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Percussion Preservation: Basic Care & Maintenance

Music rooms sometimes contain tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of percussion equipment. Maintenance can feel overwhelming, but it’s worth it to protect your school’s investment!

The good news: basic care can be outsourced to students. At the end of each semester, your section leader and players can oversee most of these tasks.

First, dust everything with microfiber cloths, but don’t use cleaning chemicals. Keep a supply of cotton swabs on hand for dusty nooks & crannies! After everything is dust-free, go through this checklist.

Keyboard Instruments

Check cord between bars for worn or fraying spots
Play each bar to check for issues

Timpani

Check heads for damage, replace if needed
Check lowest pitch on each drum (32” D, 29” F, 26” Bb, 23” D, 20” F) and adjust if necessary
Store with pedal toe down

Snare Drums

Check top & bottom heads for damage, replace if needed
Check top & bottom heads for even tension, tune if needed
Dust snares with a soft brush (toothbrush or other)
Check cord on snares for wear & replace if needed
Check snare tension in on position & adjust if needed
Store with snares off

Cymbals

There’s some debate among percussionists about if cymbals should be kept as new or allowed to age with patina. If you choose to clean yours, here are some tips:

Wipe down your cymbals regularly with microfiber to keep dust and oils from building up
Fill a shallow tub large enough to fit your cymbal with 50% white vinegar, 50% water.
Allow the cymbal to soak 30-60 minutes
Clean the cymbal with a brush, scrubbing in the direction of the grooves
Rinse and dry with a clean cloth
Store covered (or in a cymbal bag for long-term)

When your equipment has been cleaned and checked, cover everything. Manufacturer covers are great if you have them, but if you don’t, use sheets/lightweight blankets. Cover your drum set too! Covering after daily use makes a big difference in the fight against dust AND covered instruments are much less tempting for visitors to touch.

Don’t forget to check your storage for mallets and auxiliary instruments in need of repair or replacement, and vacuum dirt out of your storage drawers!

Store all percussion instruments away from HVAC vents or radiators. If you have instruments with calfskin or other natural heads, make sure you consult the manufacturer’s care instructions.

If you have questions, consult a nearby percussionist band director, or a percussion faculty member at a local university – they’re usually happy to help, and you can get expert help with specific issues.

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Showcase Your Strings: 13 great pieces for recruitment and demonstration concerts

Published March 23, 2023 Contemporary Composers , General , music education , orchestra , Teacher Resources Leave a Comment
Tags: beginning orchestra, Kathryn Griesinger Parrish, music, music education, music teacher, programming, recruiting, school orchestra

Curated by Kathryn Griesinger-Parrish, Orchestral Editor at Carl Fischer Music

Guests & Soloists

Include a beloved teacher or principal when hosting a recruiting event.

Concerto for Triangle

by Mike Hannickel

This easy piece cleverly features a triangle ‘soloist’…who keeps missing their cue. Until the very end, that is! Guaranteed to elicit giggles from young students.

Guest Soloist

by Richard Meyer

This time, a ‘volunteer’ is given a violin with just 2 strings (or substitute any instrument), and the ‘soloist’ is cued in by taps on the shoulder by the conductor. A great opportunity for audience participation.

One Bow Concerto

by Richard Meyer

See what happens when a violinist, violist, and cellist are soloing with a pizzicato orchestral accompaniment…but there is only one bow for all to share! Bonus points for getting to hear most orchestral instruments solo.

Section features

Put every instrument in the spotlight.

Eclipse

by Caryn Wiegand Neidhold

This grade 2 piece includes optional drumset and the opportunity for every instrument section to play a solo (or section soli) by playing either the notated solo, or improving their own as the rest of the orchestra vamps in the background.

Instant Recruiting Concert

arr. Bob Phillips

This made-for-recruitment medley begins with familiar classical melodies, then offers instrument solo opportunities using fun tunes like The Pink Panther and The Flintstones. To finish, the orchestra combines for a grand finale of themes from movies like Star Wars and Harry Potter. Optional narration is provided to guide the audience through the various instrument sections.

Three Buccaneers

by Kathryn Griesinger

To hear every instrument, this piece gives every section of the orchestra its own theme: Violins, Violas, and Cellos/Basses. Each section can be demonstrated by playing a few measures of “their theme” before performing the entire piece.

Everyone’s Guide to the String Orchestra

by Camille Saint-Saens/arr. Douglas E. Wagner

If your recruitment theme is an instrument “petting zoo” then this arrangement of melodies from “The Carnival of the Animals” is a perfect fit. Cellos are featured in “The Swan,” violas in “Lion’s Royal March,” basses play the “The Elephant,” and violins bring the piece to a joyous conclusion with “Finale.”

Pop & Movie Hits

Get their attention with music they already know and love.

John Williams Trilogy

arr. Calvin Custer

Get several of the most recognizable movie themes in one medley! Tunes include Star Wars Main Title and End Credits, Theme from “Jurassic Park,” and Raiders March. This medium-level arrangement will require a little more rehearsal preparation and the piano and percussion parts add terrific energy, if you have the players.

Pirates of Caribbean (Easy Level)

arr. Paul Lavender

Pirates never go out of style and this easy-to-put-together arrangement captures all the swashbuckling fun of being in orchestra.

Great Themes from TV and Movies

arr. Bob Cerulli

Everyone loves cartoons and this arrangement combines the Batman Theme, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You?, and (Meet) The Flintstones.

Power Rock

arr. Michael Sweeney

For those last-minute performances, rock the house with this super-easy mash-up of Another One Bites the Dust and We Will Rock You.

Sunflower (from “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”)

arr. Michael Story (Alfred)

This easy to play pop hit will be familiar to all ages.

Viva la Vida

Coldplay, arr. Larry Moore

Lighten the mood with an upbeat and familiar melody that brings all the good vibes.

Last-Minute Favorites

Tried-and-true pieces are fun and easy for most ensembles to perform with minimal rehearsal time, and may likely already be in your library.

Kathryn (Griesinger) Parrish received her B.A. (cello) and M.M. (music education) degrees from the University of Akron, where she later taught string pedagogy courses as adjunct faculty. She taught orchestra in Ohio and Florida private and public schools for 15 years, while freelancing as an arranger and cellist for various ensembles. She also writes commissioned works and sight-reading music for regional music festivals. Kathryn currently works for Carl Fischer Music as an orchestra editor.

Easy Advocacy: Proactive Steps to Promote Your School Music Program

Published March 3, 2023 Band , choral , General , How To Articles , marketing tips , music education , orchestra , Teacher Resources Leave a Comment
Tags: communication, community, music advocacy, music education, music teacher, school music, Sheet Music Plus

Advocacy can feel like one more thing on an overfilled plate, but communicating with our administrators and communities is key to healthy school music programs.

These easy tips create little or no extra work for you – they capitalize on what you’re already doing.

Delegate tasks that don’t require your expertise

Utilize your parent and student leaders! You do not need to be in charge of taking concert photos, writing social media posts, and updating websites.

Cast a net for parents and older students who are into social media or marketing. Tell them what you’d like to see, make sure they’re aware of media permissions with student photos, then turn them loose.

Find someone who likes to write. Ask them to do a monthly or even quarterly email newsletter or press release for your local paper. It can include things you’re already keeping records on, like festival results, honors ensemble participation, and upcoming events. Use a template for consistency!

Invite everybody to take a look under the hood

Invite your instructional coaches, curriculum directors, and superintendents to your classroom – especially those who don’t have a musical background. These people make district-level decisions, and they all need to know what happens in your class.

For best results, meet with them for 10 minutes before they join your rehearsal to talk about your goals for the day, the standards or learning targets you’ll aim to hit, and the techniques you’ll use to achieve results. Speak their language, and they’ll be amazed at all you accomplish in 40 minutes.

If you’re doing something big (working with a composer on a commission, performing at a state convention) invite your administrators and your elected officials. The mayor, school board members, state-level legislators. They love being seen in the community, and they can feature your ensemble’s accomplishments on their social channels.

Plant your kids in the community

Your program’s visibility in the community is a crucial asset, but it doesn’t have to be all the kids, all the time. A lunchtime picnic concert downtown is great, but it’s a lot of moving parts. Think higher quantity, but smaller scale.

That crew of 4 friends who love to play together? Have them put together some carols and head to assisted living communities in December. Student council members in class? Ask them if there are some volunteer opportunities where music kids can represent the group.

A few students who attend church together? Ask them to prepare something to play at services. A parent with free time and a van? Ask if they’d spearhead a concert food drive to represent the music program.

Any local project that needs volunteers – send a few band kids.

Then (and don’t forget this part) hand that off to your social media person and make sure it’s blasted all over. Make sure they tag whatever business or organization they’re working with, and watch the ripples grow.

Start now

Take one step today, even if it’s a small one. Don’t wait until there’s a job or entire program on the line to start advocating.

With these measures in place, your community and your leaders will already see the positive impact your program has on the kids and the community. They’ll value it not just for what students learn, but for the people they’re becoming. They’ll be ready to fight for it.

John Williams: 90 Years – And Counting

Published February 8, 2022 Band , classical , Contemporary Composers , General , orchestra , Repertoire Leave a Comment
Tags: Band, band music, band sheet music, Harry Potter, john williams, John Williams Signature Edition, orchestra, orchestra music, orchestra sheet music, sheet music, Sheet Music Plus, star wars

On this, his 90th birthday, we’d posit that there is no living composer who has managed to be simultaneously so well-known, well-respected and well-loved than John Williams. We know his grand era- and genre-defining oeuvre like the backs of our hands: Jaws, Star Wars, Superman, Harry Potter, E.T., Indiana Jones — and the list goes on and on.

The broader public will recognize Williams pieces for their ingenious hooks, fearless displays of the widest range of human emotion, and instantaneous connection to the moving images they bring to life. Musicians, meanwhile, will simply enjoy playing his beautiful melodies and deeply satisfying orchestrations that feel undeniably natural.

None of this, of course, needs any introduction — and sometimes that’s the fun of it. Especially in times like these where our society seems to become more intensely divided with each passing day, a cultural touchpoint of pure joy that we all hold dear and that we can all relate to might be exactly what we need.

The John Williams Signature Edition series remains the gold standard in Williams scores. These spiral-bound, fully-engraved conductor’s scores come directly from the Williams originals and contain anecdotes written and signed by Williams himself that tell us, for example, which scene that he scored was his favorite, how the actors who worked on his legendary films helped to inspire his music, and his own personal connections to the characters those actors brought to life. Whether for orchestra or concert band, these editions have become cornerstones of the popular repertoire of premier ensembles across the country, and with Baby Yoda of The Mandalorian capturing the hearts of a whole new generation of Star Wars fans, that looks to be true for years to come.

**Star Wars (Suite for Orchestra) – Deluxe Score**

**Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Suite for Orchestra) – Deluxe Score**

Pathway to Success: How to Give Every Student an Opportunity for Leadership & Create a Culture of Excellence

Published October 30, 2020 Band , General , Methods , orchestra , Teacher Resources Leave a Comment
Tags: classroom resources, education resources, leadership, leadership development, leadership skills, music education, music educator, music educators, music student, music students, music teacher, teaching music, teaching resources

Understanding that teaching band is as much about teaching students to work together as it is about teaching them to learn musical skills individually, the team behind the much-loved Habits series, which includes such titles as Habits of a Successful Band Director, takes on the broader subject of leadership in Pathway to Success, which helps develop leadership skills in every student in a class and includes a focus on emotional health that has been especially helpful for teachers during COVID.

Authors Scott Rush and Tim Lautzenheiser also host a free Zoom community on Sunday evenings to support teachers implementing the Pathway to Success method in their classrooms. Read more and register below!

“To borrow a phrase: All children have talents, however, not all children have opportunity and encouragement. Pathway to Success by Tim Lautzenheiser and Scott Rush describes in detail the ‘how’ and provides that encouragement young people need to overcome any reservations and reluctance they may have to step forward and become a leader! History is full of examples of shy and timid youngsters who responded to a challenge and rose to greatness as a leader. This book is invaluable for any age! Leadership by example. Pathway to Success. I wish it was available when I was a student. Tim and Scott nailed it!”
– Richard Crain, President of The Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic

Continue reading ‘Pathway to Success: How to Give Every Student an Opportunity for Leadership & Create a Culture of Excellence’

Revisiting Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor

Published February 28, 2020 choral , classical , General , New Releases , orchestra , Organ , Repertoire , Sacred Music Leave a Comment
Tags: Baerenreiter, Baerenreiter Verlag, C Minor, C Minor Mass, choral, choral music, choral sheet music, classical, Classical music, classical period, Classical sheet music, Constanze Mozart, Great Mass in C Minor, International Mozarteum Foundation, Mozart, Mozart sheet music, Mozart's C Minor Mass, Mozarteum Foundation, music, orchestra, sheet music, Sheet Music Plus, Urtext, Urtext edition, Urtext Editions, Urtext sheet music, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Mass in C minor (K. 427) stands alongside the Requiem (K. 626) as his most remarkable church composition. Today it enjoys almost cult status, first because of its monumentality, which is unique in Mozart’s sacred vocal music, and second because, like the Requiem, it partakes of the aura of the unfinished and mysterious. The exact circumstances that gave rise to it as a votive mass have eluded explanation to the present day. The same applies to the reasons why it was left unfinished and to many details of its first performance, which, as far as we know, took place at St. Peter’s Church, Salzburg, on October 26, 1783. Finally, the transmission of the original sources also raises many questions. Indeed, it is astonishing that the Mass, although left as a torso, was performed at all during Mozart’s final visit to Salzburg. Continue reading ‘Revisiting Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor’

Beethoven’s Ninth: How Reading What Beethoven Wrote Changed Everything

Published November 22, 2019 classical , General , orchestra , Repertoire Leave a Comment
Tags: Baerenreiter, Baerenreiter Verlag, Beethoven, Beethoven music, Beethoven sheet music, Beethoven's Ninth, classical Urtext Editions, Jonathan Del Mar, Ludwig van Beethoven, music, Sir Simon Rattle, Urtext, Urtext edition, Urtext Editions, Urtext sheet music

Jonathan Del Mar

For a conductor music starts with Beethoven. And for the son of a conductor both can start very early, as they did for Jonathan Del Mar, Beethoven scholar and editor of the new edition of Beethoven’s nine symphonies for Bärenreiter.

In 1949 Del Mar’s father, conductor Norman Del Mar, purchased a copy of the 1924 facsimile of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, which he studied with Jonathan when he was still a child. The younger Del Mar, whose career also began as a conductor, remarks, “Had it not been for our possession of this endlessly fascinating document, it must remain doubtful whether my interest in Beethoven’s handwriting, and my work on his autographs, would ever have begun.”

Jonathan Del Mar’s edition of the nine symphonies for Bärenreiter, completed in 2000, has become the preferred edition for many renowned conductors worldwide.

“We all are amongst those of gratitude to Jonathan Del Mar who simply did the work to give us the first, really true edition of what this music was.”

— Sir Simon Rattle

BarenreiterBeethoven9 The most monumental symphony of them all, the Ninth, was the first of the new edition to be published, and it was in preparing this edition of this very special symphony that Del Mar made one of his most thrilling discoveries. Continue reading ‘Beethoven’s Ninth: How Reading What Beethoven Wrote Changed Everything’

Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9: A National Culture for the New World

Published September 20, 2019 General , New Releases , orchestra , Repertoire Leave a Comment
Tags: Baerenreiter, Baerenreiter Verlag, Burleigh, Dvorak, folk music, music, nationalism, New World Symphony, New York Philharmonic, Romantic Era, spirituals

Antonín Dvořák

Even in a cultural era ripe with nationalism, Antonín Dvořák was one of the most nationalistic. Slavic folk music, especially from his native Bohemia, permeates his entire oeuvre. He develops these simplistic folk elements into sophisticated symphonies, operas and concertos through Romantic compositional techniques, while retaining a certain innocence that makes his music approachable and beloved by musicians and audiences alike.

For Dvořák incorporating Slavic folk elements into his music wasn’t so much a political gesture as it was a matter of musical philosophy. Having grown up in the Bohemian countryside playing folk tunes in his father’s tavern, he intuited an intimate relationship between music and the place it came from, and he believed that all peoples of the world should develop their own music stemming from their homegrown culture. Continue reading ‘Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9: A National Culture for the New World’

Take Note

Archive for the 'orchestra' Category

Percussion Preservation: Basic Care & Maintenance

Showcase Your Strings: 13 great pieces for recruitment and demonstration concerts

Guests & Soloists

Section features

Pop & Movie Hits

Last-Minute Favorites

Easy Advocacy: Proactive Steps to Promote Your School Music Program

Delegate tasks that don’t require your expertise

Invite everybody to take a look under the hood

Plant your kids in the community

Start now

John Williams: 90 Years – And Counting

Pathway to Success: How to Give Every Student an Opportunity for Leadership & Create a Culture of Excellence

Revisiting Mozart’s Great Mass in C minor

Beethoven’s Ninth: How Reading What Beethoven Wrote Changed Everything

Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9: A National Culture for the New World

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Delegate tasks that don’t require your expertise

Invite everybody to take a look under the hood

Plant your kids in the community

Start now

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