Why Get Better?

"Why isn't where we are now good enough? We play pretty well and did well at competitions and even have a bunch of kids in region band." Well the truth is that the better we get, the more fun and more we will all get out of band. Just today we were able to read through and make music out of two grade 4 compositions. We are now able to get through grade 5 music the first time too. It puts us in a different frame of mind. Most bands are concerned about picking out music for concert festival this time of the year. Some bands will read through a few things and then pick. Others will, unfortunately, just play the same three pieces until concert festival. While there are others, a few only, that will have many pieces in their folders and then they can pick a few to play for concert festival. "Practice makes band fun." I have used that statement for years. It is so true in so many ways. Not only do great bands get to play great music at festival, they get to have better experiences in class too.

Today we read one of my favorite band pieces, An American Elegy by Frank Tichell. It was commissioned in remembrance of the students of Columbine High School in Colorado. I passed out the piece and pointed out a few musical things in the composition and then told them how I felt about what had happened at Columbine and about the piece. We then played it straight through. The skills we have learned to be able to sightread now help us do other things beside just playing music. After we played, there was not a sound in the room. Just silence. I think maybe I taught a little more than music today. I taught an emotion. Try that in AP Math.