Welcome Middle School Students!
We hope that you are able to find some information here that will help to get you ready for your time in the Gateway Band! Please use the resources below to practice skills and techniques that will improve your playing and musical abilities.
As always, if you have any questions or need help please feel free to email Mrs. Cornelius at kcornelius@gatewayk12.org or Mr. McMasters at smcmasters@gatewayk12.org.
GMS Welcome letter for new 7th Graders from Mrs. Cornelius
- Private lessons are a great way to improve your playing quickly. The personal attention you receive is sculpted specifically for you and moves at a pace that is comfrtable for you. Many students improve their playing in only a few short lessons. Whether you take weekly lessons or study sporadically over the summer months private lessons can be a great way to catch up or get ahead!
- Need a repair? Have an instrument question? Need Some new music? Need a new rental? Need a gift idea for a fellow musician? These are only a few things you can find at these local and onine music stores. These are great for everything from reeds and accessories to brand new instruments or repairs. Please patronize these local stores so that they continue to support the arts at Gateway School District and our neighboring communities.
Major Scales/Chromatic Scale
- Scales are the foundation of most instrument playing. They make playing in various keys easier, getting around the instrument easier, and can improve technique very quickly. No, they are not the most fun thing in the world to practice but once you get them you'll really see a difference in your playing. There are two pages with different scales on them in the links below. When you begin learning scales start with page 1 and move to page 2 once you've memorized them.
Flow Studies / Technical Studies
- Flow studies are a great way to practice your breathing techniques learned in the videos below and to work on things like breath control, enharmonics, and dynamics. The technical studies are for your fingers. How fast can we get them moving without losing the basics that we've learned to this point? In both exercises, start from the beginning slowly and then as you get faster and more comfrtable try to add some of the more difficult exercises on.
| Flow Studies – Woodwind Parts | Technical Studies – Woodwind Parts |
| Flow Studies – Brass Parts | Technical Studies – Brass parts |
| Flow Studies – Score | Technical Studies – Score |
36 Chorales Book
- These 36 chorales are WONDERFUL for playing with friends. All of the books are compatible so if you have friends over you can all look at your instrument's book and play together. These are a great way to form your own duets, trios, and quartets for fun or for performance. Try rearranging them and playing different lines to see what kinds of sounds you can create with your ensemble.
| Score | Trumpet |
| Flute | French Horn |
| Oboe | Trombone/Baritone |
| Bb Clarinet | Baritone T.C. |
| Alto/Bari Sax | Tuba |
| Tenor Sax | Mallets |
Breathing Exercises
- These breathing exercises come from a book and DVD set called "The Breathing Gym." This is an excellent resource for anyone who plays a wind instrument. They will help you understand playing at different dynamics, breathing quickly and efficiently, and how to control your breathing to get the most out of your playing. These are just a few examples and you can find more clips and exercises on YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VisILLZkcWQ
Great Websites for the Musical Mind
- Sitting around on a lazy, rainy day in the summer? Rather than spending the entire day on FaceBook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube, why not practice some rhythms, note naming, or some other musical activity. Check out these websites and links for musical games, practice help, and much more.
Skokie School District Practice Packet
- This packet is from the McCracken Band in the Skokie School District 73.5. This is a great packet to guide your daily practice to offer you some guidlines and ideas so that you can stay on track. If you stick to this guide daily you will be amazed at how fast your basic instrument skills increase.
Rhythm Reading for Drums – Book 1
- Although this book is for drummers, everyone can benefit from it's rhythm lessons. Work your way through the book and test you rhythm skills with the solos on each page. Percussionists will find challenges in sticking and stick control and wind players will find challenges in reading more difficult rhythms than they've seen before. Give it a shot!
Crossing The Break for Clarinets
- This is a wonderful packet that we found online for our Clarinet players who are trying to become comforatble playing over the 'break.' Sorry everyone else, this ones only for the clarinets!
Clarke Studies
- This studies are like tongue twisters for your fingers! These can be very fun to practice and to challenge your friends. Start slowly to make sure you're playing all the right notes and then gradually move the tempo up until you are playing at lightning speed!!
| Flute/Oboe/Bells | Tenor Sax |
| Bassoon/Trombone/Euphonium | French Horn |
| Clarinet/Bass Clarinet/Trumpet | Tuba |
| Alto/Bari Sax |
