Portions reprinted from an article by Pandora Bryce ASJ, February 1992

WHY GROUP CLASSES?
Group lessons are not just a time to play through pieces, as in some sort of communal review. After all, students can review at home, many play in a band at school, and in order to get them to attend groups we must have better reasons than this. The following are some better reasons to participate in group classes.

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.