Klarinet Archive - Posting 000469.txt from 2004/09

From: "Karl Krelove" <karlkrelove@-----.net>
Subj: RE: [kl] Bass Clarinet Sectionals
Date: Sun, 26 Sep 2004 17:51:13 -0400

OK, a few basics, then.

First, you've been invited by an experienced teacher who I will assume, not
knowing anything about her background, experience or teaching ability, is
competent and in control of her program. Your authority comes primarily from
her - your position in this guarantees that any attempt on your part to be
authoritarian will get a bad reaction from the kids. So, keep your
expectations realistic and your approach positive and helpful. You have the
knowledge, and they have the problems your knowledge can solve - but even
when you are the "real" teacher, their acceptance of your help is crucial to
their benefiting from it.

As I suggested in my other response, I would stay away from formal method
books unless they already have one and are used to working from it. This
isn't the situation for you to try to change basic attitudes by trying to
"make" them take a more serious approach than the one their band teacher has
established with them. If they *are* working in a book, start them where
they are (ask the teacher, not the kids) and focus on problems related to
the instrument itself. You'll have to deal with incorrect rhythm, notes and
style, but don't allow yourself to get so mired in them that you loose sight
of the need to fix the fuzzy, thin sounds, the poor reeds, etc.... Don't let
errors go, especially if they are really basic, but resist the temptation to
drill notes and rhythms while there are still bass clarinet-related problems
to solve - they have a teacher to do the repetitious error correction. It
sounds ("We will work on the current band music, region band music, as well
as working with tone, embouchure and so on.") as if you already have a good
idea of what to do, except that I'd change "as well as" to "as a reason for"
or "as a medium for" - again, focusing on what you can bring to the table as
a specialist rather than duplicating what the teacher (who is more in the
position of a generalist) does.

When you say that "hopefully some of them will be doing private lessons with
me as well," you open the door to a more comprehensive relationship with
those students. If you mean individual lesson arrangements outside of school
(possibly for a fee), you then take on more responsibility as their primary
teacher. Most of us who teach privately have our favorite materials - etude
books, solo lit, etc. - and you can find lots of suggestions in the Klarinet
archives.

Good luck and have fun!

Karl Krelove

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Rachel Deville [mailto:contrabassclarinet@-----.com]
> Sent: Sunday, September 26, 2004 1:33 PM
> To: klarinet@-----.org
> Subject: RE: [kl] Bass Clarinet Sectionals
>
>
> Mr. Krelove,
> I will do more of a group lesson with these students for an hour
> a week and
> then hopefully some of them will be doing private lessons with me
> as well.
> We will work on the current band music, region band music, as well as
> working with tone, embouchure and so on. I am not student teaching until
> the spring. The band director has not given me any really strict
> guidelines
> yet. She justs wants the students to work with someone that really knows
> how to play the instrument and can teach them to do the same.
> THank you for
> responding! Have a great day.
>
>
>
>

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