Klarinet Archive - Posting 000164.txt from 2005/06

From: hns692@-----.com
Subj: Re: [kl] Need Lesson Teaching Advice
Date: Tue, 07 Jun 2005 23:28:55 -0400

I could suggest checking out where the children go to school and contacting a
local music store to find out what books the students' schools use. Start
there. Make sure they know how to put the reed on the mouthpiece correctly,
that their hands can reach the horn, and that they know what a note is, what the
note names are and what fingerings correspond to which note. It's far more
basic (and invaluable in the long run) than you could ever believe. They also
need to know how to put a clarinet togther and where the joints need to sit to
make the horn work. This is assuming you're starting kids with no prior
anything on a clarinet. Beyond that, a junior high person with a year or two of
playing/study might be well advised to get a complete Klose book . . . kids
need more practical information than technique or interpretation early on. Their
brains can only process just so much and the clarinet is the most difficult
instrument to play (over the oboe, even). They also need reminders regularly.
After having at least 200 beginners in my teaching "career," I can guarantee
that most of the above works well.

Good luck! They"re lots of fun -- and every one of them is different.

Lee Ann Hansen
hns692@-----.com

-------------------------------------------------------------------
Klarinet is a service of Woodwind.Org, Inc. http://www.woodwind.org