The Hogwarts™ Foundations release is just days away and we are eager to share this incredible new addition with you soon! Like other releases in the Foundations series, Hogwarts Foundations will feature practical exercises for band and orchestra that focus on technique and warm ups, all set to movie soundtracks. This upcoming release, based entirely on John Williams’ score to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, has a few additional and incomparable special elements timed perfectly for the beginning of the new school year. 

We sat down with Foundations creator Brian Balmages to learn more about the exciting pedagogy behind Hogwarts Foundations including all the “firsts” that this particular series offers for both teachers and students, whether at the beginning or intermediate level.

Interview Highlights: 

• Hogwarts Foundations has over double the number of exercises from any previous series.
• Separate books available for beginning and intermediate students (both for band and strings).
• Beginning band includes three starting systems, aligning with virtually every method out there.
• Intermediate books work on a variety of ensemble and individual fundamentals important to address at the beginning of the year.
• Snare drum and keyboard percussion skills are included.
• All books are printable for all MakeMusic Cloud users (scores too!). Nearly 150 pages of band scores and 60 pages of strings.
• Some beginning teachers are using this as their main method with their usual print books as a supplement.
• An interactive “Musician’s Map” doubles as a completion chart for teachers and students.

While everyone knows the iconic music of Harry Potter, you have also been really excited about the unique pedagogical approach of this series. We’d love to hear more! Let’s start with the beginning and intermediate band books.

BB: Absolutely! One of the reasons I enjoy producing this in a digital environment is that we are able to do so much more than what is possible in a traditional print book. Take the beginning band book for example, which easily has enough exercises to cover the first several months of instruction! Over the years, I have heard many band directors express frustration about starting pitches in methods. What works well for brass may not work well for woodwinds. What worked well for brass last year may not work as well with your brass this year. The issue is that every method must choose a starting note and it almost always has to be the same note for the entire ensemble so it will work in heterogeneous settings. Hogwarts Foundations solves this problem and may be one of the first of its kind that includes three different starting systems to learn the first five notes (four systems if you include horn and oboe!):

• Option 1: Concert F down to Bb
• Option 2: Concert D (down to Bb and then up to F)
• Option 3: Concert Bb up to F
• Alt. Horn and Oboe Start (including range expanders to move them back into unison with the rest of the winds going forward)

The percussion pacing, which includes snare drum and keyboard percussion, is similar with all three approaches so it is not an issue to bounce around between options if necessary due to scheduling, or just to mix things up! With the intermediate version, band students begin with flow studies (what a great way to get air moving at the beginning of the year), articulation velocity, tone and breath support, range builders, technique exercises, and more.

How about the beginning and intermediate string books?

BB: The beginning string book feels just like a beginning string method, beginning with short pizzicato open string exercises and moving into both D and A tetrachords, then bowing (again, first on open strings). It was a fun challenge to find iconic soundtrack cues that would accommodate a 4-8 measure pedagogical exercise, but we pulled it off! By the time they reach a comprehensive review, they are ready to play an exercise that is set to the movie end credits featuring Nimbus 2000. The intermediate side covers retakes, F and C natural, C Major, finger calisthenics, bow distribution, H3, extensions, sixteenth notes, hooked bowing, dotted quarter notes, triplets, chromatics, and more!

How do you envision this being used with the other methods and resources teachers have?

BB: Interestingly enough, some teachers who reviewed this ahead of time mentioned that they would likely use this as their main “method book” and use their traditional print books as supplements given how parallel a lot of the pedagogy is throughout. To accommodate all that pedagogy, this series is over twice the size of any previous Foundations release. Given that all of these exercises are printable (scores and part books), this series can easily be used both in ensemble rehearsal as well as at home. The movie accompaniments provide a stable pitch and tempo reference, which is obviously a huge help to students. For intermediate students, I can see teachers hitting the ground running with important fundamentals, while also keeping students really engaged in the material.

Talk to us about the interactive Musician’s Map.

BB: Every printable book comes with a table of contents to help students and teachers navigate all the material, but we engage students further by including an interactive Musician’s Map that doubles as a completion chart for individual students or classes. I like to think of it as the ultimate table of contents guide to unlock the power of Hogwarts Foundations.

Clearly you are excited about this release!

BB: You have no idea. Several months ago, I announced on social media that my goal is to get every kid on the planet excited about joining band and orchestra this fall. We released a video trailer in the spring and a lot of teachers I’ve spoken with are actually using it as a recruitment tool. The music of John Willaims has truly become the soundtrack of our lives, and I’m thrilled that we are now finding new ways to motivate students at a variety of ability levels. It truly is the most magical Foundations release yet!

Excited to experience the Foundations series? Visit our Foundations landing page to learn more, grab a free Villainous Foundations score/parts download, and join the list of users who will find out first when Hogwarts Foundations is released!