Adult Orchestra Has Plenty of Homework and Sounds Wonderful Together

I am glad you asked for me to post for the adult class. I try to fit so much into this class the first few lessons, that it leaves very little room for details. You all have been sounding so good in rehearsal! I hope you are as pleased as I am about our progress together.
REMEMBER to check tuning first. Don't be to afraid to move pegs if you are a whole or 1/2 step off in pitch. Make sure it is flat if you are not sure and then you won't break a string if you move it up slowly. Also tighten bow only enough to grasp string well. You may rosin each time you practice lightly. Some music stores will help you with tuning or you can meet me at my other classes, my phone is 660-9185. Getting a tuner is helpful while you are learning.

I like you to warm up when you practice on a bowed 1 octave D scale with long bows up the scale starting of D and repeating the high D and going back down the scale. Then you can practice for review of notes songs 33 and 34 with full use of your bow and good tone.

Song 36 is Dreidel using shorter bows and keeping F# and E fingers down while you play open A (when marked with line below music) is just an exercise to keep your left elbow out front and fingers playing on the tips on strings rather than flat.

Play Songs 41 and 42, Jingle Bells (observing rests) and Old Macdonald, both songs with shorter bows using wrist and index finger to quickly catch strings. A lot like playing short-short bows (eighth notes).

Play Mozart Melody song 43 and try to memorize it with long bows. There are rests in it. After you have it memorized you can alternate long bows with two short bows at either the tip of the bow or the frog. So it goes D down long bow, short-short at tip, A up long bow, short-short at frog. B down long bow, short-short at tip, etc. alternating long and two short bows throughout song.

Last song to practice is 86 Ode to Joy. It has long bow quarter notes all on D string, using 4th finger on D (instead of open A string). Cello will play open A. Then in measures 4,8,9,12,16 the bow moves slower for half notes that are two beats long instead of one (quarter notes with holes in them). We are sort of playing this one by ear, but it will help you in the future when we play half notes and eighth notes (short-short bows). As you play it more and more you will find you have memorized it!
Have fun with it! I expect practicing might take you longer this week to get it sounding really good. Anne Nesse