| OPUS
111 Flute Ensembles
Please
consider adding a flute ensemble to your total learning
curriculum. Students may join at any time during the
semester with a "one-time" per semester
fee of $30.00 to cover the cost of photocopying, folders,
etc. Each semester (excluding the Summer session)
is highlighted with a studio recital - "flute
choir" style - at IVCC. For more information,
please contact Sue Gillio, Director of the Flute Program
at OPUS 111 Music Studio in LaSalle (815) 224-DUET
(3838). |
LEARNING
BY EXAMPLE
If
you have ever been able to sit next to a very fine player
in an ensemble, you know how much can be absorbed by "osmosis."
Students need to hear flutists better than themselves,
and it is often more effective to have other students
be the "better" examples. Students expect their
teachers to play well, but when they hear their peers
playing impressively, they have more reason to believe
it is possible for them to do just as well. If the only
live flutist a student regularly hears is the teacher,
it is too easy to begin to believe that the teacher's
level of ability is unattainable. Students need to hear
each other play, both for inspiration and because they
can absorb a great deal from each others' playing.
INTONATION
Flute players tend to get quite
lazy about their intonation (playing in tune). It is all
too easy to push down the right keys and leave the rest
to chance. Group classes can address this issue in such
a way that even beginners are made aware that adjustments
may need to be made while playing. In a group, it is blatantly
obvious when the tuning is bad, since ten or twenty flutes
all playing out of tune sound much worse than two flutes
playing out of tune in a lesson. The idiosyncrasies of
the instrument can be addressed at group classes; the
flatness of the low register, the sharp tendencies of
the high register,a nd the more sensitive pitches that
can be bent too far in either direction. It is far more
efficient to focus on intonation techniques in group class
than to spend that amount of time with each student in
a private lesson.
ENDURANCE
Endurance is important for all flutists.
If we are accustomed to practicing for short periods and
taking breaks whenever we want then, it can be shocking
to discover how tiring it is to stand and play continuously
for an hour or more. It takes a lot of energy to hold
the flute for that long, to breathe correctly, to concentrate
on interpretations for an extended period of time, interpretations
for an extended period of time, and have the embouchure
remain relaxed and controlled. In group classes, students
find out that if they need an extra breath, the piece
continues on without them. They have to learn to jump
back in if they get behind. It takes great concentration
to keep up with a group, especially when playing a fairly
new pieces We cannot spend all our energy on our own playing,
but give some attention to staying with the group, watching
the leader and absorbing whatever information is presented.
Group classes help the students to build both physical
and mental endurance.
INTERPRETATION
We spend a lot of time on interpretation
when we teach private lessons. If however, a student has
been attending group classes regularly, he will have heard
many of the teaching points for his new pieces long before
he plays them. By the time he reaches a new piece, many
of the elements of its musical style will already be familiar.
This can save a lot of time, and allows students to be
musical on new pieces from the start. The teacher has
a chance to use group classes to enable the students to
learn about musical styles in a detailed way, even before
learning specific pieces.
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