HAT Journal 3

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 The book mentions the four core instruments to be flute, clarinet, trumpet, and trombone. Why is the
saxophone not considered a core instrument? Starting the students on alto sax can help them find
tenor in bari sax players.
 The book mentioned not allowing everybody to choose their instruments. However, what do you do
when parents get angry about the instrument that the teacher selected for their kid? How do you
make sure your balance is not disrupted over this?
 The book mentioned doing an aptitude test on the students on recruit day. Can this test actually
measure how successful students will be in the future and what instruments they should play? I feel
like it is too early to tell any of this information.
 The book mentioned to request all new instruments to be delivered to the school, not to the parents.
However, what if the instruments are coming from multiple nearby stores? Can you still work out
delivery for all the instruments?
 When modeling for beginners, is it okay to show recordings of instruments that you are not very good
at? The book emphasized teacher modeling for good tone but I also do not feel comfortable on every
instrument.
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 Starting kids in band at too young of an age can actually make their musical experience worse. Band
instruments are one size and some students might be too small to play them. Starting kids too early
can also cause unavoidable frustration.
 Programs that meet daily have a higher retention rate than those who do not. This is a lot more
possible in 6th grade and up. Try to talk your administration into allowing band to be every day.
 Physical characteristics do not always line up well with stereotypical instruments. For example, long
fingers do not always mean that you should play saxophone. Studies have been done and there is no
direct correlation.
 One great way to see what kind of embouchure a beginner clarinet has is by rotating the barrel 180
degrees so that the mouth piece can be in the students mouth while the teacher can finger the
clarinet. This will give a basic idea of the student’s natural embouchure.
 After the first year, you can choose to switch students. You can switch students to improve the overall
balance of the ensemble, to an instrument that was not offered during the first year, or switch a
student to a different instrument to make them more successful.
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 Beginning instrumental classes are usually not required and the teachers must be actively promoting it.
In order to recruit, it might require the teachers to go to the elementary schools.
 Exposure concerts are important to have throughout the year to familiarize students and parents with
the music program. This will also allow students to see band and string instruments up close and learn
more about them.
 The book has a prefabricated letter that can be sent out to recruit students. This letter is primarily for
the parents to read. Make sure you include information about instruments, open house dates, and
contact information.
 One way to help students and parents understand why you put them in their instrument, is to relate it
to something they understand. For example, a baseball team cannot have ten first basemen and no out
fielders. This can be used to encourage a student to play an instrument like oboe, even though they
wanted to play flute.
 Encourage private lessons! Private lessons have shown to keep students more involved and continue
on their instruments. This is just as good at a beginner or more advanced level.