Many parents wonder why their child should take flute lessons when they are already in the school band. Quite simply, band teaches different skills than flute lessons.
Band Skills
The job of a band director is to help a group of young musicians who play a bunch of different instruments work together to play music in an ensemble, in much the same way that an athletic coach works with individual athletes to form a cohesive team. If a student athlete has a weakness, the coach can generally make suggestions to help that student improve because the coach has already mastered being an athlete.
When a band student has a weakness, they may be playing an instrument with which the band director has limited experience playing – there are 11 different instruments in the concert band, and there is no way that a band director can truly master all of them. This is why flute lessons are so helpful!
Flute Lesson Skills
Flute lessons allow the student to learn flute-specific things from a master flute player. The student can advance much more quickly because a flute player recognizes many of the common mistakes when playing the flute and will correct them quickly. Lots of tips and tricks from an experienced teacher allows the student to improve and understand concepts rapidly. Flute students learn a lot just by hearing an experienced flute teacher play the instrument.
Flute lessons also allow the teacher to focus on the exact skills with which a student is struggling. During band rehearsals, the director needs to address all students in the ensemble and may not have the time to devote to a specific problem that a flute student is having. Flute lessons allow that student to learn how to work on that skill from an experienced flutist.
Contact Tina to set up a trial lesson!