Readiness for band: what do beginner band students need to know?

Snell, II, Alden H.There are certain things that students need to know before entering a beginner band class in order for them to have a successful experience learning a new instrument. However, there is little to no research documenting what concepts and skills teachers consider representative of readiness for band. It is important for teachers to understand what their students know and do not know before instrumental instruction. Researchers should discover if teachers want their students reading music notation or if they would prefer that their students enter band class with an ability to aurally understand music. Documentation of whether or not teachers feel singing is an important component of readiness for band is important for our profession. The purpose of this study was to discover what band teachers expect students to know before entering a beginner band class. Surveys given to teachers in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania (N=38) indicated the priority of concepts and skills. I explored the musical characteristics, such as singing, composting, reading notation, and improving, that the beginner band teachers felt were important to teach students before they begin to learn an instrument in a band classroom. Data analysis revealed that participants felt specific concepts and skills are important aspects of readiness for band: Participants identified singing, chanting, reading notation, and moving. Participants generally agreed with the National Core Arts Standards and appeared interested in providing their students with standards-based instruction.University of Delaware, Department of MusicM.M