In Great Falls, as some other cities, beginning band and orchestra classes are taught by specialists in that area. Those specialists taught only 5th grade beginners until 2005 when sixth grade was moved from the middle schools to the elementary schools. The same group now teaches beginners and sixth grade. Many have far more than enough years to retire, but they obviously love what they are doing, and their students benefit from teachers who have honed their teaching skills at one level over a number of years. As the district music supervisor, I had multiple opportunities to watch these master teachers at work. Here are some of their "tricks of the trade" that make them so effective.

No Hurry!
Many times beginning instrumental teachers stake their prowess on how far the kids progress in the method book. Unfortunately, the page number indicates nothing about skill level. It is far more important to make sure students understand concepts and master sequential skills, than to worry about how many pages are being covered.

Master teachers understand how to use multiple approaches to reinforce learning and they take time to repeat exercises to ensure understanding. For instance, before the beginners play a line from the method book, they might be asked to count the rhythms, then name the notes, then show the fingerings while they count or name notes. Doing so embeds a good deal of musical knowledge and gives little embouchures a chance to develop correctly without causing fatigue.

In beginning classes of eight or more, it is a good idea to count off in twos and have ones say the notes/rhythms or show their partner fingerings. Twos assess and then perform while the ones assess. That keeps everyone engaged all the time, either listening or performing. Of course, the technique can be applied in any class of two or more students.

A caveat: some beginners will not "get it." Each child begins an instrument with different sets of innate skill. Some will be "whiz kids," most will gradually improve, but some are simply not mentally or physiologically gifted for music. If we "teach to the bottom," those students can sap the teacher's time and energy and take learning away from the rest of the group. At some point, usually eight weeks or so (which often correlates to the initial rental period), it may be necessary to counsel the student who is not catching on to withdraw and try again next year. That may not be popular with some parents, but the deciding factor should be whether or not having the student continue will take excessive learning time away from other students.

Only when the vast majority can perform at your standard do you move to the next line or page. Often times, younger teachers do not follow the curriculum as outline in the method book; instead they jump from page-to-page and play the students' favorites. Each line usually has an important musical concept, and it is incumbent on the teacher to determine what that concept is and devise ways to reinforce it.

I Got Rhythm!
Nothing is more important for music literacy than a functional rhythm system! Students cannot be expected to practice at home if they are unable to interpret rhythms. Insisting on home practice before mastery of basic rhythm encourages students to "practice mistakes," and practice makes permanent.

While most teachers use a "traditional" counting system, a syllable system can work equally well, if not better. The system is not as important as its consistent use. Top teachers make sure there is plenty of verbalizing rhythms in every class. "Say it, then play it," is an excellent mantra. Beginners should never attempt to play a line from their method books without first counting the rhythms. In the early part of the year, students should spend more time verbalizing and/or clapping rhythms than actually playing them.

There is a good deal of controversy about foot-tapping as an external source of pulse. Foot-tapping can be advantageous if the teacher takes time to reinforce steady beat, rather than allowing feet to tap the written rhythms. There are other sources for external pulse such as tracks from the CDs that often accompany the method books, a metronome, or a pair of claves played by the teacher.

The best check for rhythm understanding is to have the student play a new line. Perhaps the line is there to introduce a new note, but to get to the new note, students will have to count and perform the rhythms accurately. That allows the teacher to assess rhythm prowess while a student is concentrating not on rhythm, but the new note.

Experienced teachers go back and review. They are aware that internalizing musical concepts takes a good deal of repetition. To that end, their classes often begin with a review of new notes or concepts from earlier lessons. Because music skills rely so heavily on the proper sequence, it is important to review and reinforce basics continually.

Listen Up!
Instrumental teachers are usually excellent at teaching eye training, but often not as accomplished at ear training. That is, we spend a huge amount of class time talking about visual things such as notation, clef, staff, fingering, dynamic or tempo markings, but very few challenge beginners to develop their ears.

Slowing down the pace of progress through the method book also allows time for ear training at a time when it is most critical. Following is a recommended approach for a teacher addressing a group of fifth-grade trumpet beginners: "Do you hear that blap on the end of the note? Do not let that happen. Just stop your air. Try it again." This example would actually require beginners to go back and fix their tone, not just place fingers correctly. A good teacher would constantly ask questions about how the student/group sounds. There should be frequent references to tone and sound quality during classes and it would make all the difference when the 5th graders perform the material at the concert.

It is not enough to say, "Listen!" Master teachers tell kids exactly what to listen for; that blap on the end of the note, the splat at the beginning of a note, the difference in sound between an upstroke and a downstroke on the snare, whether or not everyone ended the last note together, the thin tone that results when the air moves too slow or has too little pressure. "Make it sound like you're singing," addresses style without going into a technical explanation. There are dozens of ways to cause critical listening, but teachers must make it a part of their teaching routine and understand that ear training must have equal or more emphasis than eye training. The opposite is often the case.

Teach to the Future
Watch an outstanding teacher work with beginners and you will quickly recognize ensemble skills are an important part of learning. That means teaching the importance of rehearsal etiquette at the very beginning. Many times, younger teachers make the mistake of trying to be sure class is "fun" for everyone and they allow behaviors, at the beginning level, that they abhor in a middle or high school rehearsal—kids talking out freely, playing instruments when not instructed to, standing up and walking around during instruction.

Teach the behaviors early that you want in students when they enter middle or high school ensembles. Create the kind of citizens you want in your advanced groups. Watch excellent teachers prepare their fifth grade groups for a program and the intensity might make one guess they were preparing the New York Philharmonic with a guest appearance by Yo-Yo Ma. It is not just notes, it is discipline 101—how to sit, where to place your instrument at what time, what to do during applause, how to enter and exit.

Like the music itself, presentation is no "big deal," instead, it is a lot of "little deals," and each one is important. Instruction about these little deals should not happen just in the preparation time for a program, it should happen during every lesson. Take advantage of small classes and individual attention to work on citizenship. Left untaught, lack of rehearsal etiquette at the middle school level can make rehearsal time a nightmare and the "mob rule" of a large middle school ensemble makes it the wrong time to teach proper behavior. Take some tips from the pros as you welcome a new crop of budding musicians each semester.