Author: allencole
Date: 2022-09-28 19:46
Tom H,
Sorry, I tried to quote you, but couldn't make it work. While you're correct in saying that most community bands aren't doing stuff in 5/6/7 sharps and flats, there are any number of situations where there are runs or patterns in these keys set up by accidentals rather than key signature. And when you have music to accompany any sort of vocal--well, all bets are off in terms of key.
I think that we should be INCREASING emphasis on difficult keys for the very reason that so many of us never see professional careers, but so many could be a very competent warm body in a community group. My own involvement in amateur groups and with teaching adult students, is that they don't understand how much we fudge things that they see as requiring absolute perfection and being difficult-to-impossible. I have often seen decently competent players sit in for one night and never return simply because they saw something they didn't understand, or sightread something less than perfectly.
I think that we can eliminate much of the fear of keys, by having simple music for students to play in those difficult keys. Too often, kids only learn to play in difficult keys after the music itself has become more daunting, and they have gone for years in easier keys. I'd rather have them learn a difficult scale, and play Ode to Joy, First Noel, Twinkle Twinkle, etc. at an earlier stage so that they overcome the fear of strange-looking stuff. There are ways to show them in simpler songs that some enharmonic spellings, including double sharps and flats, are actually a GOOD thing. It can a harder sell when their music already has their fingers flying.
Allen Cole
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