Marcus & Flower Mound Lessons - Brandon Kelly, instructor

For students 9th grade and beyond: As students continue to progress in their percussive studies, a worthwhile skill to develop is learning how to pick repertoire for themselves. That will involve knowing where to look, learning how to tell if a piece is level-appropriate, estimating the amount of time it will take to prepare, and determining if it fits your needs (solo & ensemble festivals, college auditions, solo competitions, etc.).

While I could pick your repertoire every time you need a new solo, students tend to be far more vested in their music-making when they are the one who sought out the music they are learning and performing. 

When you find a solo (or a short list of solos) that interests you, email me the name(s) of the solo and any relevant links/videos/etc. so that we can start a discussion in order to solidify your solo repertoire quickly and efficiently. Using email also has the added benefit of saving valuable lesson time. 

To ensure that students' choices are appropriate, however, the teacher should retain "veto power." The few categories that could cause a piece to be vetoed:

--- Not level appropriate (too hard or too easy for the student)
--- Does not fit the needs of the performance
--- Too similar to previous solos the student has prepared
--- Not musically substantive enough (I'm afraid that you don't get to play your favorite Taylor Swift song for S&E!)

Here are the places I recommend you start looking for solos. You might start with publishers' websites, as they have MANY composers' solos all in one place. You can also use Steve Weiss's MASSIVE list of solos to get some ideas. Youtube can also be an invaluable resource, as well as individual composers' websites because many composers are now relying on self-publishing. Finally, you can check out your favorite performers' websites to check out their repertoire lists and see what they are performing, as they are usually the first people to introduce new pieces to the world.