Practicing with Grade III

Because it is nearly our yearly concert, the Grade IV's are practicing with the Grade III's on Wednesday nights. I can say two things about this:

1) I'm glad I have gotten to know Jason during group lessons.

2) I'm glad the Grade IV are comfortingly there.

Last Wednesday we went over some tunes that the whole band will play, and I did pretty well, except for my reed being at death's door and causing strike-in and wavering and tuning problems. Nothing horrible.

Then the bands split and we Grade IV's went over the things we are going to do alone. At this point I seemed to fall apart and did horribly. Sean was sick and wasn't playing. We went over our medley. I have this to say about that:

1) I wasn't the only one messing up on the breaks and some other things that we had played with Blue Ribbon quality this summer!

2) Sean was unbelievably patient. Dennis or Jason would have been screaming. OK, yelling. We hardly deserved the patience.

In response, I obtained a new reed on Thursday at group lesson which is a little harder to play but sounds nicer and strikes in much better. I also practiced on Thursday, Friday, Sunday and Monday. Saturday I . . . um . . . procrastinated.

The funny thing about practicing is that I don't sound, to myself, that I am improving from practice to practice, or from day to day. Somehow, however, when I get to Band Practice (in capital letters), I remember better how the tunes go. I expect to have little building-block improvements or something, and instead I get reinforced memory.

Weird.