As the Pattonville School District has moved to online learning due to the pandemic, students in music classes still have to find time in their day to practice, without in-person help from their teachers.
Talisa Prabhu, 9th grader in the String Orchestra, is currently practicing old pieces and working on techniques like vibrato to keep up with her skills. “It’s important to continue practicing even though we are not in school because it will help us be better musicians and players when we come back. These are skills that we can use later in life, so we must always continue to polish them or they will be lost,” she stated.
Talisa is also encouraging her section to continue practicing. “I haven’t tried to play together with our sections online because I feel like that would be difficult to do. However, I have been encouraging other members of the cello section to continue practicing by themselves through social media.”
Kenedi Jenkins, 9th grader in Symphonic Orchestra, agrees with Talisa on practicing outside of school. “The more you practice, the better you get, and you have a chance to prove to people that you are the best that you can be. It is also good to remember to practice ‘quality over quantity’,” Kenedi voiced.
Recently, Kenedi has been practicing in the Blue Duke Book, a cello book full of techniques, as well as working on three octave scales with her private teacher through Zoom.
Kenedi states, “To have lessons through the screen is difficult because as a cello player it is hard to really hear the certain techniques being used to play.”
“There have been many challenges with music as far as online because sometimes of the connections where I am at and the sound of the apps that are used such as Google Meet and Zoom are sometimes not working well,” Kenedi voiced.
While there have been some challenges, Kenedi does think there are some positives to lessons online. “I think there are positives for online because at the same time you are learning in a place that is more comfortable for you and are able to concentrate without the distraction of others.”