2012년 12월 10일 월요일

Term 2 Week 6 Videos


  • This video is I'm practicing the original pack of ABACA Composition once again two days before the performance day. I've already got checked by Mr.John, where he helped me in revising the chords that matches with my melody instead of changing the melody itself, so there were no change in the melody from my original Composition. I haven't got checked by Mr.Sadrakh because I didn't have more time for music, so I will bring my melody again to Mr.Sadrakh the next day. 



  • This video is showing me practicing the final revised ABACA Composition before the performance day. I've brought my melody to Mr.Sadrakh so that he can check it for the final time. While Mr.John only revised the chords used in my composition, Mr.Sadrakh have also checked not only the chords but also the whole melody. He and I have revised by playing with piano, where Mr.Sadrakh suggested a better chords that are in major, so that the song itself doesn't sound so gloomy when supported by the background music, and also have changed some part of the melody to let the song to become little bit faster and not to slow. Now I'm very satisfied with my final work of composition, and so I just need to practice a lot to memorize all the melodies and perform it well tomorrow. 


Term 2 Week 5 Videos


  • In this video I'm practicing the movement of bow technique ones again, because last week when I first practiced the technique skill, I wasn't able to play it well, which means my technique in moving the bow with speed is low. That's why I've practiced once more with the speed developed in order to push me up to increase my level in moving the bow skill. 


  • In this video I've practiced the new song again. However I've played it with only 1st position again, because even after Mr.Sadrakh helped with the 2nd and 3rd position, since the finger position that are moved in different place in the song are various, even though the song itself is very slow, I had to take a long time to find the finger position with the right pitch, so I just decided to practice once again with the 1st position. 


Term 2 Week 4 Videos


  • In this video I'm practicing the first 'A' and 'B' part of my own ABACA Composition because I've thought that I have to start practicing my Composition in order to be ready for my performance which will be held next next week. This is my original version of my melody, but I'm not yet sure if there will be any change or not. 



  • In this video I'm practicing the first 'A', 'B', second 'A', first 'C' and third 'A', which means it's the whole pack of the composition. It is the original composition I've made from the draft I had written in my notebook. I am quite satisfied with the melody, because it was the first time I've ever composed a song. But I think the melody is too gloomy and sad, so I might have a change after Mr.John and Mr.Sadrakh revise my final work. 


Term 2 Week 3 Videos


  • In this video I'm practicing an exercise for my technique and moving the bows as fast as I can among the all 4 strings. I played the technique in staccato because it lets my technique develop in moving the bow faster than when I play without putting staccato.



  • In this video I'm practicing a new song from the Suzuki book #5. It is called "Largo" which means it's a very slow song. Actually I'm supposed to practice the 1st, 2nd and 3rd position from fingering the violin, but I haven't learned it yet, so for the first time, I've just practiced with 1st position for all notes. 


Term 2 Week 2 Videos


  • This video is showing me practicing the G major scale 3 octaves again as I've also practiced last week, because I didn't play really well in the 1st week of term 2 when I reviewed the scale. Therefore, I've repeated once more. 




  • This video is showing me practicing the First song of the Suzuki book #5 again, since I like the song very much, and I wanted to play it again much better with increased techniques, because similar to the scales I've played, the song I've played last week was not as good as the time when I played the song in term 1.




Term 2 Week 1 Videos


  • This video is showing the time when I practiced the G major scale 3 octaves for reviewing of what I've learnt last term. 




  • This video is showing when I practiced the first song of the Suzuki book #5. I've already played it during term 1, so I've reviewed once more just in case I forgot some techniques used in this song. 


Term 2 Week 6: Dec 3rd - Dec 7th 2012

Topic: Preparation for the Performance and the real Assessment!




  • Theory Class:

1. Dec 4th - Since Thursday is our performance day of our ABACA composition in front of our parents and teachers, my melody was revised by Mr.John during the theory class today. While revising my work, Mr.John found some chords that are not matching with the notes I've put in the composition, so mostly he and I spent our time in correcting the chords by playing the song with guitar, and correcting lots of chords in minor instead of major chords. Therefore I had to work on my finale again from the software, and had to print another hard copy of my project that will be submitted to Mr.John. 

2. Dec 5th - Today in theory class, we mostly practiced our song individually because tomorrow is the performance day. I have printed the new version of my composition, and practiced with that sheet in order to memorize the melody as fast as I can.

3. Dec 6th - Today was the Performance Day. My mum came to school as my guardian watching my performance on playing the ABACA Composition. I was quite nervous because I was the 4th one to perform from the violin students, and the violin students were the first one to go. However I think I did a great job in my performance, because I was able to memorize the whole melody without any mistakes, and was also able to play the song without any squeaky sounds or out of tunes. Therefore I was satisfied with my performance today, and thought it was a great challenge for me to do the composition of music by myself, and being able to perform it in front of my mum.

  • Instrument Class:


1. Dec 4th - Since I took lots of time with Mr.John today for revising on my melody and chords, I didn't have instrument class today. Instead, during the instrument class session, I stayed in the theory room with my friends and Mr.John, and corrected the chords that I've mistakenly put above the notes.

2 Dec 5th - For the Final time, Mr.Sadrakh revised my melody, where in he gave me a lot of help in changing the melody into catchy ones and also changing the chords again into major chords to make the entire song a harmonic song. However it was a challenge for me to memorize the modified melody again, because the performance is tomorrow. Therefore I have to practice a lot at home today.

2. Dec 6th - It was the performance day today, so I didn't have any Instrument class today. While during the time, other students continued performing their melodies, and some students have also played additional songs in order to entertain the parents and the friends inside the classroom. Over all, I think the whole performance was a great success and a great challenge all of us had to face. 

Term 2 Week 5: Nov 26th - Nov 30th 2012

Topic: Music Analysis Test and continuation of MDW booklet!



  • Theory Class:

1. Nov 27th - Since our music analysis test was postponed last week, we had to do the assessment today. In my opinion, the test was quite easy, because the musical notation and symbols were the ones that I've already learned during the practice quiz last week. However for some questions it was quite confusing, because for example, one of the question was asking about 'Sforzando' with a given symbol, but the symbol was different from the one I've learned last week. Other than that, I thought the quiz was quite easy and not really challenging.

2. Nov 28th - Today Mr. John asked us to play our Rondo composition from him to just see our progression on preparing for our performance next week. However I didn't perform yet because I thought compared to other student's melody, my melody is not catchy and nice, and I wasn't prepared yet, so I've decided to practice well during the week ends in order to make better sound of my melody.

3. Nov 29th - Mr.John showed us our test results, where in I've got 3 mistakes. Two of them was a silly mistake because I miss read the note and didn't read the music sheet carefully, so I was not happy to myself with the careless mistakes I have done. For the last one wrong answer I had, it's actually the correct answer, and Mr.John corrected wrong for the question, so I could say that I have 2 mistakes that I could have not done it if I was more careful.



  • Instrument Class:

1. Nov 27th - I didn't play my violin much during the instrument class today, because after having the music analysis written test during the theory class, I was tired, and I wanted to relax myself with good songs, so I played piano and also heard others playing the violin and guitar.

2. Nov 28th - Today I played my Rondo composition in the instrument class, because from the theory class, I have realized that I have to practice much more until I can play it with good techniques and skills. Also, I began memorizing the song since the performance day was not far behind.

3. Nov 29th - After Mr.John showed us our test scores, he asked us to do the MDW booklet where in I also have to write reflections on what I've done for each music session. Therefore, we didn't have instrument class today, and instead we've continued on writing our reflections in MDW in the theory class. 

Term 2 Week 4: Nov 19th - Nov 23rd 2012

Topic: Practice quiz for the Music Analysis Written Test!




  • Theory Class:

1. Nov 20th - We were informed by Mr.John that we will be having a music analysis written test by Thursday, so we had a practice quiz by answering the questions about the symbols and notations written in a music sheet. It was quite hard because there were lots of many new musical notation that I've never seen before, such as the c clef symbol and its pitches, and the meaning of the symbol 'sfz,,,' which means sforzando. 

2. Nov 21st - Since tomorrow is the assessment day, we've had another practice quiz in oral, because we didn't have any music sheet to learn the notations and symbols. Yet, Mr. John still taught us some more notations, such as the long legato, crescendo, decrescendo, accents, slur, staccato and many other notations that either I've seen before, or the ones that I've never met before,

3. Nov 22nd - Actually today's supposed to be the assessment day for the written analysis test, but Mr.John kindly postponed the test into next week Tuesday. It was a good news for me, because this week I had many other assessments to do from other subjects. 


  • Instrument Class:

1. Nov 20th - In instrument class today I had another free time, so I played piano playing Schubert's Impromptu, and also learning other chords in guitar again from my friends who're learning guitar. It was fun because I had never learned guitar, and found it as a very interesting instrument these days.

2. Nov 21st - Today I played one of the suzuki #5 songs during the instrument class, because last week when I played the song, I wasn't quite good with it since it was the first time playing the new song. Since I had to improve my skills in playing the song, I've practiced playing it slowly at first and trying to catch the melody.

3. Nov 22nd - I've played my Rondo Composition today because I knew that next next week is the performance day of my ABACA Composition. And since we have to memorize our melody during the assessment, I've started practicing from today so that I don't need to memorize the whole melody just before the assessment day. 

Term 2 Week 3: Nov 12th - Nov 16th 2012

Topic: Submission of the Rondo Composition!



  • Theory Class:

1. Nov 13th - Since tomorrow is the Submission day of the Rondo composition, we've shown Mr.John our final draft for the ABACA Composition, and checked if he wants to modify some part or not. Also, I have realized that we're supposed to put the appropriate chords for the first note of each bar so that when one of the teacher supports our performance by playing the piano, they can play the chords as the background music while I play the melody with violin. 

2. Nov 14th - Today is the last day of music class for this week, since tomorrow is holiday. Therefore, I must had to finish my Rondo Composition by today, and had to submit the hard copy and the soft copy by today. Since I couldn't save my work from the laptop's final software, I've borrowed my friend Rilya's laptop in working on my finale and have printed my work during the snack time. Also for the soft copy, I have saved my work in USB and copied it in the computer placed in the Music Room, where all teachers can see our work whenever they mark our assessments. 


  • Instrument Class:

1. Nov 13th - I wanted to practice my Composition during the instrument class, but I haven't printed the hard copy of my work, and I didn't bring my laptop too, so I just watched others practicing their composition, like Matthew S. practiced his song with Mr.John helping out for the background music. It sounded really cool because the way Mr.John played the background music was very catchy, and Matthew's melody was very professional too.


2. Nov 14th - We didn't have instrument class today because after submitting my rondo composition in instrument class, all of us just wanted to stay in theory class and continue practicing on our Composition. So I stayed with my friends in the theory class and practiced my melody with violin. 

Term 2 Week 2: Nov 5th - Nov 9th 2012

Topic: Practice and the Assessment of singing the Broadway Song



  • Theory Class:

1. Nov 6th - Since this week (tomorrow and Thursday) is the assessment day of singing the Broadway music, we've started practicing in front of the class. Since there were other students who've performed today, me and my partner Pinka didn't get the chance to practice today. However, since we also didn't have enough time to practice, Mr.John allowed us to postpone our assessment day to Thursday, while others had to do it tomorrow.

2. Nov 7th - It was the first assessment day, where other students except for me, Pinka and Rilya performed for their real assessment. Rilya also postponed her assessment day to tomorrow since she had a serious sore throat and cough this week. Instead of having the assessment, the three of us gathered around together and practiced for singing the song by trying to memorize the whole lyrics by today.

3. Nov 8th - Finally it was the assessment day for me, Pinka and Rilya. Me and Pinka went first, but for the first trial at the last part of the song, we've had a mistake in singing the wrong lyrics, so we've decided to consider that as a practice and sang one more time after Mr.John gave us another chance. This time, me and Pinka were able to sing it successfully without any mistakes in lyrics or misreading the pitch or the one of the song.




  • Instrument Class:

1. Nov 7th - For the instrument class today, I've played piano from the instrument classroom, because mr.Sadrakh was busy teaching others playing their violin with the homework that was given from him (playing a number from suzuki book). Since I was bored, I played the piano with my friend Rilya, and I've played one of Schubert's Impromptus that I enjoy playing.

2. Nov 8th - Today I still didn't get the chance to get checked by mr.sadrakh, but I opened up my violin and played one of the suzuki #5 songs in order to be ready to get checked by my instrument teacher. 

3. Nov 9th - Since it was my assessment day for singing the Broadway song, I had free time in Instrument class, where in I've played piano again with my friends, and learned how to play chords in Guitar, such as G, A, C and E chords. 

Term 2 Week 1: Oct 29th - Nov 2nd 2012

Topic: Start of the Term with the Introduction of the Rondo Composition



  • Theory Class:

1. Oct 30th - It was the first day of Music class after Term 2 started. Since Mr.John was out of country and haven't came back, Mr.Herry substituted our class today. Firstly, he explained us about the assessments and projects we will face during the term, and what kind of different music styles we are going to learn for term 2. He explained us about the Rondo Composition we will be starting to compose in an ABACA format. We have started composing our draft melody by starting with the first 'A' and 'B' part. It didn't took long time for me to compose the first 16 bars of the song, but I wasn't sure if it is a good melody since it was the first time I've ever made the professional composition. Also, Mr.Herry told us that we will be singing any Broadway song in either pair or alone next week. So I paired up with my friend Pinka and researched for the appropriate song we can sing for the assessment.      

2. Oct 31st - Mr.Herry still substituted us in theory class today. At fist we've talked about the history of the Broadway song, and some big examples such as the 'Sound of Music'. Since I was paired up with Pinka, we've discussed about the song we will be singing next week, where in we've decided to sing 'On my Own' from the Broadway titled 'Les Miserables'. We knew this song because it was played in a TV series 'Glee', and we thought the melody is very nice, so we've decided to sing this song. After we've decided our song, we've continued doing our Rondo Composition by completing the 'C' part, where in our draft is finished. 

3. Nov 1st - Mr.John was finally back by today and so we had to explain about what we've done with Mr.Herry past 2 days. We've told him that we're done with our Rondo Composition draft sheet, and that we've chosen the song that we will be singing during the Broadway song assessment next week. There Mr.John told us that we can use the Karaoke version of the song to sing or to play the instruments that we can play for our background melody. Me and PInka have decided to use the Karaoke version, because it is easier for us to concentrate if we use the background song that is already provided for us. 


  • Instrument Class:

1. Oct 30th - Since Mr.John was absent, the guitar student didn't have any substitute teacher for their instrument class, so during the instrument class today, Mr.Herry asked Mr.Sadrakh to look after us during the Instrument class inside the Theory classroom. There, Mr.Sadrakh gave us free time to play any instruments so I played piano alone with the song I memorized and learned from my lesson for the whole session.

2. Oct 31st - Today Mr.Herry looked after us during the Instrument Class, where he gathered all of us around and asked us to bring our instruments. After gathering around with our instruments, Mr.Herry taught us about many different ways of making harmonic sounds with different instruments. He first demonstrated us an example by making a simple song and asking the violin students to play first, and the guitar students to follow, and the piano students to go afterward. It was fun of how we made different sounds with only on simple song, and I've realized that I can use that method in my Rondo Composition

3. Nov 1st - Mr.John was back today, so we had our own instrument classes today. However since it was the first time we've ever had our separated instrument class, we didn't play violin at all and just talked about what we've done during the holiday, and the vacations we've had during the one week holiday. 

2012년 10월 22일 월요일

Week 12 videos


  • Portnoff's Concerto for the Romantic music assessment 




  • Portnoff's Concerto for the Romantic music assessment 


Week 11 videos


  • Portnoff's Concerto for the Romantic music assessment 1






  • Portnoff's Concerto for the Romantic music assessment 2


Week 12: Oct 15-19, 2012

Topic: Assessment day for Romantic music!

Reflection Question: - What have I learned?
                                - What kind of challenges did I face?
                                - How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:

1. Oct 16th- Today was the first day of Romantic music assessment. Guitar students went first, then piano students followed, and the violin students went for the last. Since there were many violin students, we made an order for who is going to go first. Eventually, I became the last one to go, however since we didn't have time, I had to do my assessment tomorrow.

2. Oct 17th- I went for the last one who did the assessment today. Since I've memorized the whole song, I was able to finish my song successfully, and I am satisfied with my result, because I got a full mark for my score.

3. Oct 18th- Since today is the last day of music for this term, we didn't do anything special, but just did the MDW by filling all reflections inside.


  • Instrument Class:

1. Oct 16th- Since it was our assessment day, we didn't have time to do our instrument class, therefore we didn't have one today.

2. Oct 17th- There were only few students who performed today including me, so we had time to have instrument class, however we had free time, so we didn't play any songs with our instruments and just relaxed.

3. Oct 18th- It was the last day of music, so we had other free time, but this time we still did our MDW continued from our theory class, since it's last due date is next Monday. 

Week 11: Oct 8-12, 2012

Topic: Practice for the assessment of the Romantic music

Reflection Questions: - What have I learned?
                                 - What kind of challenges did I face?
                                 - How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:

1. Oct 9th- Since next week is the assessment week for us to perform the Romantic music with our instruments, each one of us practiced in front of our class. I didn't practice today in class, because we didn't have enough time for all of us to perform, however I listened to my friends performance and commented on their progress of practicing. 

2. Oct 10th- We practiced for the final time individually. We didn't particularly performed in front of the class, but we rather practiced all together with our friends, and commented whether we are well prepared or not. 

3. Oct 11th- We had a worksheet about G clefs and Bass clefs, so that we can fully understand the difference between the two of them. It was quite easy for me, because I've learnt it before, unlike I had to understand more about scales and chords.


  • Instrument Class:

1. Oct 9th- During the instrument class, I practiced my Romantic song that i will be performing next week. Mr.Sadrakh told me to memorize my song, because he said I can get a better score if I can play as I memorize it. Therefore I will try memorizing the song during the week ends.

2. Oct 10th- Today other violin students finalized their song for their assessments, since I've already finalized my song with my teacher yesterday.

3. Oct 11th- I played the song for the last time, but I haven't memorized the song, therefore I have to practice for the whole week ends to memorize the whole song, and successfully perform next week. 

2012년 10월 9일 화요일

Week 10 videos

1. G major scale 3 octaves


2. Romantic music (Portnoff's Concerto)


Week 9 videos

1. Romantic music (Portnoff's Concerto)


2. Suzuki #5 No.1


Week 8 videos

1. Romantic Music (Portnoff's Concerto)


2. Suzuki #5 No.1


Week 7 videos

1. G major scale 3 octaves


2. Suzuki #5 No.1


Week 6 videos

1. G major scale 3 octaves


2. Suzuki #5 No.1


Week 4 no videos (holiday), Week 5 videos

1. G major scale 3 octaves

2. Suzuki #5 No.1


Week 3 videos

1. G major scale 3 octaves


2. Suzuki #5 No.1

Week 2 videos

1. G major Scale

2. Suzuki #5 No.1


Week 1 videos

1. A major Scale

2. Suzuki #5 No.1


2012년 10월 8일 월요일

Week 10: Oct 2nd~4th 2012

Topic: Practice assessment and Intervals

Research Questions: 1. What have I learned?
                                2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                3. How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:


1. Oct 2nd- As I promised with my classmates and Mr.John last week, I played the Romantic song I chose and practice during the week ends. I'm still practicing for the half of the song, so I only played until there, but my friends said that it was nice, so I practiced more on the song today. 

2. Oct 3rd- Rilya, Matthew S and Darren played a song "Kiss Me" with their guitars, and RIlya sang the song for entertainment. It was very nice and all of was liked the song. We also had a review on intervals where Mr.John gave us a worksheet about intervals, inversions and scales, so Me, Rilya and Pinka became one group to answer those questions.

3. Oct 4th- We reviewed on intervals for the last time with the bass clefs. It was not as familiar as it was for the G clefs for me, because violin only have G clefs for all notes. 


  • Instrument Class:


1. Oct 2nd- I practiced the half part of the Romantic Song, without legato. I was able to play it quite well since I practiced a lot during the week ends, so I decided to try practicing with legato from now on. 

2. Oct 3rd- I didn't do much today, because Mr.Sadrakh checked the other students who were not checked yesterday, but since I was checked already, I just practiced the song by myself.

3. Oct 4th- I did the G major scale since I didn't play it for a long time. And while playing the song, I also tried using legato, but for some of them I had wrong legatos, so I decided to practice more that that during the week ends. 

Week 9: Sept 23rd~27th 2012

Topic: Intervals and practice for the assessment

Research Questions: 1. What have I learned?
                                2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                3. How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:


1. Sept 25th- Mr.John taught us about the intervals in basic scales such as the C major scale. We learned from the 1st interval until the 7th interval. However it was quite challenging for me to do the other intervals with different scales that has flats and sharps, because the notes change in the intervals for those scales. Therefore I think I need more practice, which I think it will help me to review all the other scales and chords I've learnt previously.

2. Sept 26th- The piano students and the guitar students played their songs for assessments, even though some of them were not fully prepare, therefore I think I also have to practice my song faster, because Mr.John informed the violin students that we are also going to perform tomorrow just for practice.

3. Sept 27th- We reviewed about the intervals with Mr.John and Mr.Herry. Since Mr.Herry wanted to know if all of us understood about the intervals, he tested each one of us just for fun, and taught us the hard part of the intervals that we usually get confused with. Also, Mr.Herry explained us about the blog reflection, so the violin students had no time to perform, and we had to perform next week.



  • Instrument Class:


1. Sept 25th- I tried practicing the Beethoven's concerto, however the melody was not familiar with me. So I asked Mr.Sadrakh to suggest me a familiar song, so that it will be not too challenging for me to understand the melody.

2. Sept 26th- My friend from violin class gave me a song made by Portnoff. He was also one of the famous composers during the Romantic time, and since it was quite short, I decided to play his concerto for my assessment. 

3. Sept 27th- The song was quite familiar, so I was able to practice the half part of the song, even though I got some mistakes in few notes, and didn't use legato yet, since I'm still getting to understand the whole melody of the song. 



Week 8: Sept 17th~21st 2012

Topic: Review for the scales and chords test

Reflection Question: 1. What have I learned?
                               2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                               3. How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:


1. Sept 18th- After we've done with our test about scales and chords, we firstly reviewed on scales and chords, and Mr.John called use one by one and taught us again the ones that we got mistakes during the test. I had a silly mistake in putting the sharps and the flats in the scales, since I put them in the first note where it is necessary, but forgot to put them again in the last note. I was careless with that part, so from now on I am going to be more careful with the small mistakes, and check my answers again before submitting the paper.

2. Sept 19th- Mr.John told us our scores for the quiz we did last week. I think I got a 9.6 for my final score, so I was happy because even though I had few small mistakes, Mr.John still gave me a good score. Also, he informed us that we have to choose a song to prepare for out next assessment, which is playing a Romantic music with out instruments.

3. Sept 20th- While explaining to us again about the scales and chords, Mr.John also taught us how to draw a G clef properly, since some of us were not able to draw it in the proper line.



  • Instrument Class:


1. Sept 18th- I didn't do much today, because for today Mr.Sadrakh only checked other students, who he didn't check last week. So I just practiced myself with my song and the G major scale.

2. Sept 19th- I played the Suzuki No.1 the full song. Now I think I can finalize playing this song, since I've practiced this song for a long time. Therefore, I'm going to start practicing the song of the Romantic Era by researching them first.

3. Sept 20th- I've chosen my song as one of the Beethoven's Concertos, however I am not yet familiar with it, so I think I will need much time to prepare them all until October 17th. 

2012년 10월 7일 일요일

Week 7: Sept 10th~14th 2012

Topic: Quiz about scales and chords!

Reflection Questions: 1. What have I learned?
                                 2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                 3. How can I improve it next time?




  • Theory Class:


1. Sept 11th- Mr.John was absent today, so the test was postponed to tomorrow. With Mr.Herry, we reviewed our lessons on major, minor, harmonic and melodic scales with dominant 7th, 1st and 2nd inversions, to make sure we understand everything that we learned previously. From today, I was able to understand better about the scales, and was able to memorize most of the sharps and the flats, but I think I need to practice more, so that I can fully memorize and will not get confused for the quiz tomorrow.

2. Sept 12th- We had our test on scales and chords today. It was quite challenging, because there were lots of relative scales of major and minor. If I can improve it next time, I will study more on the relatives, so that I can understand the relationship between the major and the minor scales.

3. Sept 13th- After the exam, we had our free time on our music theory class, so I played piano with my friends with the classic book that was placed on top of the grad piano, and also played a Western Song that I could play, and my friends sand the song for me.


  • Instrument Class:


1. Sept 11th- I reviewed the G major scale, and finalized with Suzuki no.1 part 1 until part 2. Now I'm able to play the scale faster, and used legato for the song.

2. Sept 12th- We didn't have instrument class today because we had our test on scales and chords for both sessions.

3. Sept 13th- I haven't chose the song for Romantic song, but Mr.Sadrakh suggested me to pick one of Beethoven's violin concertos, so I'm going to research on his music pieces during the week ends. 

Week 6: Sept 3rd~7th 2012

Topic: Submission of a booklet about a composer.

Reflection Questions: 1. What have I learned?
                                 2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                 3. How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:


1. Sept 4th- Actually we had to submit our booklet about a famous composer today, however Mr.John postponed the due date into tomorrow, so I was able to design my work with more colors and different fonts of titles and contents. Since we had to make a booklet about a composer that we chose for the power point presentation, I had to make a booklet about him again. It was easier for me to finish the work, because almost all of the information about Chopin was already cited in my presentation. However, even though I'm done with my information, and finished summarizing all of them, I still needed to decorate my work, and gather all papers to make a book. Since I have one more day to prepare the project, I will do it today, and submit it on time tomorrow.

2. Sept 5th- I submitted the booklet today on time so I was relieved. Also, Mr.John taught us about dominant 7, 1st inversion and the second inversion of a scale. It helped me to review all the scales we've learnt before, because to make dominant 7, 1st inversion and 2nd inversion, we have to know the first, third, fifth and the seventh note to make a chord. 

3. Sept 6th- We did the practice quiz on scales and chords, because Mr.John announced that we are going to have a test on scales next week. Even though I know how to write a scale with inversions and chords, I still need to practice more on the scales of sharps and flats, because I don't remember all the places where sharps and flats should be place in.


  • Instrument Class:


1. Sept 4th- I played the Suzuki #5 no.1 part 1 until part 2 today. Since there were only few classes i attended on the instrument class due to many assessments, I had to practice more because I had lots of mistakes.

2. Sept 5th- I practiced the song again, so I was able to play the song better than yesterday, however I haven't practiced with legato, so I will practice with it again today.

3. Sept 6th- Mr.Sadrakh asked me to research on either Schubert of Beethoven's Concertos on violin, because we have an assessment on playing one of the Romantic Music on October.

Week 5: Aug 27th~31st 2012

Topic: Presentation about the Romantic Era

Reflection Questions: 1. What have I learned?
                                 2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                 3. How will I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:


1. Aug 28th- It was the Lebaran Holiday pass 2 weeks, therefore we didn't have music class during the time. After the Lebaran Holiday, we did a presentation about the Romantic era, and a famous composer at that time. We were divided into 4 groups, 2 with 3 people, and another 2 with 2 people. I was grouped with Rilya and Pinka. We decided to present about Chopin, since he was one of the greatest musician and composer during the Romantic Era. We didn't have time preparing after the holiday, so we had to prepare during the holiday. I think we did great with our presentation, because we were able to answer all the questions that Mr.Herry and Mr.John asked, and we were able to convey all information we researched on about both history of Romantic Era and the biography of Frederic Chopin. 

2. Aug 29th- Other students who didn't have time to present yesterday presented today. They had a presentation about Tchaikovsky and Schubert. From my classmates, I've learnt lots of information about composers during the Romantic Period, and also learned what kind of music were composed during the Romantic Era.

3. Aug 30th- After all of us were done with our presentation about the history of Romantic Era and different composers during that time, Mr.John informed us about the other assessment we have to submit next week, which is the similar topic as the previous assessment about the famous composers during the Romantic Era. This time it will be individual work, therefore I think I will need more effort on my project.


  • Instrument Class:


1. Aug 28th- We didn't have instrument class today, because we used our whole session on the presentation.

2. Aug 29th- I reviewed the G major scale, and I was able to do it with correct notes, even though I was not able to play it fast. Also, Mr.Sadrakh told me to practice the Suzuki book until the second part, because I was able to play the first part as I practiced. 

3. Aug 30th- I played the whole part of the Suzuki book #5 no.1, but since part 1 and 2 have different melodies, I think I need more practice on the second part. 

2012년 10월 1일 월요일

Week 4: Aug 14th 2012

Topic: Assessment for the Western Song

Reflection Question: 1. What have I learned?
                                2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                3. How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:

1. Aug 14th= We had our assessment for the Western song, where I sang Ne-yo's 'So Sick'. My friend Rilya helped me with the chords on guitar instead of Mr.John for the background music, so I think I got less nervous, since there was my friend beside me. The song was quite long, so it was quite challenging for myself with memorizing the whole lyrics. Overall, I think I did well with my assessment. If I have this kind of assessment again next time, I will improve in preparing the song by practicing for more times. And all of us had to do the assessment today, because from tomorrow, it is the Lebaran Holiday, which will last for 2 weeks. 

  • Instrument Class:

1. Aug 14th= We didn't have instrument class today because we continued having assessment of the Western Song for two sessions, since we don't have time to continue them tomorrow,because it's the Lebaran holiday.

Week 3: Aug 6th~ Aug 10th 2012

Topic: Rehearsal for the Western Song.

Reflection Question: 1. What have I learned?
                                2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                3. How can I improve it next time?



  • Theory Class:


1. Aug 7th= From this week, Mr.John cam back, so he became our music theory teacher. Since he wanted to know what we learned until now, we reviewed all scales- the major sharps, major flats, minor, minor harmonic and melodic- that we learned with Mr.Herry for last 2 weeks. He also informed us that we are going to have an assessment on solo singing of a western song next week, so I think I'm going to have another challenge as I had during the Indonesian traditional song assessment.

2. Aug 8th= Mr.John asked us about what song we are going to sing, and if we're going to use our own instrument or the karaoke version. From last night I was thinking which song I'm going to sing for my next assessment, and I decided to sing Ne-yo's 'So Sick', because I liked the singer and the song since 2 years ago. And I think the melody is not that hard, and it's rhythmic though it's not a very fast song, so if I practice a lot, I will be able to conclude this assessment with good performance.

3. Aug 9th= We did the rehearsal for our song, and I asked help from Mr.John to play the chords for my song, because I thought it's too simple if I only use the karaoke version. So I copied the chords of the song and asked Mr.John if he can help me to play it for me for the real assessment. He agreed and played the song for me. However since I'm not used to singing with guitar as the background sound, I think I need to practice more with my friend, who can play the guitar.



  • Instrument Class:

1. Aug 7th= During the weekends, I practiced the G major scale 2 octaves and the first song of Suzuki #5 no.1. Now I can play Suzuki well with legatos, so Mr.sadrakh asked me to play with legato. However I think I need to practice more for G major scale 2 octaves, because I always get the wrong notes. At least I think I got better in my position, because I feel more comfortable now without feeling any pressure when I tried reaching the highest note. 

2. Aug 8th= I think I've improved with the G major scale 2 octaves, because I practiced mainly on scales yesterday. Even though I had to play for each notes, I think I got the correct sound. Therefore, from now on, I am going to practice little bit faster with the correct notes I got when played each one of them.

3 Aug 9th= We didn't have our instrument class today because we had our rehearsal on the Western Song for the whole session. 

Week 2: July 30th~Aug 2nd 2012

Topic: Minor Sharp (harmonic and melodic) and Rayuan Pulau Kelapa

Reflection Questions: 1. What have I learned?
                                 2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                 3. How can I improve it next time?


  • Theory Class:


1. July 31st= Mr.Herry taught us about the minor sharp, natural, harmonic and melodic. Harmonic and Melodic are part of the minor sharp scales, however there are few differences from the normal scales. Harmonics are the same minor sharp scales, except that there's a flat added in the 6th note. While, Melodics are the scales with 6th and 7th notes added with flats when rising, and having the natural notes only for them again when it goes down. Therefore, minor, harmonic, and melodic all have different sounds, where I had to challenge myself to remember where to put the flats. To improve it, I think I need to try playing them with either piano or violin.

2. Aug 1st= We practiced the Indonesian traditional song called 'Rayuan Pulau Kelapa', because tomorrow is our assessment for this song. Since it was just a practice, Mr.Herry allowed us to sing it with a partner, so I sang with my friend, Rilya. It was quite challenging for me to memorize the lyrics since it was in Indonesian language, but as my friends and teachers gave me some advises on understanding the meaning of the lyrics, so that it is easier for me to memorize them.

3. Aug 2nd= We did the assessment on the song "Rayuan Pulau Kelapa". It took quite a time for me to memorize the lyrics last night, but luckily I memorized them all, and I think I was able to finish my assessment successfully, because I sang with loud voice, and I think my pronunciation was also not bad. Therefore Mr.Herry also complemented that even though I'm not Indonesian, I was able to sing the song very well.



  • Instrument Class:


1. July 31st= I played the G major scale 1 octave during the instrument class, and tried playing the song from Suzuki #5 no.1. Actually Mr.Sadrakh offered me to do the G major scale 2 octaves, however I never learned how to play the 2 octave scales, so for today I only played the 1 octave G major scale. Also, the song was still quite hard for me, because there are many legatos for some notes. At first when I tried practicing without the legato, I was able to play it well, but then when I tried playing with legato, I got many wrong notes, and the sequence of the bow was wrong for many times.

2. Aug 1st= I practiced the Suzuki song yesterday night, so I was able to play it quite better, but I didn't use the legato yet, because I thought it would be messier and harder to perform if I use the legato from the first time. However I will try to practice tonight with the legato, even if the bowing sequence is not really accurate.

3. Aug 2nd= Mr.Sadrakh taught me about the G major scale 2 octaves. However I was not able to do it well with right note or right position, because it was the first time for me to do the 2 octaves. And since, I had to reach really high for the highest note in E string, it was hard for me to get the right note, and I think I put too much pressure on my shoulder because I was stressed with the position. Therefore I need to practice more on that and try to get relaxing position while doing the scale.

2012년 9월 29일 토요일

Week 1 - July 23rd~27th 2012

Topic: Major Sharp, Major Flat & Indonesian song, 'Rayuan Pulau Kelapa'

Reflection Questions: 1. What have I learned?
                                 2. What kind of challenges did I face?
                                 3. How can I improve it next time?


  • Theory Class:
1. July 24th = It was the first day of music from the whole 9th grade year. Our theory teacher is supposed to be Mr.John, however he was out of town for 2 weeks, so Mr.Herry substituted us from today. He told us about what we are going to learn during the term, such as the singing assessment, booklet assessment and presentation assessment. He also mentioned that we are going to have an assessment on playing our instruments after the Lebaran holiday. I was half excited and half nervous with the assessments and the topics we are going to learn, and knew how many challenges I have to face for each one of them. After the explanation about the assessments, my classmates were divided into 3 different instrument classes, which are the strings, guitars, and the pianos. I was included in sting class, since I learned violin from when I was in grade 4.

2. July 25th = It was the second day of our music theory class. Mr.Herry taught us the major sharps including the natural scale. The natural scale is C major, where there are c,d,e,f,g,a,b,c notes in its scale. We also learned from 1 to 5 major sharps, which are the  G major, D major, A major, E major and the B major scales.I had to challenge with the sharps, because it was the first time for me to learn scales.

3. July 26th = We reviewed about the major sharps, and learned the Major flats too. I learned that the sequence of the flats are B flat, E flat, A flat, D flat and G flat. I had to challenge myself again with the flats for the next scale, because it has different sequence from the sharps, and different place to put the flats. Therefore I think I need to study more at home to be prepared for the test we're going to have after the Lebaran holiday. Mr.Herry also distributed the Indonesian song called 'Rayuan Pulau Kelapa', and informed that our first assessment is going to be singing assessment on the Indonesian traditional song.



  • Instrument Class:


1. July 24th = It was the first day of our instrument class. I chose to be in string class, because played violin since the 4th grade. We didn't do much today because it was our first day, so Mr.Sadrakh asked us to just prepare a scale and a song from the Suzuki book.

2. July 25th = Since it was still the 1st week of the term, I think I was not really careful with my instrument, so I forgot to bring my violin. I was not able to play both the scale and my song. However Mr.Sadrakh  let me borrow one of his violin, so I played the A major scale with others.

3. July 26th = I had to play the first song of my Suzuki book #5. Since the song was long, Mr.Sadrakh divided into two different parts and asked me to practice the first part without the legato, because i I use the legato, it will be more confusing for me to get the right notes, and I'll be less concentrated with the melody of the song.