The Clarinet BBoard

The Clarinet BBoard The C4 standard

New Topic | Go to Top | Go to Topic | Search | Help/Rules | Smileys/Notes | Log In

Previous Message | Next Message

Re: E flat alto clarinet help?

Author: Lelia Loban ★2017
Date: 2009-02-12 13:15

Thank you for trying to do a good job with these kids instead of shrugging off the problems with, "Eh -- it's a paycheck."

Have you had a chance to sit down with the band director and discuss what to do? Diplomacy needed, because it's potentially a threatening situation for the band director. You're new to the job (she's got seniority) , you're not a clarinet player and yet you've identified a mistake in her curriculum planning. She's set this young alto clarinet player up for failure by putting him on the most difficult of the harmony clarinets before he's comfortable with the whole range of the Bb clarinet. (My experience was more typical: I started on alto clarinet in 7th grade, but by then I'd already been playing Bb soprano for three years.) His bad playing could drag down the morale of the rest of the band, too. So, the band director might get defensive, especially if she thinks you're undercutting her authority by assigning the kids different parts than she gave them.

In your situation, I think I'd talk to the director, but ignore the whole "What were you thinking?!" line of reasoning (accusatory, although it's completely valid!) and just talk about that individual boy. Ask if the band director would mind if you try giving this student a bari sax book or a transposition, for instance. Avoid implying that it's the band director's fault he's having so much trouble. (She may come to that conclusion on her own....) Instead of making the conversation about her, talk about what *the student* can and cannot do right now, and how to help that student now and in the future, not about what the band director already did that it's too late to fix. If the band director is tuned in, she'll figure out on her own that maybe she should go back to the traditional model and start these harmony clarinets later. If she feels that you're cooperative, on her side, optimistic and wanting the best for the band, then let's hope she's less likely to get competitive and obstructionist and more likely to give you free rein.

Lelia
http://www.scoreexchange.com/profiles/Lelia_Loban
To hear the audio, click on the "Scorch Plug-In" box above the score.

Reply To Message | Avail. Forums | Flat View

Newer Topic | Older Topic

Topics