Hi everyone,
By now you have all heard that I won’t be returning as a regular teacher at ABC in the Fall of 2023. June will be my last month as I don’t have any students continuing through the summer. I wanted to let you all know that I have really enjoyed having each one of you as a student and I will miss seeing you every week very much! If you have any questions or concerns about next year, please feel free to reach out to me at [email protected] I’d be happy to connect and chat with you! We still have two more weeks together and I look forward to making the most of our remaining lessons!
Here are your assignments for this week:
Elliot
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice the Intro and Chorus beat from “Smells Like Teen Spirit” by Nirvana.
How to practice it most effectively: Focus on the coordination between the foot and the hands in the intro section. Practice it slow and make sure that the rhythm sounds even. As you start to speed it up, make sure that the rhythm doesn’t change. Don’t go any faster than you’re able to keep a steady rhythm. Also practice the transition from the Intro into the Chorus beat.
Jared
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice working through “Don’t Stop Me Now” one section at a time and also practice the new triplet beats.
How to practice it most effectively: Don’t worry about the speed of “Don’t Stop Me Now.” Just focus on getting through the song without stopping or hesitating. It’s okay if you make small mistakes in the rhythm. Try to keep going even if you make a mistake. With the triplet beats, practice playing them at different speeds, fast and slow, and see if you can incorporate some drum fills.
Jude
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice each of the three sections of “Seven Nation Army” and the transitions from one section to the next.
How to practice it most effectively: Take it slow and focus on counting as you play. This will help you to keep a consistent rhythm and to play the correct number of repeats in each section. Focus on moving from one section to the next without stopping or hesitating. Practice slowly in order to accomplish this. Then, once the transitions feel more comfortable, try to go a bit faster.
Noah
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Review “Good Times Bad Times” in preparation for the talent show.
How to practice it most effectively: You’re in really good shape with this song. Just focus this week on making sure that the timing is correct in each of the tricky spots of the song: the rhythm on the cowbell in the intro, the part that moves around the drums in the chorus, and all the transitions from one section to the next throughout the song. Practice along with the track as much as you can this week.
Caroline
Recommended minutes to practice: 15-20 minutes per day
What to practice: Practice the three new fills from “Chameleon” by Herbie Hancock this week.
How to practice it most effectively: Focus on the rhythm of each fill. Remember that what is written on the page is not just a series of notes, but the notation also tells you what the rhythm should be. All the eighth notes should be the same speed as the eighth notes on the hi-hat in the main beat. The sixteenth notes are also twice as fast as the eighth notes and they often land in between the eighth notes. Once you feel comfortable with all three of the fills. then practice playing them in sequence together with the beat.