Hi everyone,
With the transition to ZOOM video lessons, I am no longer able to write down notes and musical material in the students’ books/binders. Instead, I have created PDF documents for each of you and dropped them into a Google Drive folder. The link to your documents is listed in the What to practice heading under your name below. You should be able to access the documents simply by clicking on the link. Here are your practice assignments for this week:
Will
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice lines 1-5 on the new sheet: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/17pjkCZ1jfMdjwRqFBMaPIG_hKMb3gQGz?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: Start by counting and playing each rhythm on the snare drum with the left hand. Then, once you feel comfortable with the rhythm, try playing it together with the feet (bass drum on 1 and 3, hi-hat on 2 and 4). Finally, begin playing the ride cymbal pattern with the right hand pattern together with the foot pattern and add in the left hand rhythm on the snare. Don’t try to go too fast!
Elliot
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Focus on finishing up the guitar solo section of “Smoke on the Water”: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/10YGpSqgr9Z2SExyhXz7k1evG3C0t2VEc?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: Play through this whole sections slowly to ensure that you can play all the rhythms properly. Take the time to read the notation to ensure accuracy. As you make the transition from page 3 to page 4, be sure not to speed up. Focus on the quarter note pulse which transfers from the bass drum to the ride cymbal. This pulse needs to stay consistent.
Aidan
Recommended minutes to practice: 20-30 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice playing all the way through “Drum Corps on Parade”: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1yJPRmQn7QZuvnmvhe8ji-CCGmJPGLDZi?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: Start each practice session with a full run-through of the piece. Try not to stop even if you make a mistake; just keeping pushing through the piece until the end to give yourself a feel for what it’s like to play the whole thing. After that, identify the spots that gave you trouble and practice these sections by themselves. Then, finish your practice session with another full run-through.
Noah
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice page 4 of “Smoke on the Water” in preparation for the recital and, if you have time, take a look at #46-50 on the new page of accent patterns I have provided: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Dga1ZBRWaN_Ka4O1G009w-74c4VaZCj7?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: Focus on the drum fills on page 4. These are the parts of the song that you are least familiar with. Play them slowly and do each one a few times in a row. Then practice them together with the other bars around them (before and after). Finally, practice playing the whole page top to bottom at the regular speed of the song.
Nate M.
Recommended minutes to practice: 20-30 minutes per day
What to practice: Keep working on “Red Barchetta” by Rush and think about whether you’d like to play it at the recital on May 1: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1UJYz7hx_AeAM7Std0aj1Y1IyVd-8f86S?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: Take a close look at the sheet music that I have provided, especially from the 7/4 section to the end. Practice playing these sections by yourself, slowly, then together with the recording at full speed. Listen closely to the recording if you’re having trouble figuring out any of the rhythms that we have worked on.