Band Supply List Grades 6 to 8
5 pocket dividers
Homework for first day of band!
Organizing your band binder
Name Tags - Grade 6, 7, or 8
Why not just use an app? Over the last few years I’ve tried apps and some to decent success. Two problems arose. First, not everyone had a phone and second you cannot tune yourself if others are tuning or warming up. The added bonus of the Korg tuners is that they also have a decent metronome built in.
Here is what we use:
1. Korg TM60 Tuner and Metronome
2. Electric bass players - do not need the tuner and mic. You need a foot pedal tuner to plug into like the boss chromatic tuner
Items with an * are required. Others are suggestions.
Flute
Cleaning Rod *
Students looking to upgrade their sound may want to think about an intermediate model flute. Features to look for are a silver plated head joint, open hole or French Style Keys, and a low B gizmo key. Please feel to email with questions. I would be happy to help your family in your pursuit of a new flute.
Clarinet
Vandoren Traditional Clarinet Reeds *
Please email me if you are not sure what strength to get for your child. In Grade 5, generally we use 2’s for the first few months and move up to 2.5’s after the holidays. In Grade 6 we move to 3’s after the holidays. In Grades 7 & 8 we stay on 3’s .
Mouthpiece One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece.
Bass Clarinet
Vandoren Traditional Bass Clarinet Reeds * stregth of 3
Saxophone
La Vaz Alto Sax Reeds (medium soft) *
Alto Sax Neck Strap (padded)
Vandoren V16 Alto Sax Mouthpiece - One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece.
Tenor Sax Reeds *
Bari Sax Reeds * Big honking Bari Sax sound on these reeds. They play great right out of the box and are way more durable than traditional reeds.
Trumpet
Valve Oil *
Bach 5C Mouthpiece or Bach 3C Mouthpiece - One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece. Ultimately, students want to get to a 3C which provides the most flexibility. It really comes down to personal preferance. If interested, contact Mr. Neel and he’ll let you borrow a couple of demo mouthpieces.
French Horn
Rotor Valve Oil *
Mouthpiece - Farkas MCD or MC One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece.
Trombone
Superslick slick kit *
Tuba and Euphonium
Valve Oil *
Mouthpiece Bach 24AW
Mouthpiece Case *
Percussion
Make sure you have a decent mallet instrument to practice on and a practice pad. If your child is getting serious about mallet percussion and wants to play on something a little more serious than the glockenspiels that came with their beginner percussion kit, please contact me and I can point you in the right direction.
Students should have a quality pair of:
Sticks and Mallets
More percussion info in the future. In the meantime check out what’s for sale at the drum center in Portsmouth. They are a great group of folks there who are very knowledgeable and friendly.
- All instruments MUST have a name tag. A good luggage tag works best. A couple of dollars for a decent name tag is worth the investment of being able to locate your instrument.
- 1 inch Black 3 - ring clearview binder any thing larger will not fit in the designated cubbie spaces.
5 pocket dividers
Homework for first day of band!
Organizing your band binder
Name Tags - Grade 6, 7, or 8
- Tuner & Metronome: We use tuners in our classes as a chance to learn more about our instruments intonation tendencies, soundwaves and how they work. There will be a unit of study on intonation as well. It’s really important we are all speaking the same language per se when using tuners so I am asking all students have the same tuners. We will also be using the tuners just to tune our instruments during band whether in person or virtually. During virtual instruction students will also use their metronomes when playing on their end due to the lag over the internet. Metronomes should be used during practice sessions as well.
Why not just use an app? Over the last few years I’ve tried apps and some to decent success. Two problems arose. First, not everyone had a phone and second you cannot tune yourself if others are tuning or warming up. The added bonus of the Korg tuners is that they also have a decent metronome built in.
Here is what we use:
1. Korg TM60 Tuner and Metronome
2. Electric bass players - do not need the tuner and mic. You need a foot pedal tuner to plug into like the boss chromatic tuner
Items with an * are required. Others are suggestions.
Flute
Cleaning Rod *
Students looking to upgrade their sound may want to think about an intermediate model flute. Features to look for are a silver plated head joint, open hole or French Style Keys, and a low B gizmo key. Please feel to email with questions. I would be happy to help your family in your pursuit of a new flute.
Clarinet
Vandoren Traditional Clarinet Reeds *
Please email me if you are not sure what strength to get for your child. In Grade 5, generally we use 2’s for the first few months and move up to 2.5’s after the holidays. In Grade 6 we move to 3’s after the holidays. In Grades 7 & 8 we stay on 3’s .
Mouthpiece One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece.
Bass Clarinet
Vandoren Traditional Bass Clarinet Reeds * stregth of 3
Saxophone
La Vaz Alto Sax Reeds (medium soft) *
Alto Sax Neck Strap (padded)
Vandoren V16 Alto Sax Mouthpiece - One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece.
Tenor Sax Reeds *
Bari Sax Reeds * Big honking Bari Sax sound on these reeds. They play great right out of the box and are way more durable than traditional reeds.
Trumpet
Valve Oil *
Bach 5C Mouthpiece or Bach 3C Mouthpiece - One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece. Ultimately, students want to get to a 3C which provides the most flexibility. It really comes down to personal preferance. If interested, contact Mr. Neel and he’ll let you borrow a couple of demo mouthpieces.
French Horn
Rotor Valve Oil *
Mouthpiece - Farkas MCD or MC One of the best ways to improve the sound and response of your instrument without breaking the bank and purchasing a new instrument is to upgrade your mouthpiece.
Trombone
Superslick slick kit *
Tuba and Euphonium
Valve Oil *
Mouthpiece Bach 24AW
Mouthpiece Case *
Percussion
Make sure you have a decent mallet instrument to practice on and a practice pad. If your child is getting serious about mallet percussion and wants to play on something a little more serious than the glockenspiels that came with their beginner percussion kit, please contact me and I can point you in the right direction.
Students should have a quality pair of:
Sticks and Mallets
More percussion info in the future. In the meantime check out what’s for sale at the drum center in Portsmouth. They are a great group of folks there who are very knowledgeable and friendly.