Which instrument is best the oboe, clarinet , or trumpet? What music do they play?
When I tested for band my teacher said that I would play the trumpet,clarinet, or oboe. Which one do I choose and why? I want to know a little bit of detail too.
This whole “tested for band” thing is just irksome.
I’m wondering if that always happens in America. This band thing is a sort of class? Something you get school grades for?
In the Netherlands some (High-)schools have bands, but they’re an after-school activity that happens to be at your school with students from your school. Most people play in local orchestras, youth orchestras, or just only in music school. And you get to pick your own instrument… Music schools host open days, where all the teachers come with their instruments to tell a bit about it and let people try.
Both systems have their pros and cons, though. Band forces people to play a certain type of instrument and a certain type of music, but at least it is an accessible way to play an instrument. When you want to play an instrument here, you have to go to music school or an orchestra, it costs money, and some parents that never learned music themselves just don’t care for it and won’t introduce their child to it.
In the US we used to have a band (or more than one … in my high school we had three levels) at every high school as well as middle school. Now not all schools have them due to money issues, but many do. And yes, they are a graded class. Some schools also have orchestras. When I was young I played in my high school band and also in a youth symphony (sometimes more than one). My students sometimes choose to do both, some only do high school music, and some only do outside music.
I chose my own instrument. My students have as well. This “testing for an instrument” bugs me … I think it’s ridiculous.