Co-ordination: Talent or time?

[Smythe]

Has anybody out there had success in teaching people who want to play tenor but don't really have co-ords/rhythm? Is it just something you have, or can you learn to play better with time.

What are good exercises that tenors can work on in a group to improve co ordination.

Thanks for any input, I really need to improve our tenor section.

[Mike Cole]

Try using a metronome to see if a student can keep the basic pulse at various speeds ( the andante-moderato range). A sense of meter is usually a natural gift, however, with rudimetary practice it can, in some cases, be instilled. I remember a scene from "Mr. Holland's Opus" where the music teacher stands behind a helmeted bass drummer with no sense of time. He whacks him on the head to the pulse with a mallet. Hey, it worked on me...but my teacher had to use a sledgehammer. :lol:
Beyond the pulse; go to upbeats, sixteenths, triplets, etc.
There is a old book on syncopation that is an outstanding collection of permutations:
Syncopation for the Modern Drummer. Reed, Ted

[Jaymi]

To practice keeping time, I have my students practice tapping the beat to a song thats playing. I then get them to practice tapping in half time and then double time (to the same song.)
Then I ask them to try this exersize with every piece of music they hear for the next week. Its a fun way to learn how to keep a beat.
After that I have them practing the same exersize with a metronome (which is less fun :wink: )
I have never used this with tenor drummers, but it works with my tuba students... :)

[Cliff Davis]

At Kansas City St. Andrew P&D we start the teaching of midsection players by going through basic 2/4 eigth note patterns. A metronome is quite useful here. Big focus on down beat unison/accent and counting. We then progress through a series of syncopation exercises developed by Hugh Cameron 2/4, 4/4, 6/8 and Jig. We also use Tyler Fry's workbook that he hands out at the Winter Storm Workshop.

We find that these tools help guide us through the process. And remember, it's always DOWNBEATS, DOWNBEATS, DOWNBEATS! We then move to flourishing exercises.

Cheers,

Cliff