How many pieces of music do you work on in a second year band class?
Re: class
Posted by Beecher on 1/27/2021, 4:26 pm, in reply to "class"
Assuming this is MS band and not a 2nd year of beginning band. I structure it around the concerts/contest, and it depends on the class.
Fall = 3-5 Stand Tunes for pep rallies (Louie Louie, Hey Song are always a part of this) October = Start on the Christmas Music (3 pieces) Spring = UIL concert pieces Spring After UIL = 1 to 2 extra/fun pieces for the Spring Concert. This depends on the group and how close the Spring Concert is to UIL. If they struggle, they may not change anything between UIL and the Spring Concert even if there is time...but that's if they're really struggling.
So, 9 to 12 full band pieces a year depending on the group. 5-8 of those being concert pieces (in case one of the Christmas pieces is also a UIL piece).
Re: class
Posted by Me on 1/27/2021, 4:02 pm, in reply to "class"
As many as the kids can learn and learn well.
For the Fall semester, I usually hand out 1-2 pieces of "real" music to learn along with some pep rally stuff before handing out Holiday concert music in early November, which is usually 2-3 selections.
In January, I hand out the UIL music I've picked out, and dig into that while continuing to work on solo & ensemble music (if there is a S&E contest I can take my kids to), sight reading, and technique.
After UIL, I hand out 3-4 easy "fun" pieces (sometimes one of the pieces from the fall shows up here) to play at the Spring concert.
