Guest Post by Gary Barton
Though heterogeneous beginning band means that all instruments are being taught simultaneously in one room, the scenario may not be the same from school to school. Some schools have mixed instrument classes but more than one teacher may be assigned. I have seen classes with just one teacher, but other directors may come in periodically or contract teachers may be utilized. If the teacher gets help, no matter how little, the situation is different from the truly one-teacher class, the class where students have never met another director.
Disclaimer: While I believe that the like-instrument class is the best way to teach, this is not always possible and some of the best programs are started by one teacher working alone. If there is only one director and the closest people who can help are great distances away, even good budget resources may be of little help. A school district with one band director is common in some parts of every state. Some would say that you must constantly advocate for help and I totally agree, but what to do before that happens?
Embrace What You Have
If you really think your situation is impossible and you teach with that mindset, then you have defeated yourself before you start. Consider what is good. If you have a schedule that allows plenty of time to teach and there aren’t built-in obstacles to recruiting, there is your starting point. If you don’t have these in place, then you must confront this problem before you can build numbers in your program, as increased enrollment is the only way administrators will consider hiring more staff. While you are growing your student numbers, there are ways to teach the mixed-instrument class effectively.
The Biggest Worry: Getting Started
As I read posts in groups on social media, I most often see concerns about keeping all students engaged while getting everyone started on their instruments. Assembly, maintenance, accessories, hand position, even how to pick the instrument up and how to lay it down can be daunting when all are anxious to get started. I have a simple solution: all students must be engaged in every part of the class.
Students in the most effective band rehearsals are aware of every part of the process. They are learning how all parts work together, how their parts support and balance other instruments. I tell the students that we are like a team. Every player on a baseball team must understand the role of the pitcher, the shortstop, the catcher. Every football player must know the job of the quarterback. I compare us to a play. Actors must know the lines of other actors in order to know when to say their own lines. The best place to begin this standard is the beginning class. Develop the culture that it is “beginning BAND”, instead of “beginning flute” or “beginning trumpet”.
At the very beginning, students are excited about all the instruments, not just the one they are going to play. Instead of trying to find something to keep the other students busy while you are working with one instrument group, engage every student with that instrument. Start with the clarinet as it is the most complicated assembly. If possible, provide every student with a clarinet. The clarinet players can use their own instrument while others use school inventory. This is a great way to use old unrepairable instruments that may be around your district. All students learn how to apply cork grease, assembly, even how to properly set up the mouthpiece and reed and how to swab and store the instrument. The reeds are not going to be played, so just save a bunch of old reeds for practice assembly. Continue this with all the instruments while pointing out any similarities from instrument to instrument. You’ll find that the more the students understand all the instruments the more they will be engaged in the class.
They All Have Their Instruments Ready! Now What…?
Begin teaching proper hand position and posture. You must insist that every student is paying attention. Teach small pieces of information and repeat until mastery is near. Teach left hand placement on the woodwinds, brass hand position. Model and repeat these until all fingers are where they should be on all instruments. Teach embouchure and those first sounds the same way you would in a like-instrument class, the difference being that you must use smaller information bites, keep the energy high, and move quickly from instrument to instrument. Repetition and review are imperative, and small bites of information and exercises are more easily drilled than large, lengthy concepts. Once everyone is playing a tone on their instrument, the following are some things I found that really work:
- Play long tones, four beats of sound and four beats of silence, every day. You may not be able to start on the ideal note for each instrument, but long tones are a must. Concert D and concert F work well at the beginning.
- Knowledge of the keyboard will make introducing flat and sharp notes much easier. Explain the black and white keys, how they work with each other. It will be so much easier on that day when you introduce F# after they have been playing F for months. Use the term “enharmonic” daily. A little keyboard drill for two minutes each day will eliminate many questions.
- Model each instrument as much as possible. If you are uncomfortable on an instrument, model that one often. By the end of the year you will play it as well as your students. Move around the room. Beginning band doesn’t need a podium.
- Rhythm is a concrete. It doesn’t change from instrument to instrument. Drill your rhythm vocabulary daily using your board at the front of the room, rhythm charts, and the musical exercises in your book. Use the same vocabulary that your high school directors will be using. This is not an option.
- Scales can be introduced as early as you like. If the class meets every day, concert F, Bb, Eb, and Ab, at least one octave, are possible as a minimum in a mixed setting. The maximum is up to you. Next to good tone, scales are the greatest gift you can give your beginners.
- If you are using a class band method book, start at the very beginning each day for the first weeks. On Fridays for the first semester, I always started at the beginning of the book and reviewed what we had learned so far. The kids love doing this and realizing their progress. I was fortunate to have several sets of different band methods. After Christmas, I would use one on Fridays. Having the students use a different book, starting from the beginning, fills in gaps and is great sight-reading practice.
- There is no magic band book. If you have learned a book, learned what exercises strengthen your students, simply live with that book. I knew a gentleman who used the same band method book for forty-two years. His middle school band played at the Midwest Clinic three times.
- A separate percussion class is needed, but that may not be possible. If percussion is included, the keyboard percussion must be the emphasis. If good keyboard skills are in place, battery percussion can be developed. Emphasize the total percussion concept.
Accept that some things may not happen in the mixed setting. The many woodwind fingerings may be difficult and comprehensive percussion skills may be lacking a bit, but good tone and rhythmic stability should not suffer at all. Those two things alone would make many high school band directors happy. Long tones and short bites of vital information and repetition will bring your heterogeneous class a long way.
Gary Barton retired from the La Porte, Texas Independent School District after 37 years of teaching in 5 states. He received the Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Louisiana-Monroe and the Master of Science in Education from Indiana University. A Past President of the Arkansas School Band and Orchestra Association and Past 2nd Vice President of the National Band Association, he has written for numerous publications and has done clinics and presentations in 16 states. He may be reached at bartonglp@gmail.com