohio State University I. General Principles: A. Listed 1. Warm- ups are necessary! 2. Help review technical skills 3..Help develop new technical skills 4. Help prepare for rehearsal of related music 5. Help focus attention of students 6. Best if warm- up involves a review of skills, refinement of previously learned skills, and/or introduction of new skills 7. Warm- up can be rote or by note or combination 8. Warm- up can be organized by overall skill development of students or by technical skills needed to learn specific repertoire 9. Teacher must spend time planning the warm- up 10. Length of warm- up dependent upon length of rehearsal and timeline for concert preparation, e.g. approximately one- third of class time as general guideline 11. Rehearsal sequence: warm- up to passage work to play through to concert II. Warm- up Organized by Overall Sequential Skill Development of Students A. Warm- up can involve teaching strategies for developing sequentially the overall playing skills of string students throughout the curriculum: BOWING SKILLS 1. bow hand shape 2. Detache stroke 3. direction changes 4. string crossings 5. slurring 6. stopped strokes: staccato and Martele 7. spiccato 8. Sautillé LEFT HAND SKILLS 1. body posture 2. instrument position 3. left hand shape 4. chromatic alterations: upper string finger patterns, cello extensions, bass shifting 5. shifting 6. vibrato AURAL SKILLS 1. raise/lower a pitch by ear 2. match selected pitches by ear 3. march pitch patterns leading to scales by ear 4. match simple double stops by ear 5. play melodies by ear in multiple keys 1

2 6. develop ensemble triads 7. select triads by ear to accompany scales 8. select triads by ear to accompany melodies 9. develop improvisatory skills III. Printed Technical Development Materials Music and Teacher Texts Music All for Strings, Vol. 3, Kjos: Essential Technique for Strings and Advanced Technique For Strings, Hal Leonard Essentials for Strings, Kjos The First Ten Minutes (Merle Isaac) Wynn High Tech for Strings, Carl Fisher Intermediate String Techniques (Forest Etling), Highland/Etling Muller Rusch String Method Vols. 3,4,5, Kjos A Rhythm A Week, Warner Bros Strictly Strings Vol. 3 and Strictly Strings Orchestra Companion, Alfred Publications String and Full- Orchestra Warm- Ups, Hal Leonard Viva Vibrato!, Kjos Texts Strategies for Teaching Strings: Building A Successful School Orchestra Program (2004, 2008, 2012) by Don Hamann and Robert Gillespie, Oxford University Press. The Art and Science of String Performance by Sam Applebaum, Alfred Pub. The Teaching of Action in String Playing, Paul Rolland, ASTA Playing the String Game: Strategies for Teaching Cello and Strings, Phyllis Young, Amazon The String Play: The Drama of Playing and Teaching Strings, Phyllis Young, Amazon ASTA String Curriculum: 2011 Edition Media String Clinics to Go: The Art of Recruiting String Clinics to Go: Getting Started String Clinics to Go: Teaching Intermediate Strings III. Warm- up Organized by Technique Related to Specific Repertoire A. Involves analyzing skills need to play specific repertoire and then Selecting rote teaching strategies or printed technical materials designed to develop those skills B. Point out to students how the technical skills in the warm up relate specifically to their repertoire IV. Sample School Orchestra Performances with Related Warm- up Plans: 2

3 School: Class: Date: Repertoire:

4 School: Class: Elementary School Date: Repertoire: Trepak Bow Hand Shape 1. The flop Simple Detache Pulling vs. Pushing the bow 1. The hang: shoulder, elbow, hand Lengthened Body Instrument Position Left-arm Placement 1. Head pull-ups 1. Violin/head position 1. Pinky strums 2. Cello bridge/nut hand taps Pitch matching in different Octaves 1. Finding 3 Gs 2. Finding 3 C-naturals 3. Finding 3 F-sharps 4

5 School: Class: Elementary School Date: Repertoire: William Tell Bow Hand Shape 1. Chop/flop on tube Simple Detache 1. Open/close gate with tube 2. Swing in/out with tube Lengthened body Instrument Position 1. Feet position 2. Pull string up 3. Swing/Sway 4. Jack-in-the-box 1. Number game Pitch matching of open strings patterns 1. Call/response 4-note 2. Jazz/rock/pop aural background 5

6 School: Class: Elementary School Date: Repertoire: Frosty Simple Detache 1. Dowel and tube bowing 2. Tube bowing on string Instrument Position Pitch matching of open strings 1. Shoulder platform 2. Shoulder rest position/ height 1. Call/response 4-note patterns on non-string instrument 6

7 School: Class: Middle School Date: Repertoire: Mechanisms Simple Detache at the balance point 1. Lift/set/settle/lean-lean 2. Tall/short fingers Moving with the tempo and bow stroke direction Left-hand shape 1. Balancing and moving 2. Moving with MM click 1. Fingering between the strings for hand-frame and finger tips Pitch matching in different Octaves 1. Call/response with 6/8 notes 7

8 School: Class: Middle School Date: Repertoire: Vortex Wrist/finger flexibility 1. To the frog we go 2. Doorknobs Instrument Position 1. Cello angle 2. Up & light 1. 8 note dynamics 8

9 School: Class: Middle School Date: Repertoire: Gypsy Rover Stopped strokes 1. Pinch/tug/release 2. Pinch/tug/release/ pull One-two finger pattern Pitch matching with alternating pizz/arco 1. Hand in air 2. Finger taps 3. Finger slides 1. Call/response 9

10 School: Class: Middle School Date: Repertoire: Ashoken Farewell-1 Refined Detache 1. Bow speed 2. Lanes Vibrato 1. Snaps for width 2. MM for speed Vibrato matching 1. Call/response 10

11 School: Class: Middle School Date: Repertoire: Ashoken Farewell-2 Detache 1. Lift/set/settle at different sounding points 2. Tube bowing with clothespins Left hand shape Finger Placement 1. Tunnels 1. Descending melodies 2. Simple double stops Manipulating a pitch Musical expressiveness 1. Kodaly/Orff hand signals 2. Call/response/love 11

12 School: Class: Middle School Date: Repertoire: Telammon Detache 1. Upper strings: shoulder/tube bowing 2. Lower strings: tube in front bowing Left hand shape 1. Geminiani chord 2. Upper strings: elbow pulls 3. Anchor and slide/tap Forming chords 1. Forming chords among sections of the orchestra and tuning between the sections of the orchestra 12

13 School: Class: Middle School Date: Repertoire: Quintus Detache 1. Dowel bowing 2. Connecting the lift/set/settles 3. Two clothespin clips 4. Puppet shoulders String crossings 1. Bridge rocking Instrument Position Sound production 1. Upper strings: triangle, shelf, and platform 2. Upper strings: scroll parallel to the floor 1. Soft bows call/response 2. Pounds on bow call/response 13

14 School: Class: High School Date: Repertoire: Prelude to an Early American Hymn Refined Detache 1. Soloist: soft shoulder 2. Soloist: pull the sound out of the instrument: elbow hangs String crossings 1. Lengthened body during crossing Cello extensions 1. Finger arm and then string 2. Step 3: pizzicato 3. All extensions 1-2 extensions Matching modal melodies 1. Call/response of altered/familiar 2. Call/response scales with cello extensions 14

15 School: Class: High School Date: Repertoire: Mozart (Sinfonietta in D Major) Spiccato 1. To the frog we go 2. On to off and with string crossings Three-octave scales 1. Determine fingerings 2. Two octave to three octave teaching sequence Scales in different octaves Scales to reinforce bowing style 1. Call/response in different octaves 2. Call/response spiccato bowing 15

16 School: Class: High School Date: Repertoire: Vocalise Refined Detache 1. How soft can you play 2. Teaching modeling 3. Good quality rosin 4. Quality strings and not false Refined vibrato 1. Upper strings: changing vibrato types 2. Different vibrato speeds/widths per scale degree Balance 1. Accompanying one instrument section 2. Accompanying two players 3. Accompanying one player 16

17 School: Class: High School Date: Repertoire: Pictures at an Exhibition Stopped strokes 1. Loud rests 2. Put your foot in the rest 3. Count out loud 4. McAdams Metronome/amplified metronome Finger patterns Review instrument position 1. Scales, Scales, Scales 2. Non-verbal delivery Slide into pitches of scale notes Slide into pitches of familiar melodies Manipulating a pitch 1. Call/response 2. Call/response 3. Call/response in tune/out of tune scales 17

18 School: Class: High School Date: Repertoire: Hungarian March Hooked Bowing 1. Pizzicato rhythm open strings/ scales 2. Combine sections of pizzicato/ arco 3. Rhythm played in different parts of the bow 4. Same rhythm played with string crossings Scales in different bowing styles 1. Detache, staccato, spiccato, lance 2. Scales in different rhythms: one pitch/multiple pitches Strings performing without conductor 1. Rehearse strings without conducting so that the conductor can focus exclusively on winds and percussion 18

19 School: Class: High School Date: Repertoire: Stravinsky (Berceuse and Finale) Color bowings 1. Ponticello 2. Sul tasto 3. Sustained tremolo 4. Soft tremolo 5. Loud tremolo 6. Colle Melodies in high registers 1. Left-hand sinking into the fingerboard 2. Harmonic to solid fingering while bowing Selecting music to match skills of soloists 1. Audition soloist individually and with orchestra 19