Alto Recorder

Alto Recorder

Yamaha YRA-28B Alto Recorder, Key of F

Teaching the Recorder is very rewarding. It is a simple instrument and you reap the rewards when students make progression and are stimulated to move forward.

First of all the recorder is a woodwind instrument of ancient lineage made without a reed. It is a forerunner to the flute but is end blown through a whistle mouthpiece. It is highly commended as the instrument for children to start out formal music tuition on as it is simplistic design allows young students to master it is basic technique with ease. Often humans start out on the recorder before moving onto another instrument. This makes learning that next instrument an more comfortable task as the musical cognition you learn on the recorder applies to whatsoever instrument you learn. The recorder comes in dissimilar sizes with the most mutual one being the descant recorder. Other recorders are the sopranino, treble (alto), tenor and bass.

As a teacher you need to:

1. give the student regular lessons either privately or in a little group eg a half hour weekly lesson.

2. commend a suitable tutor book to learn from. There is a assortment of tutor books to choose from so pick one to suit the age of the student. You may add other material as the need arises.

3. show the following on how to play the recorder to the student:

a. a suitable standing and sitting posture whilst playing.

b. a good position for keeping the recorder.

c. where to put the mouth on the end piece to give rise to a good sound.

d. how to construct a good sound – a great deal of beginners blow too hard, therefore fabricating a raucous and too highly pitched sound.

e. the position of the hands – the left hand will have to be on top, just like other wind instruments.

f. finger positions – fingers ought to be just above the holes- not assorted inches, or worse still, beneath the instrument.

g. the notes and how to finger them.

h. tonguing the notes – each note must be tongued to give a clear beginning to the sound. To tongue a
note you place the tongue on the roof of the mouth without delay above the back of the front teeth as in
pronouncing ‘doo’ or ‘too’.

4. instruct the student musical theory which includes

a. musical notation

- treble clef sign: this is placed at the beginning of each line of music you play.Some instruments like the recorder use this sign.

- stave: this is the 5 horizontal lines the music is written on.

- note names: a note is a sign to tell you what sound to finger and play.There are line and space notes.You instruct the student how to read these notes on the page and the use of words to support do not forget them eg use F A C E for the 4 space notes and Every Good Boy Deserves Fruit for the 5 line note taking the firstborn letter from each word as the notes of E G B D F. You tell students to get started from the bottom and go up.

- note lengths: notes have dissimilar time lengths and students in general learn them in the order of
(1, 2, 4, 3, 1/2, 1 1/2) counts or beats plus more as one progresses.

This may vary depending on the tutor book.

- bar lines: these are the vertical lines seen on the stave.

- double bar line: signifies end of piece.

- bar: this is area of music found amidst two bar lines.

- key signature: this is the sign shown by sharps, flats or not one thing telling you the key of the piece.
Students commence learning pieces in the key of C major (no sharps or flats) and the move onto pieces in G major (1 sharp) and F major (1 flat)

- time signature: this is the numbers found at the beginning of the piece after the clef sign and key signature.

b. musical terms

- dynamics (loud and soft playing): you instruct the student to read the terms and to play them on the recorder

- speed indications like Allegro (fast), Andante (walking pace), Lento (slow) plus more

Please note 3 and 4 will be taught step by step following the tutor book and to meet the need of the student.

5. inspire students of all levels (slow to fast learners) and learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic) You may play duets with private students and for groups tuition use duets, trios, quartets. Flashcards and games like dominos are interesting too.

6.encourage group playing peculiarly for the private students. They may have friends who play an instrument.

7. give hope or courage to regular practise starting with 5 minutes/day and increasing it as more notes etc are learnt.

8. give hope or courage to performance: the student may do this gradually by performing to 1 person basi and then family and friends and then in a concert situation. Have an annual concert and combine with other teachers if you wish.

Alto Recorder Picture

Alto Recorder Image

Alto Recorder Pic

Alto Recorder Photo

Most helpful client reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful.
Very affordable, beautiful instrument for adults
By Bruce Baskin
Recorders have a long history in music, dating back centuries to the Middle Ages, and there are a great deal of recorder ensembles today competent of playing music beautifully. There are five kinds of recorders ranging in size from the sopranino (which is the kind children play in schools, like I did) to the bass, which may be almost as tall as some of those kids playing the sopranino. The alto recorder is right in the middle in terms of length (18 inches) and tonal range.

This queer instrument from Yamaha is very affordable, and while it is made of resin, the ivory finish is rather attractive. The sound quality is pleasant and soft, even though it may be difficult to play for humans who do not have long fingers…no way could the intermediate child stretch long sufficient to cover all the holes. The alto recorder is unquestionably an adult’s instrument.

While handmade wooden recorders may without apparent effort cost over a thousand dollars, there are a heap of resin models of the instrument that come in under $50 that both look and sound nice. If you are beginning to play the recorder or merely a cost-conscious person, you’ll find a lot of value with any of Yamaha’s 20 series recorders (sopranino, soprano and alto only). The Yamaha 300 series of all five sizes is a little more spendy, but in general more beautiful than the 20 series and still far less highpriced than popular wooden recorders.

Just shop around a little and be conscious of the length of your fingers. In this case, size DOES matter.

16 of 16 humans found the following review helpful.
Great value
By Michael Collins
This is a terrifically mellow instrument for any adult. At almost half the price of most other similar instruments you will not be disappointed.

Adults wil like the lower tone than the soprano recorder.

11 of 11 persons found the following review helpful.
Beatiful item
By Raul Martinez
The design is so nice and neat that even the price seems wrong,if you are a beginner this item will be a good start.Thanks

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