The First "Oh, Pierre!" of the Fall 2011 Term in the WVU Big Band

It really went well. The students learned it in a few minutes. Seven of the eighteen people had been involved with the telematic concert last year, that certainly helped the learning curve.

They were beginning to make calls after the first fifteen minutes or so. They particularly enjoy the Landmarks and are pretty clever about it. They gravitate towards the humorous which is interesting. My personal favorite involved making monkey sounds....

I think this piece is now a permanent part of this band's repertoire.

Oh, Pierre! beyond the classroom...

Last Friday evening, I brought a high school sophomore of mine to give a brief performance for a school function. He performed a five-minute improvisation at the piano and did a great job. His performance was well-received and he seemed to feel good about it as well.

Before bringing him over to the performance, we met in the school music room. While there, he informed me that he was really enjoying the 'whole improv thing with the hand signs' we were doing in class. He told me he had been in a rehearsal outside of school with a few other student musicians where there were just jamming together. Looking for their jamming to take on some new life, he taught the group several of the hand signs from 'Oh, Pierre!'. He said this had a great effect on the music of the group and that he really loved using them and was starting to see just how useful they could be in helping his group to communicate musically.

Cool...

A New Year With Cranbury Improv

The Cranbury School Improv Ensemble began their rehearsals just last week. Student volunteers turn out for the ensemble has been wonderfully overwhelming, these kids love their improv!

We have had two rehearsals so far, with some returning members and some brand new, so much of our time the past two rehearsals have been spent reviewing "Oh! Pierre" cues. I have already seen an improvement in the students' ability to listen and react to what is happening in the ensemble, versus playing for playing sake. Students are definitely taking their time to make musical decisions that will influence the piece and are playing as an ensemble, instead of just following cues.

Next rehearsal I hope to have students call cues from the ensemble and possibly have a few student conductors lead. I think the following conversation outlines how important "Oh! Pierre" has become to these middle school students:

Student: Ms. D, I saw on the schedule we don't have a rehearsal in December. Why?

Me: I figured with the winter concert schedule and all of you being in so many ensembles we should have a break. Did I assume incorrectly?

WHOLE ENSEMBLE: Yes!

Student: Can we have an "Oh! Pierre" rehearsal before break? I can't go an entire month

without playing!

Starting with Soundpainting

I've got a very young big band this year. I introduced them to Soundpainting in the second week of classes. I thought I would start there so that they would have Soundpainting as a background before being introduced to "Oh Pierre!".

They are very quick to learn it and kwow around 45 gestures after three 15 minute rehearsals. Once they've learned a few more gestures I'll have them take turns being the conductor. Once they are comfortable with that, we'll learn Oh, Pierre!.

'Oh, Pierre!' at Pingree School

I have recently started introducing 'Oh, Pierre!' to my new students at the Pingree School in South Hamilton, MA. So far, I've started teaching some cues to students in my Instrumental Ensemble (2 guitars, 2 basses, 2 keyboards, trombone, drums) and in my Contemporary Music Ensemble (violin, viola, flute, clarinet, 2 saxes, keyboard, tuba, drums, percussion). They all seem to be having fun learning the cues, and seem to be trying to figure out where exactly this is all headed. I am very impressed with their open-mindedness. I can already tell this is going to be a blast. As the year goes on, I will be posting feedback (my own as well as theirs) as well as audio and video clips of our work.

Missouri University Creative Improvisation Ensemble

The University of Missouri Creative Improvisation Ensemble in a performance at the 2010 International Society for Improvised Music Conference utilizing a modified form of Walter Thompson's 'Soundpainting'.

Another Cranbury Rehearsal

Had another outstanding 'Oh, Pierre' rehearsal last night. We had a slightly larger group this time. After reviewing the cues, we had students take turns in being 'prompters'. We did reach the point where members of the group started requesting cues as well. The more we practice, the more interesting, fun, and different the music becomes. The next step will be introducing Landmarks. Things are shaping up nicely!!

Here are some reflective comments from students following the rehearsal:

Today was really fun!
1) I find it so much fun when we create combinations of sounds that we never thought were even possible!!
2) I get a kick out of hearing one type of sound and a totally different one after it
3) This is a place where we can explore our own voice and instruments
4) It's a great way to end the day!
Thanks for inviting me to come! I love this group!!!

1) Funny stuff rocked!
2) Needs to be more spontaneus (not sure if I spelt that right)
3) I like not having to play sheet music

In improv, I learned so much! Here are some of the reasons I liked it....
You always have to be on your toes, ready to get involved!
You can learn so much and have fun in such a short time.
Improv has so many different techniques, so everyone is super creative!

I liked having members of the group conduct, and I also liked switching to brushes and mallets (texture changes). I thought it was a good idea to listen and play with eachother, something I don't think we get enough of in class.

1. Are we going to do guerilla warfare?
2. I think that everyone is more comfortable with the cues today
3. What is guerilla warfare?