Shaw Strings Studio Recital 2019

I’ve been quiet around here lately, haven’t I? When I get into recital season, I tend to buckle down and focus on the tasks at hand. Now that my annual recital is done, I wanted to share some of the planning and special moments from this year’s performance with all of you! Let’s get some of the stats out of the way first, shall we? 

·      38 performers – Four of which were violists! This is only two thirds of my current studio and I’m hopeful some of the students who sat out this year can join in next year! 

·      Wide variety of repertoire with selections from Suzuki book 1 to solos like Accolay’s Concerto no. 1 and the first movement of Vivaldi’s Spring Concerto!

·      Group performance of six songs selected from Suzuki violin books 1 – 5 and Suzuki viola book 1. 

·      Special music performance from three students playing the first movement of Dvorak’s Terzetto in C. 

I’ve been holding an annual studio recital since 2013 and each year I am amazed by how my students raise the bar and bring a new level to their performance. My students who are now moving through intermediate and advancing repertoire started at this recital playing “Twinkle Twinkle”. Meanwhile, the students who are just starting out get a clear example of what their music practice can evolve into. All of my students get other performance opportunities through the year at departmental recitals or community performances, but the trajectory isn’t always as clear at those smaller events. This is why I love to get all my students together at least once a year so they can have a clear example of that progression fresh in their minds. I think it can be inspiring for all students, regardless of where they are on the spectrum. 

So what does your timeline look like for planning a recital? 

While the actual recital event is long enough to keep me at the venue all day, the planning process starts months in advance. When working with a large group of people you have to plan for a variety of schedule needs, understand some families are more organized than others and find a way to still anticipate all contingencies. For those inquiring minds who want to know more about my process in planning my studio’s recital, I’ve put together this rough timeline I try to follow as I get ready for my studio’s recital. Keep in mind my studio’s enrollment is typically between 60 and 65 students, so there are a lot of families and students I need to get information to and coordinate.

Four to Six Months Out

1.    Set the date as early as possible. 

a.    Before you can do this, you need to get in contact with your venue in advance and allow for delays. This particular year I had significantly slow response times from the venue I’ve been using for several years, which meant I got the date for the recital to students in February for a recital on June 1st. I still feel this is too late when you consider many parents may need to submit request for time off three to six months in advance. Give yourself some breathing room and aim to get your date set six months out. 

2.    Book your accompanist, if needed for your studio. 

3.    Share the date with students and their families.

a.    Send it in an email. 

b.    Post it on your website. 

c.    Create an event on your studio Facebook Page.

d.    Share it in print through your studio newsletter. 

4.    Decide if you will do a practice challenge leading up to your studio’s recital.

a.    In February I shared I was doing a 100 Day Practice Challenge with my students. Reflecting on that now, the 100 days of practice did not go as well in my studio as the 50 days of practice challenge we did last year. While a couple students accomplished the 100 day practice challenge, I found many more students and families checked out of the 100 days of practice early on. We’ll see where I am with it next year, but I’ll be weighing the pros and cons for our next recital. You can find the original blog post and resources for either a 50 day or 100 day practice challenge here.

Three Months Out

1.    Remind students and families of dates. 

a.    Using all methods mentioned above, periodically give your students reminders about the date and location that you’ve already shared. I tend to give reminders on social media every ten days or so. 

2.    Decide on special music, if you want any. 

a.    I try to have a unique performer or piece of music for each year’s recital. In the past I’ve done duets with fellow teachers, asked students who have graduated to come back for a spotlight solo and this year’s special music was the trio who performed the “Terzetto”. Be creative and think of ways you can use this to reflect your studio’s culture. 

3.    Share additional details. 

a.    Accompanist or Recital Fees: Decide if you will have any to pass along to students. Consider the cost of the recital venue, your reception costs, accompanist fees, the additional work required to put together a recital and any extra costs you may incur planning this event. While I do not have a recital fee for my students, I do ask them to contribute to the accompanist fee because I want my students and families to value our accompanist’s skill. Some other music schools and teachers I work with do have a recital fee in addition to their accompanist fee, both to help them cover the costs of a recital and to get students to commit to attending the recital. For other private music teachers, I would consider your individual studio and make the decision that makes the most sense for your particular situation. 

b.    Group Pieces: If you are performing some group selections, notify students and families at this time. My studio does a Suzuki Play Down, starting in our most advanced book and working our way down to "Twinkle Twinkle”. 

Two Months Out

1.    Assign recital repertoire. 

a.    Take your student’s current level into consideration as you assign repertoire. For example, my advancing students all knew their recital piece three months out from the recital so they could space out and plan their practice time. Students who are still in the beginning stages may learn a song or two in the month before a recital, so I might assign their piece closer to a month out from the recital. 

2.    Ask students and families for special needs in the program. 

a.    Do they have a parent who needs to work in the evening, but can hear their child play if they’re at the beginning of the recital? Is there a younger sibling who might not make it through the whole performance, so you want to program their big brother or sister early in the recital so they can hear them? Start to think about these needs and give parents a deadline to submit their program needs to you. 

3.    Draft the recital program. 

a.    I use the same template from year to year and start the process of plugging students into the program relatively early on. You can adjust up to the week before the recital, but I find this helps give you and parents plenty of time to proofread and correct any errors. 

4.    Draft your opening remarks. 

a.    I laugh as I write this, because without fail I end up forgetting half of these comments once I’m actually in front of the audience. But I still find it very useful to sit down and write what I would like to say. Keep in mind that anything you forget to include in the opening remarks and can be added to your closing comments, so don’t stress too much! 

5.    Continue to share the event through all communication avenues. 

a.    Post the date, time, location on your studio Facebook page. Share preparation plans through Instagram. Record a video with you saying all the details and post to all accounts and emails. Write the details on a bulletin board or in your studio. Send out emails with reminders. I try to slowly and steadily give more information once a week in a reminder email thread so families are not overwhelmed with ALL the information at the beginning and are receiving reminders once a week that the performance is coming!

b.    Facebook recently added a timeline feature to their events pages, which was a huge help to share the plan for the day of the recital.

One Month Out

1.    Review final details. 

a.    At this point, we’ve hopefully moved past the time, location and date so that we can address things like when to rehearse with the accompanist, review recital etiquette and attire and proofread the program together.

b.    Since I ask students to contribute a small finger food or dessert to our reception time, I start to share examples of what I’m bringing as well and what have been successful contributions in the past. 

2.    Post the recital program. 

a.    Once again, share through all communication avenues. Facebook, email and Instagram can provide students and families the opportunity to read through the program, check name spellings and song listings. Set a deadline for parents and students to submit any corrections. 

3.    Make final purchases for the recital. 

a.    This might be program paper, paper products, food or drink for the reception, decorations, any treats or rewards to be given to students, etc. If you are using online sources, give yourself a three or four week window to place your order and receive your product. Oriental Trading Company has some great music themed treats like pencils, stickers and percussion instruments! If you are purchasing products in person, buy your final purchases at least a week out from the recital. 

b.    Purchase and write individual note cards! Every year I try to give students a handwritten note with some thoughts about what we’ve done in the last year, ways I’ve seen them grow and what specific things I love about teaching them. This was particularly joyful for me to do this year and I believe it is a good activity for a teacher before a big event like this. It reminded me just how wonderful the students I get to work with are and it helped me keep my focus on their experience and celebrating their achievements. 

4.    Create a timeline for all assistants and volunteers helping you that day. 

a.    First you’ll have to find the areas you can delegate out and schedule in your timeline. I asked my friends and family who were helping to take care of picking up our lunch for the day, putting together the goody bags for my students, decorating the reception area, taking pictures and video for the day, setting programs out… Think of as many things as you can that you do not need to personally do and ask others to do them. This frees you up to work with your students and their families while knowing everything else is still being done. 

b.    Create a timeline with tasks outlined. This was a lifesaver for me this year! In your timeline show what tasks are being completed when and by who. In year’s past, I definitely struggled with communicating my expectations for the day to my husband and other helpers. But having a timeline really helped everyone stay on the same page and take care of their individual tasks. If you can, share this with your assistants in the week before the recital so they walk into the day with a clear idea of what will be going on. 

Day of Recital

1.    Relax and let the day happen! 

When I think of what I want my studio recitals to be like, I really strive to make it a special day for my students. I want them to have a day to celebrate that they’ve learned something this year. Something that is tricky and demanding, but they did it anyways. Of course I can be demanding in our weekly lessons, so I think of these recital days as my way of saying, “Look! This is what I wanted you to see in yourself. Look at what you’ve accomplished this year! See how far you’ve come?” I hope my students see that and celebrate their work and dedication. 

This year’s group of students really did a marvelous job and made me proud! As a result of all the planning I did ahead of the event I was able to enjoy the day of the recital and celebrate with my students more this year, which was one of my personal goals for this year. So bravo to all performers! If you’re a fellow music teacher, I know you understand the joy of seeing your students go forth and do great things. I hope you might have gotten some ideas for your own recital planning as well. If you’re  a student or studio family, I hope this give you a little insight into how our recital came together, too. I am so grateful for how the Shaw Strings Recital of 2019 turned out – Thank you to everyone for all your work and support in person and online as this came together for a fun day full of music!