Toolkit: Eastern Shore Band Director Leon Frison

WOOD BLOCK I often use the wood block as a metronome. I find it very useful when I need students to really feel a tempo change. 

MIDI KEYBOARD I use this to enter pitches or rhythms. It’s very helpful when there is no recording of a piece. I can also aid students with troublesome sections.

STAFF WARS & FINALE Staff Wars is great for note recognition. The game increases in speed as students ID the notes, making for some good competitions. Finale helps me custom arrange and create pieces. We often play “Guess What?” with me notating melodies of pop songs that the students then play to reveal the title.

MINI TRUMPET I give my students real time examples of articulations, dynamics, and phrasing so they can better understand the intention of the composer or director.

TONAL ENERGY This app includes a very versatile metronome and great tuner. The tuner gets the full band in tune and helps train the students’ ears.