4Real Forums: tell me I should....

Oh, Dearest Mother, Sweetest Virgin of Altagracia, our Patroness. You are our Advocate and to you we recommend our needs. You are our Teacher and like disciples we come to learn from the example of your holy life. You are our Mother, and like children, we come to offer you all of the love of our hearts. Receive, dearest Mother, our offerings and listen attentively to our supplications. Amen.

Active Topics || Favorites || Member List || Search || About Us || Help || Register || Login

The Arts in the Everyday
4Real Forums : The Arts in the Everyday

Topic: tell me I should....

Author

Message

<< Prev Topic | Next Topic >>

missionfamily
Forum All-Star

Joined: April 10 2007
Location: Louisiana
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1859

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 8:49am \| IP Logged

i really want to bring more music learning into our home, in a way we can all learn together since there are no experts here. We do our composer studies, but i mean real music playing type things...i could sign Quinn up for lessons of some sort, but I'm really looking to expose us all to something we can learn together and enjoy....so....I guess recorder is the answer, only I always stop just start of ordering what we need to get started because 1. I don't know what we need to get started and 2. I have a fear of looking silly that this posthas made me decide to get over and 3. because, I'm

to admit, it feels a little hoakey to me, this whole family recorder playing thing...can't we all just miraculously learn to play beautiful music on the piano and violin and spend our evenings listening to one another, do we really have to sit around the kitchen table blowing into plastic reocrders hitting out of tune notes, something about it makes me go

...tell me I should get over it and jumo on in....and tell me where to begin. Some Waldorf resource suggestions would be appreciated...or ideas for another way to begin besides recorder (under my breath, "please, please, please

)

__________________
Colleen
dh Greg
mom to Quinn,Gabriel, Brendan,Evan, Kolbe, and sweet St. Bryce

Footprints on the Fridge

SusanJ
Forum All-Star

Joined: May 25 2007
Location: New Jersey
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1347

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 10:37am \| IP Logged

I'm not sure this will be helpful, but I personally think recorders are annoying and frustrating. I was a flute player, so you'd think I'd be all about recorders, but, I don't know . . . They are inexpensive, simple, and durable, so I guess it's a good choice for kids. You could get wooden recorders. I doubt they cost too much more and then at least you wouldn't be blowing in to plastic!

I guess you don't have a piano? That would certainly be an expensive way to go . . .

I'm no help! I just want to affirm your recorder reluctance. I'll think about this more and maybe someone else will come up with a solution for you!

Susan

__________________
Mom to Joseph-8, Margaret-6, William-4, Gregory-2, and new little one due 11/1
Life Together
[URL=http://thejohnstonkids.blogspot.com]The Kids' Blog[/UR

Fe2h2o
Forum Pro

Joined: Sept 09 2005
Location: Australia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 150

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 12:15pm \| IP Logged

I got re-inspired about the recorder (not that I've _done_ anything... but I'm now reassured we'll start with it) after seeing a late night performance on TV a couple of years ago. It was a small ensemble, with a 'star' recorder performer. It was _incredible_!

Elizabeth
Founder
Founder

Real Learning

Joined: Jan 20 2005
Location: Virginia
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 5595

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 1:17pm \| IP Logged

Gosh, I'm all ears here because I'd love to find an alternative. We have our recorders--it's not going well. Perhaps an instrument that requires breath control is not the best choice for an asthmatic family?
We do have a piano. I'm trying desperately and, so far, unsuccessfully, to find an affordable piano teacher who will come to my house.

One note: if you opt to buy wooden recorders do not buy those adorable ones at Magic Cabin. They will chip within two days and you will wonder if unceasingly about lead paint in the Phillipines where they were made. But you will not return them because your dear children will be so very attached to their darlingness.

__________________
Elizabeth Foss is no longer a member of this forum. Discussions now reflect the current management & are not necessarily expressions of her book, *Real Learning*, her current work, or her philosophy. (posted by E. Foss, Jan 2011)

stefoodie
Forum Moderator

Joined: Feb 17 2005
Location: Ohio
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 8457

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 1:27pm \| IP Logged

We tried the family recorder thing a few years ago. Got 5 recorders because dd already had hers and knew how to play it and play it well. We did a couple of lessons (she was the teacher) but it didn't take.

We do have piano and violin and guitars and those get played often enough, but the recorders are here gathering dust. Sometimes they use them as swords.

I'm looking for suggestions too. Thanks for this post!

__________________
stef

mom to five

Maryan
Forum All-Star

Joined: Jan 02 2007
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 3145

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 1:48pm \| IP Logged

We were planning on doing piano lessons (A friend of mine is having her kids take lessons from a high school pianist. The lessons are inexpensive -- something like $5 to $10 a week for each child.).. but I was too overwhelmed at the commitment for one child since I am 7 mos. pregnant, etc.

I think I may advertise to see if there are any high school homeschooled students who are willing to travel to my house for lessons. Or students at my dh's school, but then it would be after school hours -- which would be fine too).

__________________
Maryan
Mom to 6 boys & 1 girl: JP('01), B ('03), M('05), L('06), Ph ('08), M ('10), James born 5/1/12
A Lee in the Woudes

Alice C
Forum Pro

Joined: Dec 15 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 59

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 2:14pm \| IP Logged

I'm kinda' with you, Colleen, on the whole recorder thing. So, a few years back, we got everyone an Irish Tin Whistle along with a book or two. They are super easy to play and the sound can be quite enchanting. There are several different makers of tin whistles out there, (Waltons seems to be the most popular brand) I think we ordered ours from Ireland. (At the time they were a bit harder to find, Amazon certainly did not have them then.

)

__________________
~ Alice C

a number of things
gardens of grace

Donna Marie
Forum All-Star

Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: New Jersey
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2530

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 3:06pm \| IP Logged

Elizabeth wrote:

I know that a friend of mine got her piano teacher to split the hour between 2 children(reducing the cost as there were 6 of them) and agree to come to her house because they bartered with each other...childcare...meal/dessert making...etc Have you tried craftiness?

or asking at your parish?

God love you,
Donna Marie from NJ
hs momma to 7dc

__________________
God love you!
Donna Marie from NJ
hs momma to 9dc!!
Finding Elegant Simplicity

hsmom
Forum Pro

Joined: Aug 24 2007
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 253

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 3:07pm \| IP Logged

Until we were ready to make the plunge into the whole lessons thing, we played mountain ocarinas together. You can check it out at the website. If you decide to try be sure and ask is there is any homeschool discount. He comes to homeschooling shows, or at least he use to. It was fairly simple to learn the basics and sounded pretty good too. You should be able to hear it on the website.

http://www.mountainocarinas.com/index.htm

Good luck,
Valerie

mavmama
Forum All-Star

Joined: Nov 01 2006
Location: N/A
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 618

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 4:52pm \| IP Logged

[QUOTE=Maryan]

I think I may advertise to see if there are any high school homeschooled students who are willing to travel to my house for lessons. QUOTE]

This is what we are doing, with a homeschool graduate who is attending comm. college here. On Thursdays, she comes to our house when I take the youngest to speech therapy. We pay $20 for 2 half hour lessons, then a babysitting fee for the other 2 hours. It's working well, so far.

__________________
Liz
Blessed by 4 wonders
dd11, dd911, ds9, ds8

lapazfarm
Forum All-Star

Joined: July 21 2005
Location: Alaska
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 6082

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 7:07pm \| IP Logged

Those ocarinas look neat! Are they easy for a non-musician to play?
I have a set of Montessori bells for my 6yo dd, but we have just barely started with them, so not sure yet how it will go. She does enjoy them and they are ultra simple to play!

__________________
Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning

chicken lady
Forum All-Star

Joined: Feb 27 2005
Location: N/A
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2315

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 7:58pm \| IP Logged

Oh I love the recorder, give it a try, research recoreder music.....think Von Trapp Family. Listen to soem Baroque and Renaisance music, you may just change your tune

Pun intended

chicken lady
Forum All-Star

Joined: Feb 27 2005
Location: N/A
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2315

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 8:02pm \| IP Logged

lapazfarm wrote:

Those ocarinas look neat! Are they easy for a non-musician to play?
!

Yes, and they are from them same time period as recorders. Same idea easy to pack and take on picnics or nature hikes.

AS for pianos being expensive, check out your local Freecycle, I see them listed often. Also auctions have them, they rarely sell as folks don't want to move them. I see them going for 1.00! All you need is a piano dolly and a truck. VIOLA you have a piano!

Jane Ramsey
Forum All-Star

Joined: Jan 05 2007
Location: Florida
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 652

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 9:41pm \| IP Logged

Colleen,
Check out this post from Higher Up and Further In:
Learn to Play the Piano on a Shoestring
She talks not only about piano but the recorder too, with some suggestions on how to get started.

missionfamily
Forum All-Star

Joined: April 10 2007
Location: Louisiana
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1859

Posted: Sept 14 2007 at 11:31pm \| IP Logged

Hey Jane, thanks for that post. My thoughts had settled on the notion of a full-sized keyboard just before I read this. Anyone else had children who had success moving from this to a regular piano?

__________________
Colleen
dh Greg
mom to Quinn,Gabriel, Brendan,Evan, Kolbe, and sweet St. Bryce

Footprints on the Fridge

CrunchyMom
Forum Moderator

Joined: Sept 03 2007
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 6385

Posted: Sept 15 2007 at 6:45am \| IP Logged

The children I taught piano who practiced on a keyboard had a hard time at lessons making the keys "work." The keyboard is okay if that's what you can do, but even with the nice weighted keyboards, you can't push the key and not make a sound. It just feels different. The difficulty was in the child showing me that they could play the piece, rythms, etc... because they weren't able to recreate what they had practiced at home.

Rachel May
Forum All-Star

Joined: June 24 2005
Location: Kansas
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2057

Posted: Sept 15 2007 at 1:14pm \| IP Logged

I was looking back at this thread today and realized that my tune has changed about the recorder. Since Anthony started playing this summer (taught by a boy whose dad directs the choir), he has played at mass once and will again tomorrow. The boy who teaches him, Robert, impressed me with his solo of "O Sanctissima" for the Assumption a year ago. Now that's a tune that is lovely on the recorder.

Anthony has learned most of the notes in only 3 months and can play a melody line reasonably well. So with only ONE recorder player, you could work on VOICE as the family instrument.

Today I found this book The Trapp Family Singers' New Complete Method of Instruction for Recorder.....I put it on my wish list because the review.

Two other recorder thoughts....a wood recorder only costs about $20 (plastic was $3.95), but it needs more care. We were advised to wait until Anthony is more mature to get a wood recorder. Also, an alto recorder has a lower, more mellow sound (this is what Robert plays mostly), but we started on a regular (soprano?) recorder because the alto has a wider spacing so you need larger hands to play it.

We do have a piano, and I think we are going to try to do more voice training this year using 36 Traditional Roman Catholic Hymns for Voice and Piano by Alan Jemison with CD. The piano part is one note per hand which is just right for me. This version of the book came with a CD of a woman singing the hymns, however she is a bit "trained"

for my kids to copy well. Maria tries to sing everything like an opera singer.

Also, the title is misleading. Most of the hymns are included in both Latin and English, each counting as a seperate hymn, and for Tantum Ergo there are 2 versions of the music so it counts as 4 of the hymns! It gets me onto the piano though.....

__________________
Rachel
Thomas and Anthony (10), Maria (8), Charles (6), Cecilia (5), James (3), and Joseph (1)

Theresa
Forum All-Star

Joined: Dec 27 2006
Location: Minnesota
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1042

Posted: Sept 15 2007 at 1:24pm \| IP Logged

Here is someone playing Bach on recorder

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6IFpKZlVhw

__________________
Theresa

cvbmom
Forum All-Star

Joined: Feb 15 2005
Location: Ohio
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 930

Posted: Sept 15 2007 at 1:30pm \| IP Logged

My dd (8) and ds (7) have taught themselves piano, with minimal help from me using http://www.pianimals.com/
I'm very satisfied with it

Hope that helps,
Christine

SusanJ
Forum All-Star

Joined: May 25 2007
Location: New Jersey
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1347

Posted: Sept 15 2007 at 7:38pm \| IP Logged

Rachel May wrote:

We do have a piano, and I think we are going to try to do more voice training this year using 36 Traditional Roman Catholic Hymns for Voice and Piano by Alan Jemison with CD. The piano part is one note per hand which is just right for me.

I'm glad there are lots of other ideas out there! I wanted to encourage this one-handed piano playing. If you have a piano but are afraid to learn to play--try out hymns with one hand and get your kids singing, at least. One handed playing is VERY easy to learn. It can be hard to learn two hands, especially as an adult, but to get your family singing, you just need a reliable pitch to help them along.

I'll have to give recorder another chance once my kids are old enough.

Susan

__________________
Mom to Joseph-8, Margaret-6, William-4, Gregory-2, and new little one due 11/1
Life Together
[URL=http://thejohnstonkids.blogspot.com]The Kids' Blog[/UR

If you wish to post a reply to this topic you must first login
If you are not already registered you must first register

[Add this topic to My Favorites]

Printable version

Forum Jump

You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot create polls in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum

Hosting and Support provided by theNetSmith.com