Rehearsal Psychology by Nilo Hovey
The mindset of your students is no less important than their technical skills
The title of this article was chosen because the following items are difficult to classify. However, some veteran teachers will say these things are as important as learning all there is to know about tuning routines.
First of all, if you are planning to be the conductor of a school band and someone hasn't already told you, the line on your organization's progress graph isn't going to go straight from the lower left-hand corner to the upper right. There are points in the learning process where the acquisition of knowledge and the development of skills plateau; in fact, there may be regressions at irregular and unpredictable intervals. The intention is not to lower your ideals, but you might be happier if you prepare yourself by planning how to handle the situation when it comes up. Perhaps you can even control the timing in such a way that the line is going in the right direction at the most important times.
In the course of a single rehearsal, your insistence on achieving a specific goal should be modified by an understanding of the attention span of your players. The latter is not always exclusively associated with age or experience; some junior high groups will accept more detailed rehearsing than some at the high school level, so previous conditioning must be a factor. If you have identified the point of diminishing returns in the pursuit of a single objective, you could very well increase the productivity of the rehearsal time by changing objectives. There must be something else that needs attention.
You may also find it helpful to change the pace of the rehearsal when things tighten up. A period of intense concentration should be followed by one of comparative relaxation. Let the kids choose a number and don't be too fastidious.
Conversely, you will probably be conscious of a state of progressive momentum in some rehearsals, so don't foul it up with unnecessary stops. If Johnny misses an F#, a quick look in his direction will tell him that you are aware of his error, and will also tell you if he is aware of it. Chances are good that it won't happen next time, so why interrupt the flow by stopping seventy other students who are on the move and having to start them all over again?
Every rehearsal should provide the opportunity for the organization to experience a "perfect" performance on some group effort, no matter how limited, because this is the surest way to create a concept, an auditory image perhaps, of the ultimate objective in sound and unified ensemble effect. A band must take that first step in this direction, even if it is a simple scale study. A successful organization does not build on errors!
At the school level the conductor must also be the educator. If you wish to develop a true musical understanding on the part of your performers, you must explain not only how to play a note, a passage or a phrase, but why it is to be played in this manner. If you ask that a series of eighth notes be played full value, you will be doing a better job of teaching if you explain that the andante tempo and cantabile style demand it. With this approach, your students will eventually become their own critics by adding to their knowledge of musical interpretation. It is being done all of the time in the best bands.
Keep in mind the importance of overlapping the learning processes from rehearsal to rehearsal. If the proficiency level of your band's performance advanced from 81 to 85 today, you probably shouldn't expect to start at 86 tomorrow. Review some of those problems that were tentatively solved, so the correct responses will become permanently infused into the band's playing habits.
As trite as it may be, please know that optimism, patience, kindness, respect, tolerance and enthusiasm are contagious. But so, too, are pessimism, irritability, hostility, conceit, intolerance and indifference. You have probably encountered school music conductors whose achievements in their profession have not approached the heights indicated by their musical capabilities, simply because they did not learn to show the same consideration to others that they demand from others. As the conductor, you will be both pilot and navigator. Choose your route and most of your students will go along.
Be generous in your praise for accomplishments, to individuals and to the organization as a whole. It is so easy, and it does so much for conductor-student relationships. You need not imply that the final goal has been reached, only that "we're on our way, and now for the next step." You can give constructive comments without being a chronic complainer.
The next bit of advice is not as easy to carry out, but it is a logical complement to the above: Make every effort to do your individual reprimanding privately. It is easier than you may remember to crush some teenagers in the presence of their colleagues, and the damage might be long lasting.
I used to claim, somewhat facetiously, that I could pre-judge the quality of instrumental teaching in a school by a glance at the band-room bulletin board. If my claim was facetious, my point was not; the intended implication was that the environment of the rehearsal room may well reflect the earnestness with which the conductor and his students approach their daily tasks. Systematic and functional use of available bulletin-board space is surely evidence of a well-organized program, and while it would be absurd to assume that organizational ability is a guarantee of musicianship, it is an educated guess that a highly successful program didn't get that way without someone's managerial skills.
The bulletin board is the ideal place for schedules of coming events, special rehearsals, progress charts, graphs, notices, announcements, publicity releases, details on fund-raising activities, concert programs and almost anything that requires more than a single exposure by way of daily announcements. There are a lot of morale building possibilities here. Don't overlook the importance of recognizing your band members' achievements in areas other than music, especially scholastic accomplishments. And a little corner for cartoons on music and musicians, please.
Consideration should also be given to the content of mottos, slogans, quotes and maxims that are so frequently used on band-room wall signs. Whether serious or frivolous in style, their function is usually motivational — to exhort students to greater achievements or to engender enthusiasm, pride, spirit and loyalty. A conductor must guard against sayings that might not be adaptable to the personality, character or maturity of the organization to which they are addressed. For example, "We're Number One!" is a perennially popular slogan. This might be an effective incentive in almost any band room. On the other hand, although "Stop, Think and Listen" conveys an important message to a mature musical organization, it is probably too sedate for others. Pick the words carefully to fit your organization and give it a try.
This article has been excerpted from Nilo Hovey's Efficient Rehearsal Procedures for School Bands.
