I’m having a great time jamming along with James Hill with this newly released Ukulele Jazz compilation. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to take their playing to the next level!
Ukulele Jazz
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Author Archives: LeBlancPapillon
New beginner ukulele sessions starting in January!
We’re offering new sessions in January for beginner ukulele students at Castor Valley ES and also a new 8 week Introductory course at Elmdale Public School. Please visit the OCDSB’s Extra-Curricular Creative Arts program page for more details and registration.
Suzukulele Update
Our last Ukulele group class before the holiday break at SuzukiMusic was last Saturday and I’m so glad to have a few weeks to prepare more material for these kids. They have been consuming everything I bring in at a considerable rate! (So, I finally just invested in the teacher edition of Sibelius 7 )
It’s certainly a lot of fun teaching these guys. Tuning is a quick process each week as many of them, having been Suzuki students for many years already, have developed a very fine ear for pitch. The range of age is quite wide, at 10 to 17 but their learning levels are fairly even. As I suspected, singing seems to be the biggest challenge so far. Not their ability to sing but their willingness to be heard is more the issue. We’ll just have to keep at it… Anyway, I’m looking forward to continuing with this pilot project in the new year.
I’ve put up a few links to the arrangements I’ve made on Sibelius so far on a new page of the blog so check them out. Feel free to use and share these pieces!
My students and I have been very busy at Castor Valley this fall, preparing some pieces for our first “Open House” of the year, Monday, December 9th at 8am. The group is smaller this year and a combination of Level 1 and 2 students but they’re very enthusiastic learners. I hope many of their friends will be able to come in early and hear them play. We’re currently looking at possibly opening up a new session for beginner ukulele students after the holidays, so stay tuned for that…
Suzukulele – Ukulele for Suzuki students
Well, another year done! After last night’s portfolio wrap-up webinar session with James Hill and my fellow Level 2 teachers, I have now completed my second year of studying/teaching with JHUI. No stopping now…on to Level 3 at the end of July in Vancouver, for me. I’ve also completed my first full year of teaching the ukulele program at the OCDSB and am really looking forward to continuing with my students and hopefully many new ones in September. But for right now, my summer project is developing the “Suzukulele” senior program for this coming fall at SuzukiMusic.
After successfully bringing in the ukulele to the younger student musicians at SuzukiMusic’s summer camp last year, the idea for offering ukulele as a fun, team-building, skill-building option for senior Suzuki students has been brewing away in my head ever since. As a one week summer camp enrichment class with the younger students, we mostly focus on singing fun camp songs and strumming together, while making parallels between their main instrument (either violin, viola, flute, guitar or cello) and the ukulele. We can find many things in common with each of these: number of strings, size, clef, shape, materials, etc… and the children realize that being a musician is not limited to the instrument you play. You can use and build your existing musical skills into many different styles and purposes. Suzuki students already have a great natural ear and are used to the group environment so ukulele class is a really fun exploration for them. I’m really looking forward to summer camp again this year.
When it comes to introducing the ukulele to the senior students this fall, building camaraderie between instrument groups and challenging their musicianship skills will be the main focus. We’ll be working on ensemble playing in parts, classical, jazz and folk styles and singing too. Shinichi Suzuki said: “It is necessary to be concerned about the importance of educating a really beautiful human spirit” What better way than to bring teen spirit together in song? Oh yes, there will be singing.
Play Ukulele! – Grades 4-6, 6-8 Castor Valley Elementary School – Fall 2013
Click the link to register for next year’s ukulele program at CVES!
We hope to see many family and friends!
James Hill in concert at La Grange in Gatineau
James Hill and his partner, Anne Davison, will be in Gatineau on Saturday, October 27, 8pm to give a CONCERT at La Grange de la Gatineau (80 Chemin Summer, Gatineau).
He’ll also be giving a public UKULELE WORKSHOP at 4pm at La Grange on that day.
Details and reservations at: http://www.grange.ca/events/concerts-3/
See you there!
Using SoundCloud
So this summer, while at the JHUI level 2 course in Vancouver, one of our fellow classmates, Mark Jackson, introduced the group to SoundCloud. We were just about to sight read a piece together and Mark pulled out his iPhone and started recording us. (that’s his voice in the first few seconds before the music begins) The track was instantly uploaded and out there in the world.
Ever since then, I’ve been thinking I’d like to use this fun technology for teaching and so here is my first attempt.
My ukulele students have now started to learn this piece so I’ve shared this with them to listen to and hopefully help them with their practice. Maybe someday they’ll put their own sounds out there for the world to hear.
Play Ukulele! at Castor Valley ES
Registrations will be accepted starting tomorrow, September 4th until the 19th, for my Play Ukulele! course at Castor Valley ES this coming school year.
LeBlanc Papillon 