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Herding Cats: Lessons Learned from Elementary Music Classes

theinstrumenta — Sat, 14 Jan 2023 01:13:57 +0000

As a university supervisor for Arkansas State University, I observe music interns in a variety of settings before they enter the real world. For many, it’s an opportunity to bring their goals after graduation into sharper focus. At ASU, students spend a portion of their internship in an elementary setting. While many find this a little disconcerting and not aligned with their career goals, most ultimately find the experience rewarding and much more enjoyable than expected.
I felt the same way the first time I observed an intern teaching a kindergarten music class. I wondered if I would have any worthwhile suggestions because my entire school experience was teaching band in 7th-12th grades; I had not been in an elementary music class since college. (I do not predate Orff and Kodaly but am probably close.) How would I evaluate an intern’s work with kids who still talk to imaginary friends and believe monsters live under their beds? Because I was the upper elementary director at my church, working regularly with 4th-6th graders, and had grandkids all under the age of 8, I was quite familiar with kids of preschool and elementary age. The best way to teach them music was somewhat foggy.
Fortunately, my fears were unfounded. As I observed the intern’s work, the similarities to my experiences with junior and senior high bands were obvious. There were advanced teaching concepts that lent themselves to younger music students as well, even kindergarteners. Over time, I have compiled quite a few suggestions for music interns in an elementary setting.
First, have high expectations for behavior, effort, and results. Don’t assume that kids in elementary grades cannot behave and should be given more slack. It’s all about expectations. I remember being told during my first year of teaching that all of my wonderful sixth-grade beginners would turn into monsters over the summer and would return the next fall to terrorize our school as zombie-like beings. I was skeptical but still a little wary. Three months later, with a couple of notable exceptions, most had not returned as raving lunatics. They may have seemed that way for the other teachers, but I didn’t experience it. It was my first clue that results are connected to expectations and subject to the perils of self-fulfilling prophecies.
It is also important for even the youngest children to learn how to give full effort in musical endeavors and realize the importance of their responsibility to their fellow class members. Everyone pays attention, follows directions, and plays or sings together to the best of their ability. This serves as a basis for a successful musical program for friends and family and trains them for future musical endeavors. Is this taking things too seriously at this age? I don’t think so. Again, it’s all about expectations.
Elementary students need to be presented with goals. This is typically easier for a more structured band class, but young kids will respond when they know what it is they are to accomplish and where their newfound knowledge is leading. Classes should not be a “one and done” experience – they should be set within the context of a larger whole.
Even young students need to know why they are learning various skills. When presenting information, tell them why a particular concept is important and why you are teaching it. It is much easier just to tell students to do something but more learning takes place when they understand why. If you don’t have a good reason why, then maybe you shouldn’t teach the concept in the first place, particularly if you are only doing it that way because it is how you were taught.
Conversely, I observed that there was much that band directors can learn from elementary music classes. The first thing that jumps out at me when I enter a typical elementary music classroom is the vast amount of colorful encyclopedic information on the walls; even the carpets are impressive and educational. I must admit that one of my weaknesses as a director was not making my band room more inviting; I decorated one bulletin board in 34 years of teaching. I must humbly add that it was very well done and looked great; that is, until it faded after remaining unchanged for seven or eight years.
My typical mode of redecorating was getting a renovated band room or a new fine arts facility every few years, but this is not practical for everyone. However, I did work hard to keep band spaces neat and orderly and demanded that band members respect and maintain what we had, even if conditions were not ideal. (At one school, I inherited a soda stain on the carpet that resembled Abraham Lincoln.)
It may surprise you that young kids, as wild and crazy as they are, still love order and routine. I’ve subbed several times in elementary classes since my retirement, and those kids did not hesitate to correct me when I didn’t do something the right way. The best elementary music classes I’ve observed have a routine from the time the kids enter the room to the time they exit.
The same should be true for band classes. Can your students run a band class in your absence, or do they take advantage of the musically-challenged substitute? You know you are doing things right as a band director when you receive a glowing note from the sub about how great the kids were during your absence. This results from good discipline and a steady routine.
Elementary students, particularly the younger ones, believe they can do anything and are eager to volunteer even before they know what the teacher is going to ask them to do. The best teachers never quash this enthusiasm and sense of confidence. Directors would do well to coax this quality from their more cautious and self-conscious teenagers, using their own enthusiasm as an encouraging example.
Elementary music concerts are fun but stressful, often presented with limited rehearsal time. Teachers regularly have to pull together several classes that only rehearse once or twice a week. One thing you can count on is a presentation that will have parents as proud as peacocks. High school band directors would do well to remember this as they decide whether to present a marching contest show along the likes of “The Life of Molecules in the Vast Cosmos” or something more understandable to the average parent.
I’ve also noticed that elementary music classes are filled with movement, games, and activities. Variety is key no matter the age, so a good dose of it with older kids is a key element of an engaging class that makes band the highlight of a student’s day.
So, while on the surface the teaching of elementary music and junior/senior band classes might seem radically different, the similarities far outweigh the differences. Taking the best practices of both and applying them in an age-appropriate manner will produce the best of both worlds.

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Midwest Memories, 1984-2014

theinstrumenta — Sat, 14 Jan 2023 01:10:29 +0000

    Each year as I marked my school calendar with the annual activities for the bands and me, I always wrote the dates for the Midwest Clinic down first. At the same time I made plans to travel by car, van, or train, and also reserved my hotel room.
    As Midwest Clinic time grew nearer, I frequently asked colleagues if they were planning to attend. It always made the beginning of the Midwest more festive when I traveled with a group; I loved it when colleagues joined me on the train for the trip.
    Once at the convention, I made a commitment to attend two concerts a day and at least one clinic session. The concerts performed by all levels of bands were truly amazing, but the military bands in particular astounded me. I was constantly amazed by these groups. My first experiences hearing the Japanese bands perform were a real treat. At the end of the four days of concerts, I was filled with renewed ambition to keep making my bands better.
    I usually started my day at the exhibits. The literature exhibits were an essential part of my time on the convention floor. Every year, I went home with new compositions and could not wait to put them in front of the band. I visited many college exhibits and renewed friendships with college directors. I loved going through the instrument exhibits and learning of any new developments.
    It seems I ended up buying a new conducting baton every year. I now have quite a collection. My wife once asked me, “why do you buy a new baton each year?” My answer was “Because then I have a baton for a short period of time that has not conducted any wrong notes.”
    The Hilton Lobby displayed a gigantic Christmas tree each year. It was a gathering point for groups before heading out to catch a cab for a ride to a restaurant. It was also a great place for people watching. As a younger band director, it was fun to see older, well-known directors as they met up to catch a cab. Once in a while I would strike up a conversation and ask “what are you enjoying the most this year.” They indicated that seeing old friends again was one of the best parts of the experience. On one occasion I even heard the TubaChristmas performance in this lobby area.
    Outside of the Clinic, I enjoyed going to the CSO Brass concert immensely. It is remarkable to hear the best in the world live. As a jazz fan, I also enjoyed evening trips to Rush Street (and later at the Blackstone) to enjoy the Jazz Showcase each year. For a change of pace on Friday nights, there was an Irish ensemble in the Irish bar at the south end of the Hilton.
    Each year, I found time to make a shopping trip to several places including Frank’s Drum Shop, Rose record store (in the earlier years), Macy’s men’s department, and even a pawn shop on State. Another great part of attending the Midwest Clinic is visiting some of the great restaurants in Chicago. We always had a couple of “must go to” places and several “must try soon” spots. Thursday night was usually Lawry’s Prime Rib night, followed by Friday night at Banderas or the Capital Grille. Other favorites included the Firehouse Restaurant, Ditka’s Restaurant, a Greek place on State Street, and the Berghoff.
    Most nights I ended up at the north bar at the Hilton. This was a good late night gathering place after evening concerts. Customers included a musical who’s who, along with former students and close colleagues meeting to spend some quality time together.
    The evening often ended with a trip to George’s bar west of the Hilton. This was one of the more memorable places because of comfortable environment. There always seemed to be a group of band directors from Alabama at George’s at this hour. Somehow, they had talked the bartender into putting a record of the Alabama Fight Song in the juke box. The alumni put quarter after quarter in the juke box and reveled in singing along and yelling “Roll Tide” It was hilarious.
    The most difficult part of the trip was the waking up in the very early morning to ride the train back home. However, this was a great time to reminisce about the clinic that year and recall many of the great moments of that year’s convention.

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Band Conducting as a Profession

theinstrumenta — Sat, 14 Jan 2023 01:02:41 +0000

What distinguishes the activity of the conductor from that of all other musicians? That he does not play himself, but guides and influences the playing of others. It is not before he enters on the professional phase of his vocation that he can really come to know the handling of his instrument, the orchestra.1

This instinctive faculty for immediately transmitting one’s own musical impulses to the orchestra is the sign of true talent for conducting.2

– Bruno Walter

    We prepare ourselves to be conductors through formal training at colleges, universities, and conservatories in the areas of music history, music theory, counterpoint, composition, and orchestration. We learn our craft by studying a number of instruments in order to more fully understand the complete scope of our profession. We also acquire skills in non-verbal communication and score reading through courses in the art of conducting. Prior to this comprehensive study of music, each potential band conductor should have achieved some degree of competence on at least one wind or percussion instrument. The importance of this competence as a performer cannot be underestimated; a conductor must develop musical sensitivity as a participant before hoping to inspire and guide others in making music. This is not to say that all musically sensitive performers are capable of being fine conductors – it is only to suggest that few musically sensitive conductors have become so without first having experienced the role of the musically sensitive performer. Furthermore, it is my personal conviction that a conductor should make every effort to continue performing on their instrument – not only to set an example for student, but to better understand the performers in the ensembles.
    Appreciation of music of all mediums is an important characteristic of the musical band conductor. Such a conductor studies not only the great wind masterpieces, but also constantly revisits the great symphonies and string quartets, as well as the numerous masterpieces in all other areas of music. The recent compositions of Elliott Carter, Gunther Schuller, or Pierre Boulez are of just as much interest as the latest work from the pen of Karel Husa. The conductor seeks out opportunities to hear chamber music, new music ensembles, and the finest symphony orchestras. Such a conductor, for example, may decide to take time out from the many activities of the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago each December to walk a few blocks to hear the Chicago Symphony perform, and will recognize that this experience might well be more valuable to growth as a band conductor than any of the scheduled activities of the clinic.
    Growth is perhaps the most important element in the musicianship of a successful band conductor. The music world is changing at such a rapid rate that constant study, exploration, and open-mindedness are necessary if one is not to fall hopelessly behind. The ability to grow and to expand our range of knowledge is particularly important to those of us associated with the wind band for we have a unique place in the music of the future. We must be alert and able to respond to the new opportunities presented to us, or we will find that once again the world of music has by-passed our medium.

Concept of the Score
    The question is often asked, “How do you study a score?” There is no system that applies to all scores and all conductors. One approaches a new score as one approaches a crossword puzzle – by trying to discover several key ideas that will lead to a complete understanding of the work. Each composition is a new experience and presents a challenge to the conductor. It is here that the conductor calls upon past study of theory, counterpoint, form, history and other aspects of formal and informal training. Naturally, knowledge of the composer’s complete works, styles, and biography is of vital importance as are specific facts regarding the piece under study and its relation to the other works by the composer.
    Implicit in knowledge of the score is the conductor’s personal concept of all details such as balance, weight, emphasis, and phrasing which make one conductor’s interpretation different from that of another. Most composers expect the conductor to use musical judgment to interpret the idea of the composition. As an example, several years ago I was rehearsing Emblems by Aaron Copland while the composer himself was present. When I looked through the score in my study, I felt that the tempo marked in one section was too fast. During the rehearsal of this section, I turned to Mr. Copland to ask if the section was too slow for his liking. He commented that he would have conducted it faster, but that it was musical and should not be changed to the faster tempo indicated. I offered to change the tempo to suit him, but he insisted that it be an interpretation which I felt best for his piece. Composers, with the exception of Stravinsky and a few others, expect conductors to bring their own interpretations to the work, as long as it is consistent with stylistic traditions of the period and other guidelines already mentioned.
    If the conductor has studied the composition in a detailed manner, rehearsals will be more efficient. Discovering problems quickly and solving them rapidly, requires familiarity with a work in all of its details. Without such preparation, the conductor will be forced to establish balance and interpretation on the basis of spontaneous, casual adjustments (and this is the mark of a conductor who learns the composition during rehearsal). Eugen Jochum, a well-known European conductor, states this idea very well.

[The conductor’s] own inner analysis of the composition, the identification with the will of the composer, precedes his work with the orchestra. It would be too late to come to his conception of the piece when working with the orchestra, although certain aspects can still be perfected by actually hearing the work.3

There is no fixed formula for successful score study. Each conductor must find their own technique. When I asked Frederick Fennell how he studies a score, the answer was, “I just live with it.” One never reaches the end in the study of a score. It is a constant process involving the combination of one’s total knowledge of music with an understanding of the myriad of details which make up a specific work – and all of this before the first rehearsal takes place!

Baton Technique
    Motion is the language of conducting; through motion the conductor displays the inner-most sensitivity toward the music as a physically sounding medium. The conductor is constantly either sensitizing the musicians to visual signs – because they are effective means of communication – or desensitizing the musicians to these signs because they tend to be monotonous or awkward and convey only the most elementary musical aspects of pulse, volume, and general style.
    A common problem to many band conductors is the visual screen. A conductor sets up a barrier to communication by using large and repetitious motions. In order to get the attention of the performers, the conductor must somehow break through this visual screen of non-communicative motions. Unfortunately, some conductors attempt to do this by using even larger motions than before, creating an even greater barrier – and the cycle continues.
    We have all observed a large number of band conductors whose conducting technique could best be described as unrefined. These conductors seem to feel that they must constantly supply energy (through frantic, non-stop arm-waving) to the music-making machine. The fact is, however, that even a moderately good ensemble is capable of a good deal of independence. That is, once a certain tempo, volume or style is established, a group will usually maintain it. Once the ensemble has established a forte volume, it is unnecessary for the conductor to constantly conduct forte – although an occasional reminder is helpful. The same is true of general style and pulse. After the speed of a piece with a strong steady pulse is set, the conductor is free to help in other more subtle areas of interpretation.
    It is important to understand when and what not to conduct. It is a well-known fact that most inexperienced conductors tend to over-conduct, thus limiting their effectiveness by setting up the visual screen mentioned earlier. To overcome this habit, the conductor must consciously eliminate the sameness of beat and energy of motion. Appropriate and varied conducting gestures will command the attention and response of the players; unnecessary or monotonous ones will cease to have any effect at all.
    Once the conductor has eliminated the visual screen and learned to communicate visually, there must be something to say. Performers look for and receive from a conductor’s motions not only when, how loud and how fast to play, but an infinite variety of subtle messages on all aspects of the music. In order to communicate these subtleties the conductor must feel the music as physical texture and describe it visually to the players. To a sensitive conductor, music is not only an aural art but a physical art as well. For example, accents in the music of Haydn, Beethoven, Brahms, Wagner, and Stravinsky not only sound different but feel different. The ability to respond physically to music is essential for a conductor to convey, through outward motions, understanding and interpretation. The conductor must feel the power of the final movement of Symphony in Bb by Hindemith or the fragile texture of the second movement of the Sinfonietta by Ingolf Dahl. Sensitivity must be refined beyond whole movements or compositions to include individual phrases, fragments and even isolated sounds. It is this ability to understand and communicate the physical element of music that too often is missing from an otherwise technically superb conductor.

Personal Characteristics
Perhaps the most elusive aspect of conducting is the psychological impact of the personality. This aspect was described by Elizabeth Green in her excellent book, The Modern Conductor, as “impulse of will.”4 It is that intangible quality which is so essential to the successful conductor. William Steinberg, well-known music director of the Pittsburgh Symphony says, “The only factor that counts is the power of [the conductor’s]
personality.”5 The conductor must certainly have confidence, poise, enthusiasm, and eye contact. It is also imperative to understand group psychology, motivation techniques, and to display musical sensitivity. “He who cannot deal with people or exert his influence on them is not fully qualified for this profession.”6
Bruno Walter was not only one of the great conductors, but he was also very articulate when writing about his profession. His personal philosophy is one which has guided me for some time. He expresses this philosophy so well in these words:

I realized that I was certainly not cut out to be a ruler or despot, but rather to be an educator who, as we know, methodically uses his empathy with others for gaining influence over them. My task was now to enforce the powerful, nay, irresistible demands of my musical personality by means of that empathy; to uphold my own ideals uncompromisingly without violation of other people’s. In general it can be said that a violent manner of dealing with people will either be defeated by their resistance or result in their intimidation. On the other hand, the milder methods of psychological empathy, persuasion, and moral intermediation will have an encouraging and productive effect.7

When a well-educated conductor who has prepared the score, has the ability to communicate visually, and has personal qualities to lead others stands before an ensemble – whether orchestra or band – there is an awesome responsibility, the responsibility to make music. Serge Koussevitzky, conductor of the Boston Symphony orchestra from 1924 to 1949, made important comments on precisely this point:
Nowadays we can often hear “authorities” exclaim, in reviewing a performance: “Let the music speak for itself!” The danger of this maxim lies in its paving the way for mediocrities who simply play a piece off accurately and then maintain that he “let the music speak for itself.” Such a statement is not right, in any event, because a talented artist renders a work as he conceives it, according to his own temperament and insight, no matter how painstakingly he follows the score markings. And the deeper the interpreter’s insight, the greater and more vital the performance.8

This responsibility that Koussevitzky understood so well may seem obvious, but it is often the greatest weakness of band conductors. How often it is in our band world that conductors use their abilities only to put the elements of music in order. Tone quality, intonation, precision, correct notes, balance, dynamic and articulation markings are all important and must receive sufficient attention if they are not to detract from the music making process, but we must never lose sight of the larger purpose of our role as conductors – that of interpreters. As interpreters, we must constantly call upon our knowledge, training, and unique artistic sensitivity to enable us to fulfill this most challenging role. Viewed in this light, the profession of band conducting assumes a depth and potential of exciting proportions.

Endnotes
1    Bruno Walter, Of Music and Music Making (New York: Norton, 1961), p. 83.
2    Ibid., p. 112.
3    Carl Bamberger (ed.), The Conductor’s Art (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1965), pp. 258-259.
4    Elizabeth A.H. Green, The Modem Conductor (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1961), p. 60.
5    Bamberger, p. 306.
6    Bruno Walter, p. 111.
7    Ibid., p. 120.
8    Bamberger, p. 144.

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A Fall Review

theinstrumenta — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 23:42:29 +0000

Now that marching band season is over and rehearsals have moved inside, it is worth taking the time to review with flutists the difference between the two types of performance.

COA – Clean, Oil, and Adjust
Most flutists play the same instrument for marching band and concert band, and it may need some attention. It has been jiggled around while marching and traveling and been subjected to the elements including dust and rain. An experienced technician can clean the flute of all tarnish and fingerprints, change the oil, adjust the screws and springs, and shim the pads. In some cases, they will also remove dents. Most COA’s also include replacing the cork. All of these things are necessary for a flute to sing again. A typical COA costs several hundred dollars because it takes a few hours to perform these tasks. Every three to five years, the flute needs to be overhauled.

Checking the Cork Assembly
If a student does not have a COA on the flute, then check the headjoint cork placement with the cleaning rod. The jiggling of the instrument while marching often displaces the cork. It is easy to check the cork placement since each cleaning rod has a line on one end. When inserted into the headjoint, the line should appear in the center of the embouchure hole. If it is not in the center, then the overall instrument is not in tune with itself. A repair technician can quickly adjust the cork position. It is a simple fix that you can learn and do yourself though.

Pull Out
    To begin with, the headjoint is pulled out from the body about ¼ inch. Have students use a ruler to check this amount. Then with a sharpie, mark this placement. I also like to mark the alignment of the relationship of the headjoint and the body with several marks with the same sharpie. The final goal is to have the embouchure hole level and the keys level when playing. Proper adjustment makes this easier to achieve. Adjust the footjoint to accommodate the length of each player’s little finger.
    If all flutes in the section are the same length (headjoint cork placement is the same and the headjoint pulled), intonation should improve.

Stance and Sitting
    For flutists and other instruments that are played off to the side, there are several important issues to review. In marching band, the feet are side by side, but when playing standing or sitting in concert band, the left foot is placed pointing to 12:00 and the right at 2:30. The center of the player’s torso is no longer facing straight ahead, but is positioned 45 degrees to the right. When sitting in a chair, the chair is turned 45 degrees to the right for this accommodation. Ideally, for flutists, it is best to have a music stand for each player. If this is not possible, then there should be no more than two players to a music stand. Flutists simply take much more room than instrumentalists who play with their instrument in front of them like the oboe, clarinet, or trumpet. Ophthalmologists suggest placing the music at a distance of about 30 inches. The flute is 28 inches long, so may be used as a guide.

Angle of Flute
During marching band, the flute is held parallel to the shoulders, and the end is held parallel to the field. In concert band, the end of the flute is slightly lower and is pushed forward often to the point where the end of the flute is in front of the player’s nose and right ear. This means the flute is not equally placed in the chin but is placed more on the player’s left side of the chin, and the flute angles away from the right shoulder.

Shoulders and Flute Placement
The reason for this placement has to do with the evolution of the embouchure hole. Many flutes made before 1850 had an embouchure hole that was circular in shape. With the work of Theobald Boehm and others in the next 150 plus years, the embouchure hole has morphed into a unique design. While the riser or chimney is still relatively the same, the cut of the embouchure hole has evolved tremendously. Since the 1980s, specialists who only make headjoints have created innovations including under and upper cutting with a scalpel on the riser and embouchure plate. Each headjoint is slightly different, and it is up to players to find the sweet spot of each instrument.
This reshaping of the embouchure hole means that the player angles the flute more away from the right shoulder (no longer parallel) to find the ring in the instrument’s sound. A good project would be to have all the flutists in the section compare their flutes’ embouchure holes. Generally, a smaller hole means that there is more agility in playing, and a larger embouchure hole offers a bigger sound, so selecting a headjoint becomes a compromise situation. As an aside, the embouchure hole should be no larger than the players natural aperture (the opening in the lips). In recent times, several manufacturers have made unusually large embou-chure holes that are difficult to control in all types of passages.

Head
During marching season, a player’s head is often held high for appearance reasons. In concert band, make sure that the tallest part of the head is at the back of the part in the hair. This balances the head on the spine and prevents the instrumentalist from becoming injured. To find this optimum position, have students nod a few times. They should play flute with the head positioned at the bottom of a very small nod.

Panic Time
For many students the end of marching season marks the beginning of district, regional and all-state auditions. During marching season, flutists have most likely played the same music for several months with an outdoor sound. Now that audition season is beginning, they need to find an indoor sound and learn new music. For some students this may occur within a month’s time, which may cause some mental stress. Unfortunately, students tend to work only on the audition materials and omit working on fundamentals. This is a mistake. The best thing they can do to be successful is to work on the basic fundamentals of flute playing.

Headjoint Work
Playing on the headjoint alone allows flutists to focus on the element of blowing. Have students hold the headjoint at the end with the thumbs and index fingers and with a level embouchure hole. They should play a string of quarter notes listening for the attack and quality of the tone. The beginnings of the notes should be clean with no chipping. Have them listen carefully to develop a good attack. If the tone lacks core and is fuzzy, then ask them to stand with their feet at 12:00 (left)/2:30 (right) and then direct the air towards their left big toe while keeping the embouchure hole level. This is what many teachers call blowing down. Notice that only the air stream is directed down, and the head remains in the small nod position. This will focus most tones immediately.

Right Hand on the Barrel
Playing with the right hand on the barrel places the embouchure plate firmly in the chin. Ask students to play the following scale: G2, A2, B2, C3 beginning in the second or middle octave and then continue with the same fingering sequence while over-blowing to the third harmonic partial or D3, E3, F#3, G3. Practicing this scale slurred produces marvelous tonal benefits.

Nine-Note Scales
    When working with the flute section only, the goal is to play all scales two octaves; however, in a band situation with all of the instruments, nine-note scales are preferred by many directors. Practice the following rhythmic patterns, concentrating on each note to be perfectly centered and focused. Listen carefully for clean attacks and following the dynamics precisely.
    These two patterns are the key to musical phrasing. The first (slur by 2s, strong/weak or down/up) is called the sigh figure. Its origins were in the Renaissance when composers used text painting in their writing. Words like sing-ing, lov-ing, May-ing were written as two-note slurs to imitate softness of the second syllable.

    The second scale pattern is also slurred by twos only rather than going from a strong beat to a weak beat, it is reversed. The two-note slur begins on a weak beat going to a strong beat. In both cases the two-note slur is played more/less.

Make a Melody Book
Many flutists use Marcel Moyse’s 24 Little Melodic Studies with Variations (Easy) and 25 Melodious Studies with Variations (Moderate difficult) in their daily practice to develop expressive phrasing. Both are published by Leduc. While these books are quite beneficial, a book of favorite melodies that a flutist collects and transcribes into a melody book may resonate more to each individual student. The melodies might include favorite Christmas carols or songs they enjoy listening to. Some students also include favorite passages from their band and orchestra music. The important thing is that students play something they love and that they try each day to play it more musically.

Audition Deadline
As the audition deadline comes closer, have students record the audition materials daily. A cell phone is excellent for this type of recording. For the first few recordings, listen with the student pointing out the good things that are happening and then what needs to be improved. Their ears will not be as critical as yours, so you can help them develop active listening skills. For many just the idea of recording something makes them nervous. Daily recording can help overcome this fear.

* * *

Thoughts to Consider in Melodic Playing

    1.   Find the contour of the melody by dot-to-dotting the note heads. There are five shapes: mountain, valley, going up, coming down, and gruppetto shape.
    For mountain and valley shapes, tell students to play to the high or low note. Listen for a continuous vibrato, not one that stops and starts again when changing a fingering.
    For going up and coming down the choice is forte to piano or piano to forte. Melodic shaping with the use of dynamics makes music more interesting.

2. Write in the breath marks. Learn to play the melody breathing in the same place each time.

3. Clean attacks with no chipping of the notes are the goal.

4. Play articulation patterns exactly as written.
5. Consider vibrato speed and width. If the melody is quite fast in tempo the vibrato speed is faster than when playing slow melodies.

6. Use a tuner to check pitches of all the notes. This will help students learn the pitch tendencies of the instrument.

7. For rhythmic accuracy, fill in the background of each beat with articulated sixteenths. This helps students learn to subdivide.

8. Play the melody an octave higher or lower. Notice how the character may change due to the register it is written in.

9. Some students may be able to take the melody and transpose it up a half-step. This is good practice for the ear and also shows the benefits of knowing one’s scales.

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Catching Some Waves: Comparative Woodwind Vibrato

theinstrumenta — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 23:26:57 +0000

Musicians often speak of instrument families, and the brass, woodwinds, and percussion sections, are often seen as hegemonic blocks of students, each requiring similar pedagogical approaches within their respective groups. In the brass world, there are a great number of commonalities that make this frame of reference useful. From trumpet to tuba, several pedagogical concepts can be spoken of uniformly.
The woodwind family of instruments is far more heterogeneous than the brass. Unlike the shared cup mouthpiece of all valved instruments, woodwinds encompass instruments with single reeds, double reeds, and even the cutting edge of the flute lip-plate. All of the woodwinds possess some fairly dissimilar challenges and techniques. One of the trickiest differences to the non-woodwind band director is the execution of vibrato: What is it, when should it be used, and how does it work on each of the woodwinds?

Vibrato
While everyone reading this article can identify vibrato when they hear it, it may be beneficial to speak of the technique in the widest terms. At the most basic level, vibrato is a continuous alteration in pitch or intensity of a note, intended to serve as a further beautifying element for the tone or as an expressive tool. Ideally, the performer should be capable of changing the vibrato to suit different musical ends: A quicker or slower vibrato or a more or less intense one can highlight differences of range, dynamic, tempo, or the like.
While the overall effect is virtually the same from instrument to instrument, the best technique to achieve the smoothest, most consistent, best-sounding vibrato varies. Older sources list many possibilities for achieving the desired ends including throat and lip vibrato. These and many other terms are misleading and outmoded (and often detrimental to long-term performance health). All of the woodwinds today are best served by utilizing either jaw or airstream vibrato.

Fundamentals First
While vibrato should be integrated into the performance-practice of many woodwind players at an early stage, certain factors should be achieved before introducing the concept. First, the airstream should be consistent and well-supported. Next, the embouchure should be stable and comfortable. Overall, the basics of tone production should be well-learned, and students should be producing a good quality, characteristic sound for a beginner. Vibrato can serve as the icing on the cake of a great sound, but it cannot fix a poor one. Further, if students have not yet achieved a stable airstream and embouchure, the premature introduction of vibrato can serve as a stumbling block. However, all other things being equal, most students can be introduced to the technique by the end of the first year of study.

Flute
    Flutists use an airstream vibrato, a fluctuation in the intensity of the breath. To begin teaching this technique, have students say ho ho ho (à la a certain red-suited, bearded gentleman making his rounds in the coming weeks). Then, have them take away the vocalization so that they are just puffing the air. You may want to have them place one hand on the stomach and one on the back so they can feel the motion of the muscles. This is an exaggerated movement at this point and will be backed off later.
    Next, have students start on comfortable midrange note such as Bb4 (in the middle of the staff). Set a metronome to 60 beats per minute and practice air pulsing once per beat (quarter notes) while holding the pitch. At this point, the vibrato will sound rough, but the development of the muscles needed to control the air is more important than precise control in the beginning stages. Once this is comfortable, gradually increase the tempo on the metronome. To ensure students are adequately able to add vibrato across pitches and registers, start with one pulsation at 60 beats per minute and repeat for four beats, then move up to the next note in the scale. Practice going up and down the scale in whole notes while air-pulsing the quarter note.
    Once flutists are comfortable with one pulsation per beat at 60 bpm, gradually move the metronome up to a faster tempo, just three or four bpm at a time. Then, complete the exercise at the new tempo. Carefully continue to add speed while maintaining control of the air, working up to a moderate tempo around 102 bpm.
    Once students are comfortable with one pulsation per beat at a moderate tempo, modify this exercise by pulsing eighth notes for four beats before changing fingerings. Again, start at a slow tempo and gradually move the metronome up to a moderate tempo. Additionally, continue this process at different tempos in triplet and sixteenth-note patterns.
    When students can comfortably complete the exercise with quarter notes, eighth notes, triplets, and sixteenth notes, sequence the rhythms together. For example, with the metronome set at a comfortably slow tempo, practice on one note pulsing four quarter notes, followed by eight eighth notes, four sets of triplets, and sixteen sixteenth notes. Then change to a new pitch, moving up a major or minor scale. Practicing this exercise at multiple tempos will help flutists develop control over the speed of their vibrato so they can manipulate it to create different musical effects, as desired. Remember, throughout these exercises that the goal is for students to have a consistent tone. If the sound begins to suffer, they are moving through the exercises too quickly and should back off on the tempo or the number of pulsations per beat until they regain control.

Clarinet
The clarinet is the one member of the woodwind family for which vibrato is not integral to the modern tonal conception. The majority of clarinetists in an ensemble should not play with vibrato: A pure tone is the default. However, some great soloists do utilize the technique (Richard Stoltzman is a prime example) as do jazz clarinetists. If vibrato is desired in a solo context, the clarinetist performs with a jaw vibrato, using the same techniques as saxophone, listed below.

Saxophone
    The saxophone vibrato uses a jaw-based approach. While the top teeth remain anchored on top of the mouthpiece, the lower jaw moves very slightly down from the reed and back, cycling over and over. This slight motion in the jaw results in a small change in pitch, yielding the vibrato.
    It is very important to remember that the movement originates at the jaw hinge. The motion should resemble a very natural, clandestine chewing. For some students, the thought of secretly chewing some imaginary gum works well. Even better for most students is a verbal approach: Have the students repeat the sound va, va, va, va, feeling how their lower jaw moves while speaking. Have them gradually speed this syllable up (imagining the sound of a revving car engine, perhaps). This sensation is a direct analogue for the proper technique to execute vibrato on the saxophone. At no time should the jaw be pushed forward or backward, as this can cause serious problems (and, perhaps, very serious, lasting, physical harm) in the jaw-joint. Instead, only use a natural open and close motion.
    To work on the mechanics, students should start on a stable, mid-range pitch, such as a written G4 (low G for the saxophonist). They should say a few va, va, va syllables out loud, then attempt to play while executing the same movement in the jaw. To explore full range of motion, they should try to produce the greatest pitch change possible without allowing the note to break. Once this is comfortable, bring out the metronome.
    While the vibrato should never be robotic or locked into a certain tempo in performance, metering the skill is important in the beginning stages of technique development. Set the metronome to a slow tempo – perhaps 60 bpm, but don’t be afraid to go slower if this is too quick for students to perform the following skill. Then have them perform two full cycles per beat – va, va, or two complete cycles of the following: normal pitch, lowering of the pitch, then the return to the starting-place. Again, students should continue to explore the full range of this technique by keeping the pitch-bend as wide as possible without breaking the tone.
    Once two cycles per second is comfortable, begin speeding up the metronome three or four clicks at a time. The goal is comfort here, so make sure students resist the temptation to rush ahead in tempo. Each time, the ability to comfortably perform two cycles per beat as widely as possible should be paramount. Once two cycles per beat at approximately 102 bpm is comfortable, return the metronome to 60 or some other, slow, comfortable tempo. Have them perform triplets at this new tempo, or three cycles per beat. Again, slowly increase the tempo in increments of three or four, not rushing ahead.
    Once they can comfortably complete three cycles per beat at 102, slide the metronome back down to the starting-tempo and attempt four cycles per beat (sixteenths). The fastest modern vibrato speed should be the equivalent of sixteenths at 78 bpm, so this would be a good stopping point. Throughout, have them strive for a steady, ample supply of air. While vibrato will naturally narrow at faster speeds, have students keep it as wide as possible, supplying a large range of possibilities for performance. Once vibrato is comfortable at the limit speed on one pitch, practice at a variety of tempos and rhythmic combinations with scales and lyrical tunes from the method book and elsewhere.
    The end result should be a vibrato with a spinning quality. As students gain comfort with this new skill, encourage exploration of different possibilities. In general, vibrato should be faster at higher tessituras and louder dynamics, and vice-versa for lower tessituras and lower dynamics. Vibrato can be sped up or slowed down through a phrase. Some notes need no vibrato at all. While vibrato should always be practiced in the early stages with a metronome, make sure that students understand that the skill is divorced from the speed of the music in actual performance: It is an artistic device. (A video demonstrating this technique on saxophone is available at )

Oboe
The oboe, like the flute, uses an airstream-based vibrato. Please consult the above process for step-by-step instructions on the integration of this technique. All flute suggestions, including the recommendation for the first pitch for vibrato experimentation, are the same for oboe.

Conclusion
Vibrato is an incredibly useful tool in any woodwind player’s arsenal of expressive techniques. However, this seemingly simple undulation of pitch requires a different approach depending on the instrument being played. Introducing it with step-by-step methods at an early stage will help young woodwind performers use the correct techniques for their instruments and allow them to focus on creating beautiful, expressive performances.

The post Catching Some Waves: Comparative Woodwind Vibrato appeared first on The Instrumentalist.

Composing Outside the Lines A Conversation with Kimberly Osberg

theinstrumenta — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 23:04:16 +0000

Kimberly Osberg is a Portland-based composer who specializes in interdisciplinary collaboration. Her projects have included dance, film, environmental sound installations, instrumental theater, plays, opera, visual art, award ceremonies, and stage combat. She also pioneered a Commissions from Quarantine project in 2020 that garnered media attention. In addition, Osberg has written several works for young and developing bands, with more on the way. She holds degrees from Luther College and Indiana University.

How did you become interested in interdisciplinary projects?
    When I was growing up, I had many interests outside of just playing in band and orchestra. I participated in theater, liked to draw and paint, and also enjoyed history. Writing music provided an outlet that brought these interests together. I started to see how everything you interact with could be material for a new piece, and I didn’t have to give up any of my interests by doing composition, which was exciting.
    I kept up with theater, history, and art through my undergraduate degree. I attended a liberal arts college and had to take 80 credit hours outside my major, which exposed me to many different subjects and gave me ideas for composing. When I began my master’s program at Indiana University I encountered many students who came from conservatory-based programs and felt there wasn’t as much focus on music outside the concert hall. The school was huge, so I ventured out and paired up with film students, art students, theatre students, and dancers. It was exciting to collaborate with other artists.
    After college I moved to Dallas and started meeting and working with musicians in the Dallas Chamber Symphony. A group called Trio Kavanah (now known as the MAKE ensemble) was scheduled to give a concert at the Dallas Contemporary, an art museum. The museum had an exhibit by artist Ian Davenport who has had pieces in museums all over the world. I was star-struck meeting him, but when we spoke, he mentioned listening to drum set music while painting. With my background in percussion, we had a shared language to talk about the piece I was writing. The way he approaches his art – thinking about rhythm and gesture and color and lines – is exactly how I think about my music. We had a great conversation about how these things should play off one another. I ended up writing a piece exploring different elements of his work, and it was performed in front of one of his Colorfall paintings.
    A few months later Bruce Wood Dance [company] was going to perform dances there that interpreted Davenport’s works. They heard my piece on the museum’s website and wanted to develop choreography for it. In the end there was live music and dance in front of this huge art piece by Davenport. It was recorded by Samsung VR in 360° so people at home could use their phone to look around at the art while this was all going on. It was such a great mix of elements coming together, and it felt like we built a bridge between these different arts communities. It remains one of my favorite collaborations.

You moved to Portland in January 2020, just before the pandemic. Where did you find inspiration in this difficult time?
    While dealing with my own struggles adjusting to a new city with everything shut down, I saw the music community on Twitter go through the same thing. So many friends were feeling down because all of their gigs were canceled. With no performances for large ensembles or chamber groups, many musicians found that they lacked solo repertoire they were excited about playing. I looked at my catalog and realized that I didn’t have a lot of solo or duo pieces.
    I thought about how to keep writing in a way that was affordable for people who don’t have gigs and money coming in. I developed a model that became Commissions from Quarantine. A one-minute piece cost $5, a two-minute piece was $12, and a three-minute piece was $20. The work had to be for solo or duo, the person commissioning it had to provide a mood or a tone for the music, and I also asked for a technique or a gesture that they really loved to play.
    I opened it up on Twitter and Instagram for three days and expected to get five commissions to keep me busy for a month. After three days, I had 40 commissions! People were craving something to do, and many who reached out said they had never commissioned something before.
    This project was so fun, and it was interesting to see what people expected from their commissions. Some wanted somber music reflecting life in isolation, but others wanted a piece that was weird or quirky. A few people asked for pieces with Hobbits in them, and I said, “Sure! We can do that.” There were a couple pieces that allowed family members to play together, including a grandfather who played guitar and wanted a piece to play with his five-year old granddaughter, who was just starting piano.
    Those pieces reminded me how many people want high-quality music to play. They may not fill concert halls or record these pieces, but it was so fulfilling to work on them. These varied projects increased my confidence as a composer. I realized that my voice comes through no matter what I am asked to compose. I also loved that these smaller projects had such a huge impact on people’s lives during a difficult time, my own included.

With Composer Damien Geter and Conductor Katherine FitzGibbon

Many educators struggle to find good music for younger players. Can you talk about the pieces you have written for developing players?
    Hope is the second piece of music I ever wrote, but has a lot of meaning for me. The first piece I wrote was for our youth orchestra in high school. My band director, Gene Power, who also conducted the youth orchestra, encouraged me to begin composing. He saw me fiddling around on the piano and suggested I write something. I had no idea what I was doing. I didn’t know that bass clarinets were written in treble clef or even that instruments transposed. Then my band director put me in front of Finale and said, “Figure it out.” So I did. I went from doing nothing to writing an orchestra piece – which I don’t necessarily recommend – but it was a great learning experience.
    Unfortunately, Mr. Power was leaving our district after my senior year. We were devastated, and I convinced him to let me write something for our band to play at his last concert. He had a few seniors he wanted to highlight, so I wrote something special for my friends, too. He taught me how to conduct, read a score, run a rehearsal, and organize music. Hope was written for him and dedicated to him. A few years later he passed away in a car accident. Since then, I have been slowly updating Hope while preserving some of those requested solos as a tribute to Gene Power and my friends. I am hoping to release an anniversary edition of it in the next year or two that will be available for free so that bands anywhere can play it. I will be happy to do free Zoom clinics to keep his memory alive.
    Band Together was influenced by my middle school band director, Laurie Francis, who was amazing and taught in the district for over 30 years. When I was in her program, I liked music, but she was the one who made me practice and get to the point where I was good at it. I always kept in touch with her. While I was working on my master’s degree she announced her retirement and commissioned me to write a piece and come back for a week of clinics and rehearsals with the band.
    She plays trumpet, as does her son who was an 8th-grader in the band at the time. When we discussed what she wanted for the piece, we decided to start with a trumpet trio fanfare where the players would be out in the audience. She wanted something simple enough for them to put together, but that would also showcase how far she had been able to bring the middle school band program.
    I made her nervous because I put in all this aleatory at the beginning and end of the piece. While it looks intimidating, students sound so good when they play aleatoric music. They rehearsed the main part of the piece in advance but waited until I arrived for the week of clinics to tackle the aleatoric passages. When I described what they could do during those sections, they were eager to experiment.
    With certain types of aleatoric music it is not usually so much about being precisely in tune or being in sync, but rather creating a texture. It is also cool for the students that no repetition of the piece is ever the same because of the choices they make in the moment.
    Ms. Francis was nervous about it at first, but the kids really killed it and had a lot of fun. The idea of Band Together is that the piece begins in chaos, with everybody doing different things, and then it starts to tighten up and become more orderly. By the end everyone is doing the same gesture, even though it’s happening at different times – freedom without as much chaos.
    I wrote Our Little Secrets during my time in Dallas. One of my friends, composer Joshua Jandreau, put together a consortium of composers to write flex ensemble pieces. The model he developed called for eight to ten instruments, and at least half of them would have alternate transpositions provided. Most importantly, all parts had to have a beginner version. The flexibility allowed the conductor to have one score but then adjust, perhaps even just one voice, if needed. For example, the group might play the advanced version, but there might be one or two less-advanced players. They could use the simpler part, and the piece would still work out.
    For my contribution, I used pop idioms to make it aurally more interesting to high school players. It starts with a bass line in the bassoon with other voices in the background. Then there is what my partner calls the “Mario Kart” section. This piece is just fun. It uses more of the rhythmic and harmonic language that high school students are used to hearing. It is a chamber piece with a big sound and makes the players feel part of something large and fun. During the pandemic, when ensemble size was limited, suddenly many groups were playing this piece. It has been great to see it out in the world.

Osberg in a Virtual Rehearsal with the Pittsburg State University Wind Ensemble

What challenges have you found in writing music for younger players and what are some strategies you use to overcome them?
I think you can see, even in my early pieces like Hope, that I love hocketing and this idea of passing lines and color and playing with ebb and flow. For younger players, it can be scary when they have parts where they are playing alone, so I try to find ways to incorporate hocketing, textures, and changes of color while also giving them an anchor point to hold on to. I know composers worry about restricted ranges and things like that, but for me, it mostly comes down to how it is orchestrated. If I am going to use a technique like hocketing, I just need to make sure those parts are doubled somewhere else so young players have a friend to help them through that portion of the piece.
I also love playing with textures like flutter tonguing and trills. Sometimes that can be tricky for really young players, just the idea of extended techniques, so I try to focus on one technique at a time. For example, if I am working with a string group I will introduce one new idea for them to work on for a couple of weeks. I remember working with one group on circular bowing. While it’s not a particularly difficult technique, it was something they could work on and feel good about doing. I also think that having one part of a piece that is a little tricky can motivate students and give them something to work towards.

What do you want conductors to know about commissioning music and working with composers?
    It can be overwhelming because there are so many composers, and people don’t always know where to start looking. Online resources like Facebook groups, the Institute for Composer Diversity database, Wind Repertory Project, and the American Composers Orchestra are good starting places to discover composers. Collaborations will be more successful if you thoroughly research the composer’s catalog and background to make sure you genuinely connect with their work.
    The other resource I learned about during the pandemic is the new music Twitter community. All you really have to do is tweet out “I’m looking for this type of piece” with the hashtag #newmusic, and you will usually get more replies from composers than you know what to do with. If you find someone interesting, start listening to some of their music. Even if they haven’t written for band before, it doesn’t mean that they don’t want to write for band or that they think it is beneath them.
    Sometimes people are afraid, particularly with a well-known composer, that they won’t want to write for high school or middle school band. You can usually tell from someone’s bio if they are excited about working on interesting things for younger players. Band directors shouldn’t be afraid to just ask. You can simply start with, “I love your music. This is the budget I have. What can we put together?”
    Even if it ends up as a two-minute piece, your students will get to play new music written for them by a living composer. I know some composers reduce fees in exchange for good recordings or promising to play the piece at a state festival. It is more important to find a composer whose music you like and who is fun to work with than it is to find an impressive, big name composer.

To acquire music or for more information visit

The post Composing Outside the Lines A Conversation with Kimberly Osberg appeared first on The Instrumentalist.

Dreams Come True, Three Directors Share Their Journeys to Midwest

theinstrumenta — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 22:17:01 +0000

The months before taking a group to the Midwest Clinic are hectic for directors. In addition to the typical challenges of starting a new school year, these educators must navigate the logistical, programming, and rehearsal efforts leading up to the performance of their lives. Three directors making the trip to Chicago with their groups this December kindly took time to discuss the years of preparation and dedication that led their programs to this moment.

The William Mason High School
Wind Symphony, Mason, Ohio
Directed by Edward F. Protzman

The Program and Community
Mason has grown a lot in the last 20 years. It is a very supportive community. Before I came to the school, I attended two performances by their groups at Midwest in 2004 and 2016 and really admired the program. The marching band also has a great history of making Grand National Finals one year. When an opportunity to lead the program came up, I threw my hat in the ring and was fortunate enough to get the position. I felt honored to join a program with such a great history, just a big program with lots of success. We came out of COVID with a really strong group of players, and the director team decided to submit an audition recording for Midwest. In preparation for that, we worked with some of our musical mentors, including Richard Floyd and James Keene, both of whom were supposed to guest conduct on our concert. (Unfortunately, James Keene passed away this summer, a sad moment for us.) We also worked a lot with Freddy Martin. We knew the timing was right, so we auditioned and were accepted. It is my first time taking a group to Midwest and the third for the program.

Preparing
While planning our rehearsals for Midwest, I worried about how busy the marching band gets in October and November with Grand Nationals and BOA regionals. I gave students a summer assignment to learn the hardest piece on our Midwest program. Each player sent me several recordings over the summer, and that gave us a great start. When school began, we had already learned our Grade 6 piece. About every other week, we have an extra afterschool rehearsal on Wednesdays, the day our marching band does not rehearse. So, we have had some extra rehearsals but not a significant amount. I had to pick literature carefully to fit this group of students so when it gets really busy with Grand Nationals, we can still get a lot accomplished.

The Role of Marching in the Program
Because marching is so high profile here, it draws students into the program. Once they join, we work to elevate their interest and enthusiasm for playing in great concert ensembles. The program has five concert bands, so players have a chance to work their way up. At Mason it is a synergistic relationship, and we don’t treat one type of ensemble as more important than the other. We try to do both well. We also make sure that our teaching techniques are consistent across the ensembles. When students are in marching band, they are still developing their concert skills because we are not teaching different philosophies.
Our high school is quite large at 3,600 students, but there is still a small-town feel downtown. There are two local parades, and the town loves having us perform for these. We also have a really diverse community because there are a couple of big corporations in town. We have all of these great influences, and everybody works well together. It is a unique, dynamic place where the arts are well supported.

Greatest Strengths of Mason Bands
    Our tone and sound are real strengths and a primary focus of our work on fundamentals throughout the program. We constantly seek that great characteristic darker sound. Developing an understanding of how a great professional flute or trumpet sounds is essential. We emphasize that quite often, especially in the lower classes.
    Our classes average about 70 minutes, and 30 minutes of all our of classes from lowest to highest are spent on fundamentals. In the top ensemble, we listen to professionals play solos because it is a great way to teach musicality. We are fortunate to have multiple band directors and can spend considerable time in sectionals.
    We are lucky to have private teachers to give lessons in the building, and we try to select players who offer students a great sound model. We do a lot of singing and solfeggio in the upper groups and find that internalizing that sound is helpful. Even if students don’t have it right away, they know what it is and can work towards it.

Pandemic Lessons
We implemented many things during COVID that have stuck with the program. Students made frequent recordings for us to document their work during that time, and we have kept that approach. Often the upper group will have a recording due prior to rehearsing a piece. This prepares them to work on it right away. We have also been reminded to value every minute we have in the classroom with the students because it is not guaranteed.

Special Pieces on the Midwest Program
Composer Onsby Rose has written a commission dedicated to my father, who was a musician and passed away a while ago. It is a wonderful piece that will close our concert. We also chose a really beautiful piece called Safely Rest by Ohio-based composer Nicole Piunno. She didn’t compose it for us, but it is a wonderful newer piece that combines Amazing Grace and Taps. Richard Floyd is going to conduct that. The kids really love this piece.
Our soloist is saxophone professor James Bunte from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. We are playing a piece by John Williams from the movie Catch Me If You Can that is really fun and jazzy. It is called Escapades for Alto Saxophone and Concert Band, and we are doing the 3rd movement, Joyride, which is bright, happy, and different from most concertos.

Decision to Direct
When I was an undergraduate, I was hoping to be an orchestral percussionist. I had the pleasure of working with Willis Rapp, an amazing educator and percussionist, who changed my mind and made me want to become a band director. Once Will worked with me as a mentor, I never looked back.

Early Teaching Lessons
When I started out, my first directing job was at a program where the previous director had been there for 30 years. He was an incredible but stern director, so in my early days as a conductor, I thought I had to control everything. The older I get, the more I realize that contributions from students and other staff members are what make a program educationally sound and vibrant.
My biggest recommendation to younger directors is to find great mentors. I have been so lucky to fall into situations where different people have worked with my programs and helped me learn. For the last six years at Mason, Cheryl and Richard Floyd have come in every year to work with our bands, and Richard has become one of my biggest musical influences. It is so rewarding that he will be conducting on our concert.

My First Visit to Midwest
The first time I went, it really blew my mind. I remember going in to hear the concerts and thinking, “Oh my gosh, I don’t know how to get my band to sound like this. I probably will never be in a program that plays at this level.” That was the start of my journey, and I have been back almost every year. As I have learned and figured out what is going on, taking my group to Midwest started to seem possible. Midwest has been a huge factor in my growth and development.

Choosing Great Music
Repertoire is really important to me. I was lucky enough to complete an Artist’s Diploma at the University of Calgary. They used to have this summers-only masters program, and we had many great visitors. Frank Battisti was the first person I heard talk about the value of high-quality music. It is not necessarily that I want students to play certain pieces, but I work hard to make sure that anything we invest time in has a deeper meaning or historical background that we can teach and players can grasp.
Four years ago at the National Concert Band Festival, we played Music for Prague 1968 by Karel Husa, and I wasn’t sure if students would buy into it. They loved the history of it and learning about what was happening in Europe at the time. When we do a piece, we try to find something where we can teach a little bit more about it. For our big piece at Midwest, we are performing Paul Dooley’s Masks and Machines, which is based on Bauhaus art combined with Renaissance music, and we discussed those aspects in class. I try to make sure that they are exposed to Grainger and Holst, but band music has taken such a turn in the last 20 years. There are some incredible new composers out there. We really vet everything we play to make sure it is a high-quality piece of music.

Borrowed Ideas
I definitely have stolen many of Richard Floyd’s catchphrases; he has so many important ones. We often repeat his statement that “Bands that breathe together play together.” That seems so simple, but it is true. If the first note isn’t great, it can almost not matter what comes next.
We also used ideas from Freddy Martin in our teaching. His advice is to achieve consistency in everything you do. He says “The difference in groups is the groups that never, the groups that sometimes, and the groups that always.” Groups that never play with good support, groups that sometimes play with good support, and groups that always play with good support. We have that posted in our rehearsal room. You can apply that to just about any area of music.

Unforgettable Memories
I am amazed at the quality and maturity of our students. They have never complained about extra rehearsals or playing tests. They understand what we are trying to do, and their love for music carries them through any difficulties.
The most memorable moment in our preparations for Midwest happened when Richard Floyd was here conducting, and Nicole Piunno was here for her composition. It was so stimulating to have a conductor and a composer in the room at the same time. We decided early on and put in writing that the most important thing about the Midwest trip was going to be their experience. We haven’t let the grind of trying to play something perfectly or having the most incredible-sounding band get in the way of that. We are focusing on students having an amazing experience throughout the process.

—

Edward F. Protzman is Director of Bands at William Mason High School in Ohio. His ensembles have been selected to perform at music conferences in Ohio, Kansas, and Pennsylvania, and at the Music for All National Concert Band Festival. He earned degrees from Moravian College and Kutztown University (both in Pennsylvania) and a Graduate Diploma in Wind Conducting from the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. He is a candidate for the Doctorate of Music Education degree at Liberty University in Virginia.

—

Creek Valley Honor Winds
Carrollton, Texas
Directed by Kim Hawbaker-Cooley

The Program
Creek Valley Middle School has 570 students with close to 190 kids in two performing bands and a beginner band. The surrounding community is very diverse and fairly middle class. There are lots of challenges on our campus, but at the same time we have really good kids. Everyone is very supportive of the band program, so I am fortunate.

Returning to Midwest
    We were invited to Midwest in 2016 with the Creek Valley Honor Winds, and I thought we should keep prepping for opportunities like this. I applied for 2022, and we were lucky to be picked. I keep trying to explain to students the magnitude of this, but right now they are just middle school kids who are excited about a trip to Chicago and having fun with their friends.
    Carol Brittin-Chambers came out and worked with the group. They all got her autograph, so that was one glimpse that this is something different. We are going to have William Owens out to work on his piece as well. We just finished with Region and District auditions, so as the Midwest gets closer, the reality will start setting in.
    When we went in 2016, I will never forget the receiving line after the concert. People were so genuinely nice. I was overwhelmed by that. The level of support for my kids, and the kind words were amazing.

Pieces on the Concert
With all of my programming, especially both times at Midwest, I try to reach out to everyone with the music. I have some old, some new, some angry, some happy, something for everyone in the audience. I am particularly excited about a commission by Eric Rath. I went to West Texas A&M with Eric and know him really well. When Hebron High School (the school my students feed into) went to Midwest in 2010, he wrote Oracle for them. That composition was a big hit, and he has always wanted to do a middle school version. Soothsayer is his vision of a sequel to Oracle.

A Career Turning Point
I didn’t realize I wanted to be a band director until my third year of college. I was a music therapy major, but after some practicums I realized I did not like it and decided to become a band director. I student-taught with Andy Sealy, the director at Hebron. After I finished my student teaching, I felt I didn’t know enough and got my master’s at West Texas A&M where I was Dr. Garner’s graduate assistant. I really applied myself, especially on learning how the instruments worked. My husband, who is also a band director, and I would go to the library and dig out every Instrumentalist magazine. We had binders full of instrumental techniques. I owe a huge part of my career to your articles.

Lessons Learned
    When I was really young, I didn’t fully understand warmups because as a flutist, I could put the instrument up to my face and play whatever I wanted. Going through band in high school, no one ever explained why we had to do group warmups and what we were trying to accomplish. That was a big moment for me, learning how to listen and what to listen for. When you are young, you only hear your part. Now, when we are playing Concert F for a warmup, I might tell the band to balance to the euphoniums. Make sure you can hear the euphoniums. If you can’t hear them you are playing too loud. We just play around with that in warmup and that helps quite a bit. Thinking outside your instrument also includes listening to note starts and releases. I am still struggling with note releases. Hopefully, I am getting better at that.
    I also wish I had reached out to experienced directors more when I was first starting out. There is such a wealth of knowledge, but I worry that I will bother someone by asking questions. In reality, they are almost always happy to help. I am a shy person, so talking to strangers is not in my comfort zone. I wish I had stepped outside of my box more and quizzed people on what they did.
    Veteran Texas director Cindy Lansford has been hugely helpful to me. When I went to Creek Valley, I called her immediately and asked if she would be my mentor. She said yes and having her in my band hall made me think differently about things like what I hear in rehearsal compared with what I should hearing. She has taken me under her wing and made me a better teacher.
    John Benzer has also been a huge mentor, and he and Cindy Lansford are both conducting on my Midwest concert. As a young teacher, I knew a lot about instrument technique but not as much as I wanted to know about ensemble skills. I feel that learning how to develop a cohesive ensemble sound was the biggest hole in my early years of teaching.

Structure of Rehearsals
Our rehearsals this fall are different than in a regular year. The warm-up is pretty short so we can get to all the music. Right now, I’m hoping to play eleven pieces, which is a lot for a middle school band. In a normal year, I would spend 15-20 minutes per rehearsal on such fundamental skills as listening, balancing, note starts, note releases, getting their tongues and fingers working, scales, and then fun music and sightreading. Now, we spend about seven minutes on the warm-up and then go straight to the music.

Lessons from COVID
My school was 60% virtual during the pandemic, and that was hard for me. About 6 to 10 kids in my band who are going to Midwest were full virtual students as beginners. At my campus, I had a lot of problems getting students to log on and do any work. I had to make it more engaging and fun, so I used Blooket to develop quiz games to help them. Every time we logged on, they would tell me a fun fact about themselves just to make it fun and different from their other classes. Moving to where we are now, I still use Blooket and those kinds of things because kids are now learning more from TikTok and YouTube, so I know they like videos and use them to teach theory.

My First Visit to Midwest
My first time was with the Hebron band in 2010, and I was just shocked and amazed at the composers and the audience. It was eye-opening and such a positive experience. Those kids enjoyed being thought of as something special. It was thrilling. In 2016 when we had the rehearsal where the composers participated, I was so scared, but it was a great experience for the students.

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Kim Hawbaker-Cooley has directed bands at Creek Valley Middle School in Carrollton, Texas since 2011. She attended West Texas A&M Univer-sity in Canyon, Texas, where she studied with Gary Garner and earned two degrees. Creek Valley students regularly earn places in all-district and all-region bands and the Creek Valley Band was named a finalist in the TMEA CC Honor Band competition. Under her direction, the Creek Valley Honor Band previously performed at the Midwest in 2016. Her husband, Nathan, is also a band director in Lewisville ISD.

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Cedar Falls High School Jazz One
Cedar Falls, Iowa
Directed by Kyle Engelhardt

Cedar Falls
Cedar Falls is a small college town with about 36,000 residents. We have one high school for grades 10-12, and the junior highs cover grades 7-9. Because our ensembles turn over every three years, we rely on a phenomenal feeder system to maintain a strong foundation for the high school program. Students in the district start band in 5th grade, jazz band in 7th grade, and when they advance to high school, they contribute immediately.

Applying to Midwest
    Our school has two jazz bands – I direct Jazz One, and my colleague Gerald Ramsey directs the second jazz band. I’m always looking for opportunities for students to have great experiences and to perform in different venues. When I was in high school, my dad took me to my first Midwest Clinic. He was my high school band director, and I told him during my senior year that I wanted to be a music major. He said we need to go to Midwest.
    On that trip, I saw some of the best concert bands, professional bands, and wind ensembles that I had ever heard. I also heard some really cool jazz. During the car ride home, I told him that it would be fun to take a band to Midwest someday. He laughed and said it is good to dream big; I would have to work hard, but it would be a good goal. That was my first experience with Midwest.
    Music continues to be a family experiernce for me. My daughter is in my band, and my father and mother will be there to watch us perform. My wife is one of our junior high band directors, and she will be there, along with our son, an 8th grade trumpet player, to keep me calm and cheer on her daughter.
    I taught for five years before coming to Cedar Falls. I focused on making Jazz One grow and always aimed high with them. I thought performing at the state conference was a good goal, and in 2015, we were the sole jazz band invited to perform at the Iowa Bandmasters Association conference. That was really fun, and we did it again in 2018 and 2021. That band in 2021 turned into the recording band for Midwest. I had eleven seniors who had really worked hard, so we decided to go for it and sent in a recording for Midwest.

Preparing for Midwest
    Because jazz meets outside of the school day, we normally have our first rehearsal right after marching band ends in mid-October. With the Midwest performance coming, I held a reading session in July and another in August. At those sessions, I passed out the music from the publishers I was considering. We read music for two hours and then had a pizza party. We settled into our program after hearing what the kids could do and where we needed to go. As soon as school started, we began jazz rehearsals on our regular extracurricular schedule: Monday nights from 8 to 10 and Wednesday and Friday mornings from 7 to 8.
    The Midwest requires performing groups to program a wide range of ability levels and a lot of new music. I was fortunate to work with some great publishing companies to get music in advance that would be part of their fall releases. With the kids, the question was: “do you like this and do you want to work on this?” Music selection is near and dear to my heart – it’s our curriculum. I wanted to pick a wide variety of significant literature, both historical and new. I didn’t want to pick something just to meet a requirement. Students nixed a couple of ideas, but the majority of the music I had selected for them to read was either a yes or maybe. Charts in the maybe pile required reading it again to make sure we could play it.
    The Midwest selected three high school jazz bands, two college bands, and one middle school group for 2022. I found selecting the Grade 1 and 2 music was the hardest because we were all vying for the same pieces. There has been a lot of really smart writing that has come out in the last three years for Grades 1 and 2. One of these, Calypso Angelical by Steve Shanley was commissioned by our 7th grade band director, Eric Lins, in 2018 and published by Iowa-based C.L. Barnhouse in 2020. It met all of the requirements, and Steve is a friend of ours. Students who were in 7th grade when this chart was commissioned are now juniors in my band. That’s a unique tie for Cedar Falls, to play a piece that they first learned as beginning jazz students at a national conference four years later.

Greatest Strengths
When people hear our band, they should hear a fundamentally sound ensemble with kids who know their roles within the group and play with characteristic tone on their instruments. I think you can say that about any of the bands in Cedar Falls. We work hard to make sure that their music sounds authentic. I have a strong jazz background from college and like to improvise and listen to jazz. When I am teaching, my horn is in my hand a lot. You have to hear jazz to play it.

Teaching Improvisation
Many of our students get their start in improv in seventh and eighth grade. Our junior high teachers do a great job of giving them space to improvise their solos instead of following the suggested written solo. Beginning improvisers start with the blues or simple melodies and learn to embellish the melodies, a process that continues in high school. The players in Jazz Two gain considerable experience soloing, and when they reach Jazz One, kids are expected to play more advanced changes and improvise at a higher level. It all comes back to sounding like you have listened to jazz before and can speak appropriately in the jazz idiom. I had ten out of seventeen students attend combo camp this summer at the University of Northern Iowa and dive deep into improv.

Pandemic Lessons
We had in-person school throughout the 2020-21 school year but used masks and bell covers. The ensembles were smaller during that period. When we came back to school that fall, we set up cameras in the balcony and streamed concerts for parents at home. The first in-person concert happened in March 2021, and there was such a feeling of euphoria having people there to listen to us again. The whole ensemble played so much better with an audience, and that’s something I will take with me from the pandemic. We can’t take our audience for granted and have to respect that they are there to hear and cheer us on. We must treat the audience with respect as partners in our musicmaking.

Rehearsal Strategies
    Because the jazz program is extracurricular, I can always set up the room in advance. I ask players to come in 15 minutes early and complete an appropriate warm-up for their instrument. My bass player needs to come in and walk through some lines, make sure the bass plays in tune, plug into the tuner, and be ready to go. The lead trumpet is a whole different animal. He needs to warm up, get a buzz going, and play a couple of lips slurs and fundamental tones. Students are responsible during that 15 minutes for getting ready to rehearse.
    I always start rehearsals with something that we can swing and groove on. I don’t like using group warm-ups with my jazz bands and would rather get going with something in our literature that I know works great. This gets everybody on the same page. Ideally, it’s not the highest shout section in the chart, so I don’t blow up my lead players’ faces. I might pick an easy swing chart to start before playing the hard, fast swinger that I really need to rehearse. Also, I might play a straight-eighth modern jazz tune if we are going to be working on a Latin chart soon after that, just to get the straight-eighth feel and that pulse going.
    After we have played a bit and everyone is feeling good, I will use a whole-part-whole approach. We will take a chunk of a tune, and everyone will play it. Then, we work really hard within the sections to break it down, fix what needs to be fixed, and then put it back together. I will do that on every chart we play during the rehearsal.
    I watch the time pretty carefully so that we start and end on time. I always want players to end the rehearsal feeling good so they can go home happy about the time they spent in jazz band. I pick a section that is going to sound good or that we just rehearsed, run it, let people solo, give it a ride, and then end the rehearsal.

Notable Commission
One commission that I had a hand in developing is First In, Last Out by Bob Washut. It was commissioned in honor of Brett Neal a drummer from Valley High School in West Des Moines, Iowa who was killed in a car accident. Joe Turner was Brett’s band director, and Joe and I have been friends for 25 years. Joe passed away from lymphoma in April 2018, but while he was in the hospital, he talked with me and some other friends about the chart he never got written to honor his drummer. He wanted it to be a drum feature but not necessarily drums all the time because nobody likes that. He requested a feel-good tune instead of something sad, and he wanted people to be able to solo on it and feel good. Joe asked us to help make it happen, and two weeks later he passed away.
We got together with the band staff at Valley and Joe’s former teachers and commissioned the chart that summer. It was published in 2020 by iJazzMusic. It’s a beautiful chart, everything Joe wanted, which means the world to me because we went to college together, we played together, we were in each other’s weddings. I was there at the end to help Joe get one of his last wishes. It is a special chart with tons of meaning.

Mentors
Dan Peterson, my college director at Truman State, was so good about teaching the value of treating all music with respect whether it was marching, concert, jazz, or small ensemble. He reminded us that band is a community activity and you have to run a complete program that is part of your school and town. When I arrived at college, I thought jazz was all I needed to do, but Dan helped me appreciate playing in an orchestra, wind ensemble, or brass choir and made me a more well-rounded teacher. (See Dan Peterson’s Midwest stories on page 40.) Because the University of Northern Iowa is in Cedar Falls, I have learned so much from the phenomenal teachers there including Bob Washut, Chris Merz, and Mike Conrad. They all have a unique voice, they program beautifully, and it’s a joy to go to their concerts. They have been good friends and mentors.

Lessons Learned
When I first started teaching jazz, I didn’t appreciate the significant role that the rhythm section and solos play in the success of the performance. I thought as long as the winds sound good and we are in time, it will be fine. I spent way too much time back then cleaning up wind parts and not nearly enough time with soloists and the rhythm section. Now, I have worked really hard to find time in rehearsal to work on rhythm section parts and solos while still keeping the wind players engaged.
As a band director, it is so easy to say there are fifteen wind players and only four in the rhythm section, but if your rhythm section is not doing its job, nobody will want to listen to you. It is so interesting to hear old recordings of my band from when I first started and compare them to where we are now. Those early performances could have been so much better if I had paid attention to the ride cymbal groove or to the bass playing on the beat.

Keeping Jazz Band Relevant
Finding relevant and interesting music is our job. Literature has to have artistic value and importance. I look for a mix of modern and classic music. Every year I will try to play a Basie, Ellington, Mary Lou Williams, or Fletcher Henderson chart so students experience some classic swing. Exposing players to the unique challenges of those charts is important.
I also look for newer stuff and have done a couple arrangements of Snarky Puppy’s music, which is really fun and modern and different. The students are surprised and excited to play this music. We also explore a variety of multicultural music including Afro-Cuban pieces, Latin pieces, and more. Steven Feifke composes some interesting new works. He does quite a bit of commercial arranging but also really distinctive big band writing. His music is really fun, and we will be playing one of his pieces at Midwest. Looking for an appropriate balance of old and new, as well as culturally diverse composers and arrangers, keeps things fresh for students, and they just like it better. That’s what keeps them coming.

Memories from Midwest Preparation
The Midwest experience from the performer side is unique. In 1993, I was dreaming about bringing a band to perform and almost 30 years later, that dream has come true. I am so thankful for the opportunity. I have dedicated students who have worked so hard with the backing of incredible parents and administrators. The amount of work required to bring a band to Midwest is amazing. The logistics of busses and hotels and the music programming requirements make it so different from typical concert. At the same time, our concert will represent us well as a school and as a band.

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Kyle Engelhardt is in his 22nd year of teaching instrumental music and has been a faculty member at Cedar Falls High School in Iowa since 2004. At Cedar Falls High School, he conducts Jazz One and the Symphonic Band and co-directs the Tiger Marching Band. His bands have performed three times at the Iowa Bandmasters Association Conference. He was a quarterfinalist for the Grammy Music Educator Award in 2019 and earned degrees from Truman State University. His wife, Laura, directs bands at Holmes Jr. High in Cedar Falls, and they have two children.

The post Dreams Come True, Three Directors Share Their Journeys to Midwest appeared first on The Instrumentalist.