Shopping for music stuff at a surplus store like Ax-Man Surplus is a combination of a treasure hunt and working in Dr. Frankenstein's laboratory: You don't know what you are going to find and the results might be a little bit scary (but awesome). I always have a fun time at Ax-Man AND they have a teacher discount!

Here are 7 things that I've recently found at Ax-Man that I'm planning on using when teaching bucket drumming (there are about a billion other cool things at Ax-Man): 

They may power those blasted fidget spinners, but they also make fantastic fill for shakers. Louder, crisper, and more defined sound than rice. 

There's a lot of duct tape at Ax-Man, and I mean a lot. Like an entire aisle full. Pick up a big roll of the black, red, or classic grey and a couple rolls of colors/patterns for accents. I wrap sticks, safe guard sharp surfaces, and generally repair stuff with duct tape. You'll need a bunch.

#1 Complaint from teachers on Facebook: "Bucket Drumming is too loud." Not any longer. Grab some of these silicone rubber pads and toss them on top of the buckets to dampen the sound. And if you end up really liking the sound, just peel the paper off the back and stick them to the buckets!

   Foam Thing
+ Duct Tape
+ Wooden Dowel
                                ​
= Bass Drum Mallet

Still not convinced? Only $0.35 each!

Skinny ones for sticks, thicker ones for mallets (see #4). Bonus thing: check out the plastic dowels behind the wooden ones: They'd probably make great scratcher sticks.

Because your classroom doesn't need to look​ like a junkyard.

You go to plug in the ipod to the speakers...where's the cable?...it was just here...I need to play music for this next class...the students are walking in the door...  Don't let this happen to you, people! $1.95

Ok ok, you'll need to do a little teaching. But that's about all the energy I have left this time of year: a little. You can tell it's spring because the students start acting a little more wild, a little shorter on attention span...a little more squirrely. Add in concerts and grading and it's amazing any of us are still standing.

So you might be in the market for a lesson plan that works in just a single period and one you can use with multiple grade levels. And maybe one where you don't have to sweat too hard.

Maybe this groove can help...Below you'll find a lesson plan, play along track, video and song suggestions.

Turn on the video and have the students play along by watching their part on the screen and playing along. This is great because it's sometimes difficult to model more than one part at a time.

Next, turn on this play along track and have students play along. Download it here (don't forget to download the printable Lesson Plan too!)​

Then find some tunes and have the students play along with the music. They'll love it and offer a bunch of song suggestions. Once you 'safety check' their suggestions, turn on the song and play along.

​The tunes in the video include:

• We Found Love - Rihanna and Calvin Harris
• Hey Boy Hey Girl - Chemical Brothers
• Outside - Ellie Goulding and Calvin Harris

All are at 128 bpm, but this groove works at slow, medium, and fast tempo. Here are some other suggestions:

• I Feel Good - James Brown (kind of quick, but fun)
• Happy - Pharrell 
• Oye Como Va - Santana version

To learn more, be sure to check out the Summer Junkyard Percussion Workshop. In 2017, it will be held on June 22nd from 9:00-4:00 pm in Minneapolis, MN. Lesson plans, process, repertoire and more are all covered in a fun, hands-on way. And delicious food! There is more information on the Workshops page. Happy drumming!

Last month I was fortunate enough to present at the Minnesota Music Educators Association Midwinter In-Service Clinic. The topic was about movement activities for K-12 students in the music classroom. We had a great set of volunteers to perform the different activities. The handout is below and you can download it here. 

Note: A different version of this material was first published in Reverberations ​on AOSA's website. Re-used with permission.

Movement is critical to student rhythmic development. The coordination of gross motor skills builds both steady beat skills and establishes the foundation for audiating meter. The Rhythmische Ubung by Gunild Keetman is an excellent source for movement development.

The 78 pieces for body percussion cover a wide variety of meters, phrase lengths, and orchestrations and many of the pieces can be adapted for junkyard percussion. 
​
For example, #51 utilizes gross-motor movement and looks like this:

Taping sticks make them more durable, safer, and slightly quieter. They also look cooler. 

​Junkyard percussion is an extremely practical and musical performance ensemble for your students.

Unfortunately, some teachers who want to teach bucket drumming don’t feel comfortable enough to get started. Others just don’t know where to begin.

​Here are some solutions to those common problems.


1. “It’s too loud."  

It’s true: bucket drumming has a higher volume ceiling than other ensembles. But that should not deter you from teaching bucket drumming. Earlier this year, I described three simple/quick/cheap ways to reduce the volume of your classroom. With a little care, nobody should ever worry about hearing damage when teaching bucket drumming. ​
​

2. “I don’t know where to get the instruments."

Don’t worry, I do! Just use this shopping list to gather the instruments you need. The list explains what, where, and how much stuff you need. If you are looking for buckets on the cheap (or free) take a look at this list of bucket sources. ​