Learn to Play Recorder

Lower Intermediate

Months 6-12: Key signatures, ornamentation, and Renaissance music

20 lessons in this level.

  1. 21. Key Signatures and the Circle of Fifths Why F major has one flat and G major one sharp.
  2. 22. C-sharp and the Key of D Major C-sharp adds the second sharp to your key signature inventory.
  3. 23. 3/4 Time and Waltzes Triple meter — the waltz, the minuet, the sarabande.
  4. 24. 6/8 Time and Compound Meter Compound duple: two big beats, each divided into three.
  5. 25. Sixteenth Notes Four notes to the beat.
  6. 26. Ornamentation Basics — Grace Notes Grace notes — the smallest ornament.
  7. 27. Ornamentation Basics — Trills The trill — the Baroque cadence's signature ornament.
  8. 28. Playing in G Major A whole lesson in one key — G major, the key of English country dance and most Renaissance recorder consorts.
  9. 29. Tied Notes and Syncopation Tied notes that cross bar lines, and the off-beat emphases of syncopation.
  10. 30. Introduction to Ensemble Playing Playing with another player or a recording.
  11. 31. High G and Extended Range High G — and a quick survey of the notes above it that complete the soprano recorder's two-octave-plus reach.
  12. 32. Baroque Dance Forms Allemande, courante, sarabande, gigue.
  13. 33. Renaissance Recorder Music The recorder's first great repertoire — sixteenth-century English and Continental dances, played with the modal restraint of the period.
  14. 34. Chromatic Notes and Accidentals The remaining cross-fingerings: G#, D#, Eb, Ab.
  15. 35. Introduction to Baroque Style and Affect The Baroque idea that each piece carries one emotional character.
  16. 36. Advanced Articulation Techniques Beyond too and doo: the historical articulation syllables that make a Baroque allegro dance.
  17. 37. Performance Preparation and Stage Presence Performance preparation as something you do with the recorder in your hand — three pieces, three preparations, one recital.
  18. 38. Musical Phrasing and Expression What a phrase is and where it ends.
  19. 39. Recorder Care and Maintenance The brief, practical chapter on keeping your instrument playing well.
  20. 40. Lower Intermediate Review and Next Steps The level closes with a four-piece recital — Renaissance, Baroque, folk, and a piece of your choice.