Technic Today, Part 1: Conductor (Piano Acc.) Book

This book gives you a practical way to deepen the technical foundation students build with Band Today, Part One, without requiring additional rehearsal time or competing with concert repertoire. The piano accompaniment makes the exercises engaging for students while providing you a clear way to guide intonation, tone production, and fundamental technique across the ensemble.

The exercises feel purposeful rather than rote, grounded in musical context through the piano accompaniment. Students experience technique not as drill but as the foundation for the pieces they're learning.

This book is essential for band directors using Band Today, Part One who want a structured approach to reinforcing scales, intervals, articulation, and tone control. It works equally well for directors using other intermediate method books seeking supplementary technical material organized by skill level.

• Use the piano accompaniment to anchor pitch and harmonic context; students hear where each exercise fits tonally rather than playing in isolation.
• Establish a routine of tackling one or two exercises per rehearsal rather than working through the book sequentially in a single session; spacing the technical work helps retention and prevents fatigue.
• Have sections work through exercises independently while you focus the full band on those needing the most support, rotating your attention across instrumentation.
• Encourage students to practice exercises at home using a metronome or the accompaniment; technical mastery requires work beyond rehearsal.

Integrate these exercises into your warm-up routine or open rehearsals with technical focus; the 88-page book provides enough material to sustain a full year of supplementary work. Work through progressively challenging exercises in tandem with advancing through Band Today, Part One repertoire, reinforcing the technical demands of each new piece.

• Major and minor scale fluency across multiple keys
• Interval recognition and intonation in harmonic context
• Consistent articulation and note separation
• Breath control and phrase shaping
• Rhythmic accuracy and subdivision at various tempos
• Dynamic control and tone production at different volumes