Texas Bandmasters Association
Bandmasters Review • September 2012
6
Greetings from the TBA office! I am pleased to
report that we had another very successful TBA
convention with over 6500 in attendance including
band directors, family members, students, performing
groups, and exhibitors. I am very impressed with the
high commitment of band directors to professional
development—over 12,500 hours
were spent in attendance at clinics at
TBA this summer!! “The President’s
Own” Marine Band concert had
standing room only and all of the
concerts and reading sessions were
well attended. One of our traditions
is an emphasis on family activities at
the convention. The Lonesome Dove
proved to be a great new venue for
the Spouses’ Luncheon and our overall
spouse and family attendance was up by 30 percent
over last year. Congratulations to the TBA Board of
Directors and Spouses Board, and especially Tom and
Shelley Harrington-2012 presidents, for their work in
presenting this outstanding convention.
TBA Resources :
Please note the Professional Development clinics that
are listed on the inside front cover. I encourage you to
take advantage of these great opportunities for further
growth through the school year. Another valuable
resource that TBA provides is a wealth of information
on our website. Handouts from conventions and
articles from past
Bandmasters Review
magazines are
available. Go to
www.texasbandmasters.org
and look
under the RESOURCES tab.
2013 Convent ion Date Announced :
The TBA Convention/Clinic date for 2013 is
Sunday-Wednesday, July 21-24
. This is one
week earlier than previously announced and should
work better for many attendees. An added bonus is the
San Antonio DCI show on Saturday, July 20. Plan to
attend the DCI show and stay for the convention.
TBA’s Future :
One constant that I have observed in my life
and career is that change is inevitable. I am old (or
experienced!) enough to remember when “No Pass-
No Play” began. I thought that would be the end of
successful band programs as we knew them. I also
thought that the law was so unfair
and ridiculous that parents and other
advocates would put enough pressure
on the powers that be so the law would
quickly be changed. I was wrong on
both accounts! The law remains and
the quality of band programs in this
state continues to go up and up. This is
only one example in my career of how
band directors adapt to change and
find new and more efficient ways to
teach—resulting in better bands. I have also observed
that directors who are the most adept with changes are
the ones who stay in the profession and continue to be
successful. Those who resist change or bury their head
in the sand generally fail.
TBA has a long history of success. We are the largest
state band director association and have enjoyed 65
successful conventions. In many respects, TBA and
Texas bands are the envy of the national band world.
TBA has been blessed with outstanding leadership and
vision from past Presidents and Executive Directors.
Each generation of leaders has met the challenges
presented and continued the TBA story!
A large part of the success of our annual convention
is our exhibit hall. Our attendees benefit from being
able to view the most current products available from
our exhibitors and from the personal contacts that are
made with the Business Members. Even in the internet
age, there is no substitute for personal, one-on-one
interaction available in our exhibit hall. Our Business
Members also contribute approximately half of the
TBA annual budget, a substantial part of our income.
TBA News
Michael Brashear, TBA Execut ive Director