This year is different than every year before it at BFA. Our school year started 2 weeks later than usual, so everything, including finals, has been pushed back. In years past, students took finals and midterms before Christmas break. This year, they came back to 2 more weeks of class before having finals the week of January 21.
Start: 2 weeks of classes.
Stop: Finals week, Jan. 21-23
Restart: Beginning of 2nd semester classes, Jan. 24
So what did I do with orchestra guitar class, and lessons for the end of the semester? Well, orchestra did a mini chamber music unit; we all played a student composition as a group of 7, and I broke the students into 3 duets. It ended up being a beneficial time that allowed me to challenge the more advanced students and give the less advanced students easier music to work on. We performed the pieces Tuesday January 15. For the remaining 3 days, we did a listening project in the class. We listened to Dvorak’s String Sextet in A several times (about 6 total), and the students wrote their impressions of the mood, color, emotion, and pictures evoked by the music, then they wrote out the form, then created a story using the images and the form. Listen and see what images would come from your imagination!
Guitar class worked on their second half of their final exam: leading a worship set. The first week back was fairly relaxed; we discussed elements and factors in leading a worship set effectively, then they started to plan and practice their own sets. The second week was the performance, and half their final grade (the first half was the Christmas concert before break).
In thinking about leading worship, I have found this blog to be very helpful. If you lead worship, consider checking it out!
During this Start-stop-restart season, I have had many students missing lessons. We barely adjusted back to the school schedule before changing the schedule entirely. It’s difficult to remember a lesson when the routine hasn’t been set. It’s making me more than a little nervous for Music Festival, which is coming up at the end of February!
