The Five BIGGEST Mistakes that you can make when starting Band or Orchestra

Hi everyone and welcome to my blog! I’ve been interacting lately with a lot of parents are starting their children in band and orchestra programs which is SUPER exciting to me! I honestly believe that music is one of the most rewarding activities in which someone can take part. But I’ve definitely noticed that sometimes parents might not be totally (or at all) aware of where to start when their child signs up for band/orchestra. (Which is totally fine, might I add!) I’m here to help you understand the top five biggest mistakes I’ve seen parents make and how to help you avoid them!

1.) Buying Your Child an Instrument at the Beginning

Rent, rent, rent, rent, rent. Rent your instrument at the beginning, do NOT go out and buy your child an instrument once they have chosen to play it. This is one of the biggest and most expensive mistakes that parents make when their child starts band or orchestra and it can lead to a really negative experience. A good quality, professional instrument can cost several thousand dollars. “Well of course I wouldn’t buy a professional instrument for my child! They’re just starting! Let’s not go crazy.” And you’re right, you wouldn’t buy a professional level instrument for your child. You would probably buy a student/beginner level instrument, but while quality student/beginner instruments are less expensive, they're not nearly as inexpensive as you might think. Getting a student level instrument that is actually worth what you’re paying for it, will run you at least $800 on the low end. And typically those priced instruments will have been heavily used and look like it.

But your child really loves the idea of playing said instrument and really wants it, and will work really, really hard. So you give in and foot the bill. You pay a respectable price for a quality student level instrument. Then in 4 months or maybe 2 years, your child doesn’t really like band/orchestra anymore. Maybe it’s the director or they don’t like to practice. Or maybe it’s because they just want to do something else. All of which is totally fine and is a normal part of growing up. Except for the fact that you’re now stuck with a used, student instrument that you probably won’t get back what you paid for it. No matter how well your child took care of it. Rentals are good instruments that are meant to represent the company or school well. Then, if after a year your child wants to quit, you’re home free! Seriously, always rent. You’ll thank me later.

2.) Not Starting your Child with a Private Instructor

This one might be a fairly controversial one, but I stand by it. Do yourself and your child a favor and put them in private lessons from the beginning. Will they be taught as a group the basics in band/orchestra class for free? Yes. Will they get the individual attention that will help spot and fix mistakes early and excel faster? No, and this isn’t the director’s fault at all! They are trying their best, but there are two things working against them: lack of intimate knowledge and size of the class. Band and orchestra directors are typically very intelligent, articulate people. They have to be. They lead armies of children to make beautiful music and teach them how to work together. They have a working knowledge of every instrument. Enough of a knowledge to be able to troubleshoot large musical problems. But have they had years of intense study and performance on each individual instrument? No! Of course not. That would take a lifetime of study to achieve, if it were even possible. A private instructor has performed and studied that particular instrument for years as the focus of their study. It would be the difference between introducing your best friend to someone and introducing just a friend. You know your friend enough to help someone get a basic idea of who they are and what they like. But your best friend is like an extension of yourself. You can introduce the nuances and best qualities of them in a concise way that gives that other person a more accurate picture of your best friend. Your director is introducing their friend. Your private instructor is introducing their best friend.

Then there is the problem of just sheer class size. Though they try, it’s almost impossible for directors to give the kind of individual attention to your child as a private instructor does. The director has a class of sometimes 30 to 40 children to lead, your private teacher has only one to instruct. I think this one speaks for itself.

3.) Not Doing any Research into your Child’s Instrument

This one you wouldn’t think about but I see it all the time. Parents go to the music store or to the director and have absolutely no idea what their child needs or what it’s even called. I’m not telling you to get a music degree, but I am telling you to become conversational in the lingo. Learn the name of the instrument that your child plays. Do they play the clarinet or the oboe? Maybe the trombone or the viola? Then learn the basic parts of their instrument. Instead of saying “that wood thing on the clarinet” you can say the clarinet “reed”. Or the slide on a trombone. And a bow and rosin for a violin. I promise I’m not being pretentious here. Learning about your child’s instrument will help you communicate and shop with some confidence, and be able to be more involved when your child says their teacher requested something be bought.  You wouldn’t dream of going to a car dealership not knowing some basic terminology like manual or automatic engine. Don’t do it with this either.

4.) Not Knowing What Supplies Your Band/Orchestra Director Wants

This is a big, expensive no-no and one that is very easily avoidable. Sometimes director’s will be specific about what kind of supplies they want. For example, they might not just want you to get a tuner, but a Korg tuner. This happens sometimes to lessen class distractions; so everyone isn’t obsessed with what tuner everyone else has. They also might do it because they know and trust a certain brand or model of something more than others. You’ll see this a lot in woodwind classes with reeds. Every band director has an opinion on which reeds they want their students on. And if they don’t know which they want them on, they know which they don’t want them on. If you don’t know what your director wants, ask! They will most often times have a list of items, and if they don’t have a list, they would be more than happy to tell you. Save yourself and your child time and grief. Know what your director wants.

5.) Waiting Until the Month School Starts to Get Everything You Need

People who live in hurricane-regular areas will tell you that the first things that sell out when a storm is coming is water and batteries. So when would be the worst time to go shopping for those? When everyone is descending upon the store to get them! Similarly, you do.not. I repeat, DO. NOT. want to wait until the month that school starts to buy the supplies that you need for your child’s band/orchestra class. They will be sold out. Just count on it. “Well they should order more to anticipate the need”. They do. They still sell out. And they will sell out when you go to the store to get your stuff. I don’t know how that happens, but trust me it always does.

Those are my top 5 biggest mistakes that you can make when starting band or orchestra! Thanks so much for reading and if there were some I missed please let me know in the comments!