IT WORKS, IN THEORY

November 3 2016                             Quote of the Month: 
                                                         courtesy of Dania Murtaza

''Where words fail, music speaks.''

 Hans Christian Andersen   

MEET the MATT STUDENTS!

Ali,10, MATT Advanced class violin, with MATT for a few years now!

Hanna, 12,  MATT ADVANCED CLASS VIOLIN

PARENT NOTES:
WEEK 2 THEORY begins this week, November 8th. 
PLEASE NOTE : 1ST CLASS BEGINS AT 4:20 till 4:50  Be sure to be there, if you are signed in already. A few will receive emails / phone calls if needed .For  others the Theory timetable is being re-programmed to accommodate all students' lessons and classes. Check it out Tuesday 
THEORY REQUIRED FOR ALL. In past years, as you may know, most students attended MATT THEORY on a different day than class. This way we were able to accommodate every one. This year it appears that everyone is too busy to come more than one day and thus we are having problems fitting everyone into one week. These important lessons are a bonus to students, free, under the MATT umbrella. Volunteer students help us provide them. We are doing everything we can to accommodate every student..Theory is important and it is not optional. If you do not attend you will not receive the year- end certificate, so please make sure you fit yourself in! See how the new schedule works for you,and then if needed, call Andrea.

ADMIN ASSISTANCE: Yogita is away till end of January. Parents have been engaged to help during class. They will be able to assist you with payments,orders, questions, etc. The phone calls received during the week will be recorded Tuesdays, and you should call to report last minute absences or illness as usual. 905 497 2220 Please read carefully and follow the Absence policy document handed out this year. 
Thank you for any assistance you can provide with set-up , and end of class clean up.

NEW T-SHIRTS for ALL students 
MATT has a bright new logo and color scheme ! As usual we will be wearing MATT t-shirts at the MALL CONCERT in December and all other performances this year. We will be taking orders very soon, so check the Admin desk to place your order. Normally Heather Norman is able to arrange these for $10 each- you can confirm the price when ordering. Thanks so much Heather for the work you put into this!

MATT IMPORTANT DATES  confirmed:

1. ALL STUDENTS Friday eve. Dec. 9th Concert Shoppers World Mall  Dec. 9 7 TO 8:30

2. ADVANCED CLASS Rose Theatre- Intermission Performance Sat. Dec 3rd arrival 7pm

3. MATT WINTER BREAK: Last class DEC 20 and DEC 21. Resume  JAN. 10th

HOMEWORK

               

 Set the same practice time every day and don't miss it- it makes a big difference,                                                                               you'll see! 

BEGINNERS:

PRACTICE THE FOLLOWING EVERY DAY- at least FOUR DAYS 

REVIEW 1. perfect bow hold  (RH on chart) 
Bow exercises: 2."elevator"- for flexible wrist :Place Coin/eraser- flat top of  hand . V
2. "Windshield wiper"  3 "Monkey crawl".
Review: Pizzicato- plucking the string - string cycle- pluck four notes on each string high to low and back

BOWING - STEPS for good sound: LIft bow over string, "touch down" flat bow hair. Relax arm weight onto hand, feel the "grab", then PULL four short strokes!

STRING CYCLE: .Pull four short strokes in the middle of the bow on each string lowest to the highest string and back to the lowest.
                                                  
NEW THIS WEEK. Placing the first finger on the A string. Remember the finger tip touches on the tape on A string to get the note B. Press firmly.Pull a nice strong bow stroke and you will hear a nice clear note! Be careful to relax the left hand. 
CELLOand BASS-  PALM of hand faces YOU.
VIOLIN and VIOLA-  left arm is straight from elbow to fingers- thumb and first finger touch the neck  with "mouse hole" between them
You can try this on every string: On D you get __? on G you get __? on C? on E? 
(hint: music alphabet has seven letters) 

INTERMEDIATES
CHARTS TO BE BROUGHT TO CLASS- PRACTICE  5 DAYS- AT LEAST 30 MIN PER DAY! If you consistently don't have a chart, you will not play in the class!

Practice at least FIVE days a week.
Practice scales : G and scale of D
1. AFS book #126 for December concert Learn YOUR assigned part A B or C# 
2.167 violins - E string
3.AFS BOOK: Snake Charmer #153. remember low F - no f# in this one
4. Continue with Double Trouble bar 1 to bar 16!!.
5.  Sahara Crossing - Learn bars 1 to 10 lower your E to  Eb  where marked and violin 1- same on A string for Bb .in bar 9.

ADVANCED
CHARTS TO BE BROUGHT TO CLASS- PRACTICE  5 DAYS AT LEAST 40 MIN PER DAY! If you consistently don't have a chart you will not play in the class!

1. D scale- work to perfect your tuning and shifting
2. Work on G scale
3. Harvest Home:We are making good progress, but there is more work to be done! ALL  VIOLAS: Bars 27 to 30 must be mastered Bar 31 to 33 for violins

4. CANON: Reminder:CUT - play to bar 14 then cut to bar 43
 Violin 2 -you have 2 weeks to master bar 19 to 21. If it's too difficult for now, we will drop it one octave. See how you manage- Get your teacher's help.!
VIOLAS: Practice pizz notes  KEEP at it! It's getting better!-press LH hard and pull strongly :
Cellos: in TUNE notes- smooth and beautiful tuning. Practice till it's easy to play the B and F3 in bar 1
Violins: learn all passages- in small sections for clear sounds. 
5.Canadian Ballad: Learn the notes for the whole piece. 
These three pieces are for the December Rose Theatre concert. 
Christmas music in is on its way for December concerts

                                                         HAVE a GREAT WEEK, ALL! 

QUOTE of the Month: please send in a musical quote for us to share!