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At Lovett Elementary School, students are able to choose any of the traditional band instruments to play in band. Finding the instrument that the student will enjoy and be successful at is critical to their success on the band instrument. Students need to want to play the instrument but also have the aptitude to continue enjoying it. This is why we take time to test students on the instruments and give a recommendation, but the decision is ultimately up to the student and their family. If you are having trouble deciding on which instrument would be best for your student, take some time to check out the demonstration videos and contact Mr. Wunderlich to set up some instruments for your student to try out.
Instrument Demonstrations and Considerations
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Consider: The player's lip shape plays a major role in the success of the student. Flute is played by focusing air through the center of your lips. If lips are shaped to block air flow in the center, then making a sound will be much more difficult.
Clarinet
Consider: Students will need to make sure they have at least 5 reeds at a time. Reeds are delicate and break easy. It is important that a student does not run out of reeds as they will not be able to play their instrument without it. Parents will need to make sure they check in with their students and purchase reeds as needed.
Saxophone
Consider: See the clarinet considerations for reeds, it is the same. Students’ hand size will also be a factor as their hands will have to reach around some keys and sometimes young hands have not grown enough. If it comes to a factor to grow another year, the recommendation is to do clarinet for the year and switch as it is the most similar instrument and students will be able to adjust to the change quickly.
Oboe
Consider: Students will be required to take private lessons. The oboe has a very delicate and complex reed which is the main factor in the sound and a very specific mouth shape to fit the reed. Reeds can be purchased from a store but always need to be adjusted to fit the person playing them. That is a very specific skill that is really only taught to oboe players and a oboe specialist is the only way to help a student go from sounding like a mosquito/duck to a truly beautiful sound.
BRASS
Cornet/Trumpet
Consider: Lip size plays a big role in the success of the student. Bigger lips generally do better on the bigger instrument. However, it comes down to how they can develop their face muscles. Cornet is played exactly like trumpet but is smaller which is better for younger and smaller musicians. Students will be asked to transfer to trumpet in middle school but they will not lose any skill in the transfer. Students who have trouble playing the higher notes on the cornet may be asked to try out baritone/euphonium to have greater success.
Students who have a good musical ear and want a brass instrument could consider the french horn. It plays both low and high. French horns have valves to change the notes but their lips play a major role in changing their notes as well. French horn players really need to be able to hear the music in their head as they are playing it to help their lips form correctly for the notes. Students wishing to play french horn will be asked to sing to see how well they match pitch as that is a good indicator on their chances of success on french horn.
Trombone
Consider: Very similar to the baritone but students will need to reach their arms really far. Trombones have 7 positions they have to move their slide in order to play all of the notes. Most students this age will not be able to truly reach the 6th and 7th farthest position. More advanced trombones have a trigger that can assist with those slide positions, but they are heavier which could cause other struggles. It is still encouraged that students who want to pursue trombone start on trombone and as they grow they will be able to get the positions needed, it just might not sound too great until they grow.
Euphonium
Consider: Lip size plays a big role in the success of the student. Bigger lips generally do better on the bigger instrument. However, it comes down to how they can develop their face muscles. Baritone is the road to take if your student wants to play the tuba. Students having trouble with the lower notes on the baritone may be asked to try out the cornet for greater success.
Consider: Students learn more than the drums. The focus in 3rd grade is snare and bass drum but students will be required to study mallet instruments like the bells and the xylophone. There are also countless other percussion instruments that students will be required to learn but most of those are mastered easily with a good understanding of rhythm. Students wishing to play percussion will be assessed on their rhythmic abilities to ensure it is a good fit.
