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: 20-30 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice the LH/feet rhythm combinations on the back of your Jazz Samba page and work on page 3 of Beggin’.
How to practice it most effectively: Take it slow with the left hand samba rhythms. It is important to understand how these rhythms fit together with the foot pattern and to be able to play them together comfortably before adding the right hand. With page 3 of Beggin’, focus on being able to play each section with consistency even if it is at a slow speed.
Elliot
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Review page 1 and 2 of “Can’t Stop”: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/10YGpSqgr9Z2SExyhXz7k1evG3C0t2VEc?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: Focus on the transitions between the different sections of the song. Make sure that you can play through each page without stopping and starting. Even if you make a little mistake, practice continuing on without slowing down or stopping. Next week I want to hear you play all the way through pages 1 and 2 before we begin working on page 3.
Damian
Recommended minutes to practice: 5-10 minutes per day
What to practice: Review the page of drum fills we have been working on and try playing them in different combinations: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1jaROP8emrq7yGkV13Mt_Js4NVtEz-sCl?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: On this page you have 4 different drum beats written on the left side of the page and four different drum fills written on the right side of the page. Try playing them in different combinations (for example, play beat #2 with fill #4). Each time you play one, play the beat first, then the fill, and then go back to the beat. Focus on keeping a steady pulse and try not to speed up or slow down.
Nate O.
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Review the bridge section of “Never Lost” by Cece Winans and then practice playing all the way through the song: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1lsS6FvGAobS96Y5mFUDE_7L1HGfAK0_s?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: The bridge is the trickiest section of this song, so start by reviewing it. Remember that the bass drum keeps the time in this section (not the hi-hat) and that the rhythm is played between the floor tom and the snare drum. After you’ve worked on this section, then go back to the beginning of the song and try playing it all the way through.
Noah
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice the main beat from “Chameleon” with the drag as well as the four drum fills: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Dga1ZBRWaN_Ka4O1G009w-74c4VaZCj7?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: With the drag, remember that it’s just a quiet bouncing of the stick that leads into the first note of the drum beat. It doesn’t need to be played very loudly. Focus on gripping the stick loosely so that you can get the stick to bounce at least two or three times. With the fills, practice them slowly at first and pay close attention to the rhythm of each fill.
Koel
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice playing all the way through the second page of “Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1SCS8WVjfR1OZVlYmt8a1r2LTxo2NJOpN?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: It is important that you can get through this whole page without stopping, pausing, or slowing down. Focus on the transitions between each line and make sure that you can connect the end of each line with the beginning of the next. You don’t need to play it very fast, but whatever speed you play, it needs to stay consistent.
Sylvie
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice playing the whole song from beginning to end: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1KGeo9VGh3JOWzwpGhEe1DbXMRuQiG7lL?usp=sharing
How to practice it most effectively: You can almost play the whole song from start to finish now Sylvie. That’s great!! The last thing to work on is the transitions between different sections of the song: Verse to Chorus, Pre-Bridge to Bridge, etc. Make sure that you can play from the end of each section to the beginning of the next without stopping or slowing down. At the very end of the song, you have to count three bars of rest before playing the last notes. Remember that the first “1” is counted right when you hit the first note of the last line of the song.