Novice

Level One

Level Two

Students who have an interest in learning percussion in which they will learn basic rhythm theory, which includes learning how create simple rhythms and playing them on various percussion instruments and playing rhythms from various cultures. Students will learn percussion playing techniques on various instruments.

By the end of the two-terms workshops students should know how to

• Imitate simple rhythmic phrases
• Create a rhythmic phrase two-four measures long
• Improvise a rhythmic phrase two-four measures long
• Play rhythms efficiently on 2-3 percussion instruments
• Learn how to play 2-3 rhythms from style of music from a given culture
• Perform at the end-of-year culminating event

Students who have successfully completed the novice workshop and/or who have passed the assessment test can participate in the level one workshop. Students will build on the knowledge they gained from the novice workshops, in addition, they will learn how to read rhythms that includes learning how to identify rhythm notes and other musical symbols . Students will learn how to calculate the value of rhythm notes within various time signatures in which the quarter note is equal one beat. Students will begin learning rudimentary sticking techniques.

By the end of the two-terms workshops students should know how to

• Imitate advanced rhythmic phrases
• Create a advanced rhythmic phrases two- four measures long
• Improvise advanced rhythmic phrases two-four measures long
• Play rhythms efficiently on 3-5 percussion instruments
• Learn how to play 2-3 rhythms from style of music from a given culture
• Identify rhythmic notes and rests (whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth)
• Create rhythmic phrases using a combination of the learned notes and rests
• Play 8-16 measures of music while reading.
• Play 7-10 rudiments (sticking patterns)
• Perform at the end-of-year culminating event

Students who have successfully completed the level one workshop and/or who have passed the assessment test can participate in the level two workshop. Students will build on the knowledge they gained from the level one workshops, in addition, they will work with core members of the performance ensemble to learn songs from Speaking in Rhythms repertoire. Students will be given opportunities to perform at various event.