Mr. Moreno's Music Class

Alternate picking tips

2012-02-14T11:23:00.000-08:00

1. DO NOT hold the pick any differently.
2. Think 'bounce' instead of attack on the string.
3. Find a point to use as an 'anchor' for you wrist.
Most importantly: rotate from the wrist and not the arm!

February 14/2012

2012-02-14T06:57:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone,

This is a small reminder to all guitar students about the importance of handing in practice logs. In the last couple of weeks, submission of these logs has unfortunately decreased. A reminder to parents/guardians that your guitar student should be submitting a log to track their private practice sessions and hand it in to you for a signature of verification before submission. The logs are not useful if they do not receive a signature. If anyone requires any clarification about any aspect of the practice log, please contact me.

Mr. Moreno

Homework for Thursday 19th

2012-01-19T06:36:00.000-08:00

Gr. 4
Students should be working on #24, "Au Clair de la Lune". Students have chosen to either play Part 1 or Part 2 as this piece is a 2 part duet and will begin our move into parts playing. Please be mindful of the new notes G and A on the 3rd string!

Gr. 5
Students should be working on "Amazing Grace" line #43. Please pay attention to the ties and respect their function.

Gr. 6
Students are to keep working on the A section of the piece as well as beginning work on the B section of "While my Guitar Gently Weeps". Watch out for the key of A major with F,C and G sharps!! Chorders should be reviewing and memorizing the strumming pattern.

January 5, 2011

2012-01-05T09:06:00.000-08:00

Gr. 3
Students are reminded to bring writing materials in to class for Tuesday as we will be needing them for our writing/listening session.

Gr. 4
Students are to finish practicing "Ode to Joy" as well as any exercises from their lessons on the first 2 strings.

Gr. 5
Students should be on their way to completing "12 Bar Rock". Please pay attention to the notes on the 4th string and refer to p. 15 for clarification.

Gr. 6-8
Work on "Boogie Bass" employing the alternate picking technique that we have covered in class. I do not care about the tempo of the exercise but I will be observing the eveness of the pick attack and wrist movement. If possible, please start looking at "While My Guitar Gently Wheeps".
*Practice logs will be collected on Tuesday*

Welcome Back

2012-01-03T07:09:00.000-08:00

Welcome back everyone,

I hope your break was restful and productive. As we get back into the swing of classroom activities I wanted to remind guitar students of the new practice log policy. Practice logs have been used to ensure that students spend the appropriate about of time practice outside of class so that they can further extend their learning and work out any difficulties prior to entering class. From now on, practice logs will be issued each Tuesday and are expected to be filled out and returned the following Tuesday. For example, a log is being issued today and will be collected on January 10.
Students are to practice at least 15-20 minutes, 5 times a week. Upon daily practice, they are required to have their session signed by a parent/guardian.

If any students or parents/guardians have any questions regarding the practice logs please contact me.

Thank you,
Mr. Moreno

Homework for guitar classes

2011-12-13T10:56:00.000-08:00

A reminder to guitar students,

We have our Christmas concert fast approaching and rehearsals will be conducted on Tuesday through Thursday in preparation for the concert. ALL guitar students MUST have their guitars and sheet music with them for our rehearsals tomorrow and Thursday. Misplacement of your guitar will be dealt with before the concert.

Keep up the practice as we enter this final stretch,
Mr. Moreno

A note for the holidays...

2011-12-06T07:01:00.001-08:00

A reminder to all music student, particularly guitar students, that as we approach the winter concert seaons I remind you that we must all still be practicing and rehearsing at our maximum capacity. Guitar students will be preparing repertoire for the Christmas concert and will be expected to come to class with material well rehearsed.
Parents/guardians, please ensure that your guitar students are practicing 20 minutes EVERY day from now until the concert. Quality practice will ensure that our ears are treated to a sonic surprise come concert night.

Thank you for your cooperation,
Mr. Moreno

Homework for Nov 24/11

2011-11-24T11:13:00.001-08:00

Gr. 4
Students are to review "Ode to Joy" paying speciall attention to correct notes and their geography on the fingerboard. If you are having difficulties hitting correct pitches, please refer back to the previous lesson which illustrate their correct location on the staff and board.

Gr. 5
Students are to work on "12 Bar Rock" paying close attention the pickup notes.

Gr. 6-8
Students have been working on "Joy" for some time now and are moving well. Continue to practice 2-4 bars at a time and gluing them together to create a seamless line. Work 1 line at a time- I care about quality at this point!! "Ukrainian Carol" students have been assigned parts and know hot to practice. Watch for large amounts of repetition and focus on RHYTHM using an online metronome (or one if you own one).

Homework for Thursday November 17

2011-11-17T11:21:00.001-08:00

Gr. 4
Students are to continue their work on Ode to Joy line #17 out of their HL method books. Please work on lines #19-20 out of your method book and review out two new notes found on the open G string.

Gr. 5
Students are to work on line #41 of their method book. Please refer back to line #30 on P. 16 to review pickup measures.

Gr. 6-8
Students are to work on Ukrainian Carol. Choose either line 1 or 2 to learn, both if possible. Pay special attention to rhythmic accuracy as we are moving away from unison playing into independent parts playing.
For those who have 'Joy', please practice it and bring it into class on Tuesday. If you do not have it, I will have extra copies.

Homework for October 27/11

2011-10-27T07:17:00.000-07:00

Gr. 4
Students should be finishing their study of the notes on the b-string and should be practicing lines 15-16 of their Hal Leonard method book.

Gr. 5
Students should be practicing line 37 as well as more challenging strumming patterns on lines 38-40. Reminder: practice changing between the correctly chord patterns in the LH before adding the picking to the equation.

Gr. 6-8
Students should be reviewing lines 16-18 focusing on the rhythmic accuracy of the syncopation as discussed in class. A reminder that all student should be actively reviewing any pieces that have been studied in pervious classes!

Practice logs are due next Thursday!!

To all guitar students

2011-10-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

A reminder to all Gr. 4-8 guitar students that their completed and signed practice logs are due on THURSDAY in class. You must have filled out and practiced 5 sessions and have a parent/guardian sign the log.

Thank you,
Mr. Moreno

Homework For October 18th

2011-10-18T11:11:00.000-07:00

Gr. 3
All students music research and write down 3 facts or questions that they have found about Aboriginal music, culture or about first contact. Students will be sharing their findings in class on Thursday.

To all Guitar students...
Next Tuesday will be your first formal submission of a practice log for the year. You are to practice for a total of 5 session of 20 minutes each over the week and are expected to have a parent/guardian verify your practice.

Gr. 4
Students must work on lines 9-11 of their HL method book.

Gr. 5
Students are to practice line 36 and 37 from their HL method book. Please review the two new chords at the top of the page!

Gr. 6-8
Students should review our two new chords as well as all other chords mentioned in class.

Note...
All remaining students who have not performed for their summative performance will be doing so on Thursday. Information on the pieces can be seen on my previous post.

Summative Evaluations for October 13th

2011-10-12T07:42:00.000-07:00

Hello Parents/Guardians and Students,

October 13th marks the end of our first unit of inquiry and as such marks the day of our summative evaluations. Listed below are the test materials and required submissions.

SK
Our test will be comprised of small group evaluations in a "Song and Rhythm test" format. The test will assess summative song "The Sensible Song". A rubric outlining criteria will be provided.

Gr. 1+2
Students must submit their Theory level 1 workbook in for evaluation. Students practical test will comprise of our basic coordinated rhythmic action using tic-tac, vocables and focus of internalized beat placement. A rubric for criteria will be provided.

Gr.3

Students must submit their Theory level 2 workbook in for evaluation as well as their workbook on the history of "O Canada". Students practical test will comprise of our basic coordinated rhythmic action using tic-tac, vocables and focus of internalized beat placement. Emphasis will be placed on fluidity and longer, more controlled rhythmic duration. A rubric for criteria will be provided.

Gr. 4

Students will be asked to perform Line #8 , Spanish Theme, from their Hal Leonard Lv. 1 method book. A rubric will be provided to illustrate the criteria of assessment.

Gr. 5

Students will be asked to perform Line #34 , Tom Dooley, from their Hal Leonard Lv. 1 method book. Emphasis on a more solid, fluid performance will be expected. A rubric will be provided to illustrate the criteria of assessment.

Gr. 6-8

Students will be asked to perform Line #4 , Sinner Man, from their Hal Leonard Lv. 2 method book. Emphasis on a more solid, fluid performance will be expected. A rubric will be provided to illustrate the criteria of assessment. Students must also submit their "History of Western Art Music Overview" workbook, completed for evaluation.

Homework for October 4th

2011-09-29T14:27:00.000-07:00

Gr. 4
Work on Line #8 "Spanish Theme" paying close attention to the geography of the fingerboard and becoming more comfortable with identifying our first 3 notes. *Note* if you have already completed this piece, please move on to the next page focusing on the B string notes.

Gr. 5
Continue to become more familiar with the transition between the C and G7 chords. Tip: remember to put appropriate pressure on your fingers to make sure that the string is correctly contacting the fret. Work on line #34 "Tom Dooley" as well as line #35 focusing on 3 new chords.

Gr. 6-8
Familiarize yourselves with the Am and G chords- we will continue to review more as we go along. Line #2 "Sinner Man" should also be practiced.

Reminders:

All Gr. 4-8 Practice Logs are due on Tuesday. Please see Mr. Greczi or Ms. Chang if you have lost yours.
To the few Gr. 6-8 students who have not given me permission form/money, I am requiring them latest Tuesday for our trip to see the TSO. Please hand in permission forms and money to Mrs. Brasil or Mr. Greczi ASAP!

Homework for September 28th

2011-09-28T12:20:00.000-07:00

Gr. 1-3
All students must bring in their box of tic-tac on Thursday as we will be using them.

Gr. 4
Work on lines 1-4, 8 in your Hal Leonard method book. Familiarize yourselves with the note geography on the fingerboard. Do not be afraid of saying the note letters as you play to help you internalize the music.

Gr. 5
Work on lines 33-35 of your method book. Practice the chord changes and the fingerings that are required to correctly produce each chord.

Gr. 6-8
Keep practicing O Canada, Ukrainian Carol as well as lines 1-3 of your Hal Leonard method book. Just a reminder: all money and permission forms for the TSO field trip are due this THURSDAY!

Reminder for parents

2011-09-26T10:02:00.000-07:00

Hello Parents/Guardians,

As you will be aware of, Mr. Greczi and I will will be taking the Grades 6-8 classes to see the Toronto Symphony Orchestra perform at Roy Thompson Hall on Wednesday October 25, 2011. Permission forms detailing the cost and details were sent out two weeks ago and we are reminding you that forms are due on Thursday September 29th. If you do not wish to have your student attend the trip, please simply indicate that on the form and return it. If you are sending your student on that fabulous trip, please fill the form and return it with a cheque or cash.

Thank you,
Mr. Moreno

Homework for Sept 20

2011-09-20T11:13:00.000-07:00

Gr. 1-3
Students should come to class with an unopened box of tic-tac candies with their initials clearly marked on the plastic. We will be using this surprisingly useful tool in the coming days to study rhythmic patterns.

Gr. 4
Students should be reviewing p. 5 and 6 of thier method books paying particular attention to the fundamentals of playing as well as lines 1-3. Make sure to review the counting system and where notes are situated on the fretboard.

Gr. 5
Students should review p. 17 and the introduction to chords C and G7. Remember to practice tuning the guitar with an electronic tuner to develop that skill.

Gr. 6-8
Students should continue to practic O Canada as well as the Ukrainian Carol. Reminder to learn the 1st voice as well as 1 other voice (either 2nd or 3rd).

Reminder: Permission forms for our fieldtrip to see the Toronto Symphony Orchestra are due on September 29th.

Thursday September 15th

2011-09-14T15:57:00.000-07:00

Gr. 4
Grade 4 students should review P. 2-4 of their Hal Leonard books to review the parts of the guitar, intro to proper playing positions and reviewing notation.

Gr. 5
Grade 5 students should review P. 1-16 and focus on P. 17 where we will be discussing basic chording on Am.

Gr. 6-8
Students should review page 1 of O Canada, in particular the 1st voice.

Notice for St. Jude's Guitar Offer

2011-08-27T11:18:00.000-07:00

Hello parents/guardians,

As mentioned, all Grades 4-8 music classes revolve around guitar performance and developing the student's proficiency on the instrument. Each student must have their own personal guitar in class. For parents who have yet to purchase or are interested in upgrading a guitar for their student, St. Jude's is proud to announce that we have worked out an arrangement with Long & McQuade at 900 Rathburn Rd. W. in Mississauga to offer a very handsome and reliable guitar package at a price that is unbeatable based on the build quality. The guitar package consists of a 4/4 size parlour guitar finished in a beautiful burst finish and is built by Simon&Patrick of the Godin line. It is a supremely reliable and well built instrument that will last your student for years to come. The guitar comes with a rugged gig bag and is available for $265+HST. I can not reiterate how great of a package this is considering its price point.
For parents/guardians interested in purchasing this instrument you can got the the Long & McQuade location stated above and speak to a sales associate or preferably Pat Furlan to purchase the guitar package. Please mention that you are from "St. Jude's Academy" and wish to purchase the guitar package model "SP31610".
If anyone is unsure of the suitability of their students instrument or if anyone has any questions regarding the purchase on a guitar please feel free to contact me at any time.

Thank you,
Mr. M. Moreno
mmoreno@stjudesacademy.com