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| Rehearsal Etiquette In the rehearsal process there are many un-written laws, commonly broken by the novice. This results in alienation by the other musicians who resent having their time wasted. The key to a good rehearsal is preparation. Ideally, the chart and/or tape are prepared in advance, and the musicians have a chance to familiarize themselves with the material before the rehearsal. If an opportunity like this presents itself, the student who neglects to listen to the tape and/or look over the chart before hand puts himself at a distinct disadvantage. Many times rehearsals are not held under ideal conditions and no advance materials can be made available. This is why you really need to hone your reading skills. If you find yourself, unprepared, surrounded by competent players, with an unreadable chart in front of you, do not panic. Patience is required. Take a deep breath and look carefully at the chart. Try to decipher as much as possible before asking any questions. When you do ask your question, remember to wait for a natural pause in the rehearsal process. Try not to interrupt the leader as he is explaining something to someone else. Never stop the band to ask your question. Simply wait until the leader has finished his run through even if you have to lay out. Try not to ask a question that you could figure out for yourself if only you thought about it for a minute. Never ask one of the other musicians a question while he or she is concentrating on their own part. LISTEN! If you can play parts of the arrangement, do so, but if you are unsure of what to play, don’t clutter up the arrangement with vain attempts to fake it. Do what you can, but stay out of the way. Use your ears, but by all means follow the chart. Someone took the time to write it. Respect that and try to let them hear their vision come to life. Only after executing the arrangement, as it is written, are you free to comment on how it might be improved. LISTEN! Your first task is to decipher the form of the arrangement and you want to make sure you are not getting lost. Check for repeats, and quirky form notes like codas, etc.. Keep a highlighter pen handy to mark any such events. You should also have a pencil at the ready. LISTEN! Buy and bring a music stand, unless you are lucky enough to work some place where they provide them. When you set up your stand, make sure you can see the music and the conductor (or leader). If necessary re-arrange your space to allow for this. This is very important! Be on time and have all your necessary equipment. If you need additional time to familiarize yourself with the chart, come early. If you will be late, call. You may save yourself the cost of a fine. Organize your book. Unless there is a set play-list, your book should be organized according to your needs. If there are a lot of charts, try alphabetizing them. If you only need a few, put the others somewhere safe or return them to the arranger, but don’t carry around a huge pile of paper that you don’t need. Some players arrange their book using a standard “loose-leaf” notebook. They prepare the charts so that the pages lay properly facing each other, minimizing page turning, and their books stay nice and neat. They can always find the chart they need when they need it. I recently cleaned out a player’s book and found it to be full of irrelevant material, including personal items. Many of the pages had never been taped together, and this particular player was not using the “loose-leaf” system. The result was a mess of papers in no particular order. It became obvious to me that this player had not opened their book to study it. Had they tried, they wouldn’t have known which pages went with which. As the person who carefully created all of these charts, I couldn’t help but feel insulted that this musician gave such little regard for the condition of the material that I had entrusted to them. Remember, the book is loaned to you. It is still the property of it’s creator. Try to respect the work that went into it and keep it in good condition. Keeping it organized is your best way of making it a useful tool. Consult it often. Clean it out when it needs it, and avoid using it as a storage area for non-related items. |
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