Junior High Band
Testing Tips

Give Major and Minor Scales Tests

We used the major scales extensively in the warm-up before rehearsals to practice tone production, articulation, and tuning (see Warm-Up Tips), we also played through all the scales we knew every day in preparation for the quarterly scales test.

The scales test each quarter was used to re-seat the sections. The quarterly scales tests are listed below in concert key:

Major and Minor Scales Tests

Some teachers give students scale sheets with fingerings. Even if the sheets are only intended for practice, they can be a disservice to the students. The fingerings become a crutch and some students never learn to read the notes. Requiring the students to play playing tests without having the fingerings written below the notes can help them internalize the fingerings. (See Scale Sheets)

Video Disclaimer

The attached videos are not perfect examples of how each tune should be played. They are recordings of junior high students, some of whom have had their instruments for only a few months. Also, they are not professional recordings. They were taken by band parents using home equipment and naturally focusing on their own children.

I include them for two reasons: (1) To give you an idea of what the arrangements are like, and (2) To illustrate the kind of performance you can expect from your junior high students.