Our first concert this semester is the Combined 8th Grade Orchestra with VAHS Orchestra on Tuesday February 5th at VAHS. Soon after is the 6 & 7th Grade Orchestra Concert on Tuesday March 5th at SOMS. Students should arrive by 6:30pm to be tuned and to get final seating placements. Students need to wear concert dress: solid black from the waist down, solid white from the waist up. **Check to make sure your student's concert clothes fit and they haven't outgrown them!** 6th Grade Update: 6th Graders have now been working on how to play in an ensemble, where different groups in the orchestra are playing different music that fits together. We use the anaology of pie: the bassline is like the crust, the harmony is like the filling that gives the flavor, and the melody is like the topping. When we give our concert on March 5th we will play music that have these three roles demonstrated in each piece. Students have also been starting to learn to read their G String notes and will learn their E/C strings before the end of the year. Several 6th Graders have also been nominated to the Wisconsin Young Artists's Orchestra that will happen in March as part of the WI chapter of American String Teacher's Association. I'm really excited to have nominated the following hardworikng and musical students: Maddi M. - Violin Addy K. - Violin Jack R. - Violin Donnie L. - Violin Ethan Y. - Violin Ruby B. - Viola Hunter F. - Violin Carsten Z. - Viola Henry Z - Viola Quinn S. - Cello 7th Grade Update: 7th Graders have been doing some great work in the classroom and I'm really proud of them. They have been working on an advanced piece for their part of the March 5th concert and I'm excited for them to show off their work. They have learned tons of new notes and new techniques for this piece including extensions, flats, sharps, and strategies to work on intonation. This work is setting them up really well to become a solid 8th Grade orchestra class. They have also been learning about key signatures and scales and how these ideas relate to the music they perform. 8th Grade Update: 8th Graders did will on their February performance with BRMS and VAHS. It was pretty awesome to perform on the stage and to share the performance with VAHS. They sounded pretty fantastic. Our net performance is in May and students are focusing on their shifting skills with a piece called Nightshift. They are also learning about how to select music and prepare it for performance by choosing a piece for our May concert and for their graduation event. Solo Ensemble Several students will also be performing for the VASD Solo Ensemble organized by Wisconsin School Music Association. The event takes place on Saturday March 9th at Stoughton High School. Individual times have yet to have been shared but parents with students participating will receive an email soon. I'm proud of the extra work and effort these students have put into their music and would to recognize the following participating students: Hannah M - Violin Landon B. - Cello Carsten Z. - Viola Robert T - Viola Sydney J. - Cello Leora L. - Violin Ornella A. - Violin Magnolia A. - Violin Josh D - Viola Katy A. - Viola Ruby H. - Violin Quinn S. - Cello Fiddle Club Fiddle Club will be performing on the March 5th concert and the May 21st concert. We will do two pieces at each performance to keep the concerts running along, but will try to do a larger performance with just Fiddle Club at the Farmer's Market some time in May. Stay tuned for more info on that. Our shirts just came back last week and look really good this year. Send $10 with your Fiddle Club member to get their shirt. Early Morning Practice Early Morning Practice is in full swing and is an excellent way for students to practice. Students will be able to practice before school every day except the dates listed below. Doors will be opened for students starting at 7:40am to 8:15am. Students need to submit a permission slip either on paper (print here) or by Google Form (click here). Students might also bring this slip home...they just need to turn in one. No EMP on the following dates: Nov 1 Dec 1 Jan 10 Feb 7 Mar 7 Apr 11 May 9 Nov 15 Dec 19 Jan 16 Feb 20 Mar 20 Apr 17 May 15 Nov 29 Jan 10 Jan 24 Feb 21 Mar 21 Apr 25 May 23 Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras Several of our students participate in programs offered through WYSO and I would like to honor their work and effort in this. Many students participate in Music Makers including Peter B. (violin), Ornella A. (violin), Magnolia A. (violin), Robert T. (viola). In addition Josh D. (viola) plays in Opus One.
0 Comments
We are more than halfway through 1st Quarter and things are moving right along! The students have been making good progress and I'm looking forward to our first performances so you can hear the hard work they've been putting in.
Our first concert this year is the Fall Concert for 7th and 8th Graders on Monday October 29th at 7pm at Savanna Oaks. Students should arrive between 6:15pm and 6:30pm to be tuned and to get final seating placements. Students need to wear concert dress: solid black from the waist down, solid white from the waist up. **Check to make sure your student's concert clothes fit and they haven't outgrown them!** 6th Grade Update: 6th Graders have been working on learning or reviewing the basics if they did summer strings. While their ability to focus in a group instrument setting has taken them awhile to get...they are starting to do quite well. We have learned the two of the big three: how to hold the instrument, how to hold the bow, and reading notes. Reading notes is something we'll continue to work on long term. For now we are learning to read notes on the D string to play simple songs like Ode to Joy and Go Tell Aunt Rhody. In the next week or so we will also learning A string notes and start working on concert songs for our first performance on Tuesday December 11th at SOMS at 7pm! 7th Grade Update: 7th Graders worked on reviewing the basics from last year including holding the instrument, holding the bow, keeping good posture to help them play their best, and notes from all four strings. They are starting to sound pretty good on their concert selections and bring really good energy to the pieces. Next we will work on learning new notes including flats and extended fingerings. Our next concert cycle will include harder and more challenging piece to get them to stretch their musical abilities. We will also start a long Solo Unit where each student will choose a solo and prepare it for performance. 8th Grade Update: 8th Graders are pretty exciting this year. They are a high energy group for sure but have really started to develop a big and wonderful sound. We've reviewed some basics much like 7th Graders did but have also worked to add some new skills like vibrato. We are excited to perform one of our pieces for the concert that includes this new skill...and although many students have just a beginning vibrato that still needs some development it's sounding pretty great. Gaining vibrato is a a benchmark in playing stringed instruments and I'm really proud of the students for getting to this point on it. Next we will work on preparing music for our joint concert with BRMS 8th Graders and VAHS Orchestras that will happen in February. We will also start working on a long Solo Unit where each student will choose a solo and prepare it for performance. Fiddle Club Fiddle Club will start on Friday November 3rd from 7:40am to 8:10am!!! I am excited to bring this back this year because it was a ton of fun last year. Fiddle Club is for anyone in Orchestra who would like to play just for fun. The morning time is so it doesn't conflict with sports practices after school. The group will perform mostly fiddle style tunes with maybe some jazz/popular music thrown in. 6th Graders who are looking for an extra challenge (i.e. if you've already played for a year or are just really excited to try something harder) would fit right into this group! We will also incorporate some guitar as students are interested. Early Morning Practice Early Morning Practice starts next week. Students will be able to practice before school every day except the dates listed below. Doors will be opened for students starting at 7:40am to 8:15am. Students need to submit a permission slip either on paper (print here) or by Google Form (click here). Students might also bring this slip home...they just need to turn in one. No EMP on the following dates: Nov 1 Dec 1 Jan 10 Feb 7 Mar 7 Apr 11 May 9 Nov 15 Dec 19 Jan 16 Feb 20 Mar 20 Apr 17 May 15 Nov 29 Jan 10 Jan 24 Feb 21 Mar 21 Apr 25 May 23 Welcome, and welcome back! My name is Erin Barnard and I teach strings at Savanna Oaks Middle School in Fitchburg, WI. Right now summer is in full swing and I'm writing this entry as I am starting to reorganize our classroom and get instruments, music and folders ready for the new school year. Yep, it's early, but I'm looking forward to it! I've been enjoying the wonderful summer weather and being in Madison for the first summer in awhile after finishing grad school last year. I'm growing some great cherry tomatoes on my balcony, enjoying the lakes, and all of the summer events like Concerts on the Square and Atwood Festival. I play fiddle in a bluegrass band and we've been playing lots of summer gigs too! If you are also starting to think about getting ready for the school year ...click here to find out what your child needs for Orchestra. New students are probably wondering what my teaching style is like and if they will enjoy working with me. I have high standards for behavior and work ethic (students have to at least try) but I also love to joke around and have a good time while we work together. We will establish our classroom routines and rules together at the start of the year and we'll hold each other to it. I like to be student centered and facilitate student choice whenever possible. Especially with older students I like to involve them in choosing pieces and making some class decisions. For younger students I like to find games and playful ways to work on skills and improve. Last year we had a lot of fun with narwhals, field trips, Fiddle Club, and playing some great music! (Hint hint...The Incredibles 2 came out this summer...it was SO FUN!). So...hopefully everyone will enjoy our time together and learn a lot this year. I posted my professional bio on the About page...but we'll get to know each other better as the year goes on. That bio is mostly the boring stuff about me. The interesting stuff - I live in Madison and I am married but we don't have any kids. My husband is a grad student at UW-Madison in Computer Science. I am not a picky eater but I especially like spicy food and coffee. My favorite color is orange and my favorite animal is the narwhal. For fun I like to read, knit, and run or bike. I listen to lots of different types of music - mostly folk, pop, and indie, but also classical. I grew up in Wisconsin further North in Eau Claire and started playing viola in 5th grade in public school Orchestra...and I just never left. Working with students and teaching the world through music is a joy, an honor, and a great adventure for me. I also play fiddle in the band Soggy Prairie and conduct Opus One for Wisconsin Youth Symphony Orchestras. |
Spanish Translation:Erin BarnardI teach orchestra at Savanna Oaks and write this blog to help keep everyone up-to-date on our classroom. Read more about me/us on the About page. ArchivesCategories |