Untitled Document
     
Advertisement Click to advertise with us!
     

I might have a band to play with after 16 years!!!

I talked to the director of one of the local community bands in my city... I kind of figured I'd talk to him about how to join, then brush up on my technique, then probably join at the first of the year. Nope. He invited me to go ahead and sit in on practice MONDAY and go from there. He basically decides who can be in the band based on interest and dedication assuming you can play and have potential to improve. He said if I can play comparable to others in the band, I can stay. If not, I go away, practice, and come back. Fair enough.

Now, I'm just a little freaked out and nervous as I thought I'd have more time to prepare myself. I will basically have to sight read the music as I will not see it before rehearsal. This is actually the final rehearsal before a concert next weekend, but he said I'd be asked to sit the concert out since I haven't had time to prepare. Again, fair enough.

So I'm spending the next few days working on articulation, long notes, using my tuning app to work on actually playing in tune ;) and I'll play through a few play a-long books I have to work on sight reading up to tempo.

Yikes... it's all so real now! It's exciting and scary all at the same time, i haven't played with a band since the last day of band class in May 1995 LOL!

To those of you in community bands.... are they going to think I'm crazy if I cry? I tend to be very sentimental.....
 
Play what you can and have fun with it - but don't be a distraction.

While the notes are quite important, the rhythm and the RESTS are more so. Miss a note or two and nobody will notice too much. Miss a rest or two and the whole band will notice.

Knowing when to sit there and hold the instrument - when you are in over your head - is very important as well. There are times when large numbers of people blowing is called for, and times when clarity is the goal. Show that you understand this and you should be in good shape.

:geezer2:
 
I was always taught "if in doubt, leave it out!"

Rehearsal went really well. I must say I'm pleasantly surprised at the skill level of many of the players! The music was definitely challenging. More challenging than I thought it would be for a community band. We played several marches that had a lot of fast runs and trills that I haven't played in many years, so I left those out. I made sure I hit the solid notes and refrained from attempting parts I know I am not currently able to play. I'm there to play with the band, not against it.

There was a lot I just wasn't ready for, so I played what I could and silently rested through the parts I could not. I spoke with the director afterwards who assured me that the technical will come back quickly with practice and they definitely want me to keep playing with them.

All in all, it was a blast! I'm so thankful to have found such a lovely group of people to play with! And it feels awesome to have music in my life again :O)

Kris
 
Back
Top Bottom