Many band directors are frustrated by sub-par performances from their ensembles and mistakenly blame their students. My 33 years of conducting and observing have helped me identify some common band rehearsal mistakes that lead to poor performances. They can be divided into two basic categories: time management, and critical listening skills. This is my list of the ten most common mistakes band directors make during rehearsals, including five items from each of these categories. Time Management 1. Talking Too Much Many directors waste a lot of time with logistics and talking. It’s important to ..read more

Warner Bros. Entertainment From wizards to superheroes, Warner Bros. Entertainment has music for your favorite stories and characters. For a limited time, perform the music from the hit movie Black Adam for free in MakeMusic Cloud—available for instrumental soloists, string orchestra, and concert band. Instrumental musicians can play along to their favorite themes with exciting accompaniment tracks. Learn more about MakeMusic Cloud here. Browse Black Adam titles Perform Black Adam Music for Free Black Adam (Main Theme) Ensemble: Concert Band Level: Medium Instrument Select Flute ..read more

Does curriculum drive literature selection? Or does literature selection drive curriculum? If choosing one option leaves you feeling a bit uncomfortable or dissatisfied, perhaps you’d agree that there is a two-way flow. Either way, it’s safe to say that our selection of literature plays a huge role in the delivery of content in the large ensemble setting. Teaching a large ensemble is unlike almost any other discipline. In a typical subject area, curriculum is designed and disseminated, and classroom teachers are responsible for delivering that content in exciting and meaningful ways. As we kno ..read more

With an international reputation as one of the most popular brass ensembles today, Canadian Brass has truly earned the distinction of “the world’s most famous brass group. Education plays a key role for them and each member is uniquely attuned to training the next generation of players. In conjunction with the Hal Leonard Corporation, they have made available their extensive library of brass music for performers of all levels. Now musicians can learn the unique arrangements of Canadian Brass while using SmartMusic’s practice tools—playing along with the professional accompaniment recordings ..read more

On June 10th, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s hit musical, In The Heights, premieres in theaters and on HBO Max, and SmartMusic is here to help you get ready to sing or play along! We have a collection of the most popular tracks from the movie including 96,000, Champagne, Breathe, and many more. As an added bonus, SmartMusic is offering the song When You’re Home for FREE down below. Check out these and other titles in the SmartMusic catalog and get ready to make music on opening night! Play When You’re Home for FREE by picking the arrangement and your part below. Title Select title When You’re Home ..read more

Exciting Belwin Pop Music in MakeMusic Cloud Power your teaching with MakeMusic Cloud! Students can practice their parts for free in the Practice App, which facilitates immediate feedback on individual performances through an algorithmic assessment of note pitch, rhythm, and duration. Students will simultaneously receive contextual reference from professionally-recorded accompaniments. The built-in metronome, tuner, looping tools, and fingerings are all available to aid student progress. Select a song and instrument part below to see the power of immediate feedback that your students can exp ..read more

ÜskÜdar arr. Robert W. Smith & Michael Story Ensemble type: Concert BandDifficulty: Grade 1Recommended by: Ryan Laney, Publications Database Specialist “ÜskÜdar is great piece that never fell flat with ANY of my ensembles. Audiences like it, kids like it, the director likes it, what more can you ask for?” Why did you choose this piece to perform with your group? ÜskÜdar features two very strong and singable melodies that both the students and myself always really enjoyed. Woodwinds are featured in the melody most times while Brass get to focus on gorgeous, full tone in various ranges ..read more

With an international reputation as one of the most popular brass ensembles today, Canadian Brass has truly earned the distinction of “the world’s most famous brass group. Education plays a key role for them and each member is uniquely attuned to training the next generation of players. In conjunction with the Hal Leonard Corporation, they have made available their extensive library of brass music for performers of all levels. Now musicians can learn the unique arrangements of Canadian Brass while using SmartMusic’s practice tools—playing along with the professional accompaniment recordings ..read more

This series is about the Blues Scale. The story of the Blues began in northwestern Mississippi in the late 1800’s. This style was the beginning of a historical musical movement and it is truly the backbone of American music from Jazz to Country to Hip Hop and Rhythm and Blues. This is America’s folk music! Cold Duck Time Instrument Select instrument 1st Eb Alto Saxophone 2nd Eb Alto Saxophone 1st Bb Tenor Saxophone 2nd Bb Tenor Saxophone Eb Baritone Saxophone 1st Bb Trumpet 2nd Bb Trumpet 3rd Bb Trumpet 4th Bb Trumpet 1st Trombone 2nd Trombone 3rd Trombone Bass Trombone Guitar Bass P ..read more

Power your teaching with SmartMusic! Students can practice their parts for free in the Practice App, which facilitates immediate feedback on individual performances through an algorithmic assessment of note pitch, rhythm, and duration. Students will simultaneously receive contextual reference from professionally-recorded accompaniments. The built-in metronome, tuner, looping tools, and fingerings are all available to aid student progress. Select a song and instrument part below to see the power of immediate feedback that your students can experience with SmartMusic. concert bandorchestra co ..read more