Skills away from the instrument

Music Theory and fundamental understanding of written music vs music as it can be heard.

Rhythm Recognition + Production

Pitch Recognition + Production

“The Rhythm Book is designed to help students learn to perform the rhythm patterns they will
encounter in band, orchestral, choral, solo, and chamber music. It may be used in class or private
instruction. The Rhythm Book encourages students to read rhythm not as individual notes but as groups
of notes. Each group of notes is known as a rhythm "cell" or "chunk." Each exercise serves to teach a
new cell and review cells already learned. Once introduced, each rhythm cell recurs at regular intervals
throughout the rest of the book. In other words, spiral learning is used.

New rhythms are often taught not on a fixed syllable (such as "Ta"), but on a carefully selected word.
This is called the "speech cue method." The speech cue makes it easier for students to learn and
remember the rhythm cells. For example, the rhythm sixteenth-sixteenth-eighth is taught with the word
"telephone."

Each exercise is designed to be sung or played on an instrument. For vocalists and players of wind
instruments, phrases are short enough to permit proper breathing. For string players, bowings are
added when necessary.”