Author Archives: byherndon

Audition Etudes

An important part of helping your students grow as musicians is knowing where they currently stand. Holding Class Placement Auditions can help you get a handle on exactly that. By evaluating student’s performance of the same etudes you should be able to group them into those displaying basic, intermediate, and advanced skills. These Audition Etudes focusContinue reading “Audition Etudes”

Rehearsal Schedule

Having a lot of staff members can be great! But, only if you communicate effectively… For every staff member you add you add a little Communication Overhead. Meaning that for every staff member you add you have to pay a little time in communication in order to receive quality work from them. If it isContinue reading “Rehearsal Schedule”

Percussion Ensemble Recommendations

One of the challenges of selecting percussion ensemble repertoire for educational ensembles is handling the different ability levels that are present within an ensemble. Invariably some students are more advanced and become bored with “easy” parts. Conversely, some students are still developing basic skills and can be overwhelmed (and not educationally served) by advanced repertoire.Continue reading “Percussion Ensemble Recommendations”

2018 Recap

I’m very grateful for another active year around byHerndon! Here’s some of what went on: The North Gwinnett Middle School Percussion Ensemble performed Begin Transmission at the Georgia Music Educators Association In-Service Conference. The Milton High School Marching Band premiered The Art of Balance – which is available for purchase through The Music of AlexContinue reading “2018 Recap”