High School Percussion Instrument Review Paper

Throughout the reading this week, the information presented in David Elliott and Bennett Reimer’s texts stressed the importance of music and more specifically, music education. “People everywhere find music rewarding, and everywhere we find people engaged in formal and non-formal efforts to teach and learn music.” (Elliott, 2014, p. 4)

Perhaps the most tangible benefit of music education for students is the increase in their performance in the classroom. People often say, “Music makes you smarter,” but where is the evidence? As South Dakota State University’s Professor Kevin Kessler eloquently stated via email, “How were you

The sacbut is similar to a trombone because it has a slide that can be pushed or pulled, but the instrument itself imitates the sound of a cornett. The Sacbut player was normally a very talented musician and was normally placed on rapid coloraturas, having to jump ranges of 4 octaves.

I can say I’m a multi-instrumentalist. I can play the harmonica, the trombone, the ukulele, the bass, the piano, the electric and acoustic guitar, and I’m probably forgetting one. But really I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for her” (Montes). “One of the big things I teach my kids is how through hard work, you can accomplish anything. Whenever a kid shows up to a lesson, I always ask them if they practiced, and sometimes they say no because they don’t have a piano at home. It reminds me of the days when I couldn’t even afford a piano, but I push those thoughts away and work towards helping these kids fulfill their dreams as I’ve fulfilled mine. Music teaches the kids how to work through a tough song, and through time and practice, they always get it at the end” (LaBeau). Ronnie’s School of Music has performed annually for several of the city’s prominent events: the Arroyo Lighting at Christmas, Saint Anthony’s Fall Festival, Winter Texan festivals, and many more. LaBeau teaches students of all ages, from three to ninety seven. The majority of her students, however, come from Saint Anthony Catholic

When I came to Highlands Ranch High School as a freshman, I didn’t know where I belonged. I had done soccer, but a concussion and several headaches later, decided it wasn’t for me. I had tried fully devoting myself to academics, but later realized that I can’t spend my life focusing on grades. I didn’t have anywhere to belong. Then, in the winter of my freshman year, I was persuaded into doing winter percussion. I had never played an instrument before and had absolutely no idea what was going on. I didn’t even really know what a quarter note was, no less how to count them. My freshman self was totally clueless and wanted to quit at first because I was so bad and had absolutely no idea what I was doing. But, I stuck with it to the end of the winter percussion season and when we took second place in the state suddenly all the long hours of rehearsal and constant changes were totally worth it.

Simon Tong’s short story, ‘’The Beat of a Different Drum’’ explores the journey of a young boy immigrating from Hong Kong to Australia with a lack of knowledge of the Australian culture and tradition. Through the ambiguous understanding of his unwelcoming classmates, he is victimized to the extent that he feels both violated and humiliated, emphasised by the fact that he is unable to express his feelings in English. These feelings result in him becoming increasingly insecure and irritated as he has become confused and alienated. The rich vocabulary and literary techniques enabled Simon’s short story to become more relatable to the audience by exploring the common adolescent crisis of ‘’Being Different’’.

On October 7th, I got a chance to observe Chris Watson’s middle school ensemble. This ensemble was made up of five percussion players and a trumpet player. This was his first year with this school. The year previous that class was basically a percussion class. He was telling me that he had to change a lot in this first year. It was great opportunity to observe this school because it was an experience I will not forget.

Usually when people think of sports they usually think of Football, Baseball, Basketball, any sport that is widely broadcasted on television and sponsored around states and cities, and even countries; however, those are mainly the most popular sports. People interpret the word “sport” as a term that requires an abundance of endurance and energy, using physical and mental skills to further better themselves at said sport. There is a lot of controversy over whether high school marching band and drum corps is a sport, most people claiming that it doesn’t because it’s “elegant” and “more of a performance” still, aren’t all sports a performance? Coaches in most sports ask for the best and make a person work for their spot,

Across the United States many elementary school music classrooms are filled with simple and popular tunes such as Hot Cross Buns and The Ode to Joy, played on the recorder, while high school students may be playing collegiate or professional pieces of music such as Armenian Dances and Carmen Suites. I have been very fortunate to have gone on the journey of progressing through different music education programs within Fairfax County Public Schools. If I was never exposed to music while in elementary school I might not have ever found one of my greatest passions or been able to create such fond and unforgettable memories. While music education programs across the country appear large and strong, many schools are beginning to experience budget reductions. As a result, music is often the very first component of a school 's curriculum or programs to be cut or significantly reduced, but I believe this is not the right course of action. It is important to preserve and promote music education in public schools because of the proven cognitive, character,and academic benefits for students.

The modern day drum set has various parts to it. You have the drums, which include the: bass drum, snare drum, rack tom or toms, and floor tom or toms. Then you have the cymbals. There are eight different types of cymbals that can go into a drum set. They are the hi-hats, the ride cymbal, the crash cymbal, the crash-ride cymbal, the china cymbal, the splash cymbal, the effects cymbal, and the bell. Each of these cymbals give off many different sounds. The most important part of your drum set is your cymbals because they are the voice. The drums only make one sound when you hit them. Each cymbal can produce countless sounds. The most important of these cymbals are the hi-hats. They are an essential part to any modern day genre of music. The

“O.M.G, I love that beat.” The few years I have spent in the United States of Americas, more generally in the western culture, it is very common to hear young people embrace such phrases in appreciating music. In non-western culture, music is always created for very specific purposes and one cannot just ‘love that beat.’ Music is more than just the beat, rhythm and a sing-along melody. In this paper, I will compare the traditional purpose of music and the culture of the drum in Native American and Ugandan tribes. Dr. Peck, in her book, Native American Music, defines culture as “way of life of a people, learned and transmitted from one generation to the next” The similarities in either

Job Overview: A percussionist assists a surgeon by operating a heart-lung machine during surgery. The machinery is very sophisticated so a very good understanding of the equipment is required. This job is very important as it keeps the patient alive during surgery since a surgeon cannot operate on a beating heart or expanding and contracting lung. Most of the Perfusionist's job is spent in the operating room. They may also be found in the cardiovascular intensive care unit.

The evolution of drumming is quite an interesting story. Many occurrences have contributed to the changes the kit style of drumming. Traveling through time the drum has become a major part of any modern day band. Beginning with double drumming, into the invention of the double bass drumming, and ending with the invention of the modern drumstick.

Is drumming really difficult to me? In my opinion, drumming can be difficult at some times, and understanding the concept of drumming wasn’t easy at the start. When I first started trying to play the drums, I didn’t understand how to do it. I had no idea that drumming even had different styles and beats. It took me quite awhile to fully comprehend how complex it really is. Drumming is not easy at first, can be very complex, and requires a lot of practice.

     As a kid I always wanted to play the drums. When I was three years old my godmother gave me my first drum. It was a blue plastic remo drum that I love and I still have. It has white stripes that go vertically and it has two black remo pin strip drum heads. Drumheads are the surface, which you strike with a drumstick to produce a sound. The drum came with a pair of cheap plastic remo brand drumsticks. That I hardly use became if I do, I would probably break the drumsticks.