Texas Bandmasters Association
Bandmasters Review • April 2014
5
I recently visited an elementary music
teacher who is an outstanding veteran
educator and is new to our district. I
wanted to see how things were going for
him and to check on whether he needed
anything. I caught him
right before a Kindergarten
class was about to begin.
The following transpired:
Teacher: (With great
eagerness) “Good morning
boys and girls. It is
soooo great to see you!
I’m looking forward to
our music lesson today
because we are going to
learn and sing a new song and then move
around the room in partners!”
Students: “Yay!!”
Teacher: “But before we begin, I want to
introduce to you a very special guest. The
man standing right there is Mr. Portillo,
and he is the Fine Arts Coordinator for
our entire district. Can you say good
morning to Mr. Portillo?”
Students: (In unison and looking at
me) “Good morning, Mr. Portillo!”
Teacher: “And guess what else,
students? (a slight pause, as he bent over
and whispered) He is a musician!”
Students: (Nodding their heads up and
down) “Oooooohhh!” Then one little girl
with hands clasped in her lap excitedly
said out loud, “I just LOVE magic tricks!”
I burst out laughing because she
thought the teacher had said, “Magician.”
I then thought to myself, “Well in so
many ways, sometimes band directors get
to be part magicians as well.”
I believe the magic does indeed live
in our rehearsal rooms. Creating the
“musical” moment IS the magic. The
emotional attachment produced by
students when they have achieved
whatever the expectation
is during the rehearsal is
the “tada.” It wasn’t there
before, and after your
instruction, it appeared.
My hope is that you have
these moments each and
every time your students
are with you. I believe that
for most students, this
is the very reason they
WANT to be in your class. They get to
experience a form of soulful success that
they do not often times obtain in other
academic classes. The best part is that
each student’s “tada” is shared with every
other student in the class, and YOU,
their teacher. When your reaction and
body language show your pride in their
achievement, the connection is magical!
Your magic is so important, whether it is
that your beginning band students have
just learned to play “Hot Cross Buns” or
your Wind Ensemble has just learned the
“Symphony in Bb” by Hindemith.
I wish you the very best for the
remainder of this school year and as you
begin to plan for the summer and fall. I
look forward to seeing you at the TBA
convention where all great band directors
make the time to hone their skills, visit
with friends, share their knowledge and
learn some more “magic!”
From the Board
Chico Port i l lo, 2013 - 14 TBA Secretary
Richard Herrera
President
Brandeis High School
13011 Kyle Seale Pkwy.
San Antonio, TX 78249
210-397-8300
richard.herrera@nisd.net
Bruce Beach
President Elect
Franklin High School
900 N. Resler
El Paso, TX 79912
915-832-6608
beachbeachmus@aol.com
Steven Moore
Vice President
Lindale High School
P.O. Box 370
Lindale, TX 75771
903-881-4140
mooresw@lind.sprnet.org
Jeff King
Treasurer
Duncanville High School
900 W. Camp Wisdom Road
Duncanville, TX 75116
972-708-3732
kingjeffrey@hotmail.com
Chico Portillo
Secretary
Pflugerville ISD Fine Arts
1401 W. Pecan
Pflugerville, TX 78660
512-594-0187
portillo.chico@gmail.com
John Morrison
Sergeant-at-Arms
Hamilton Middle School
12330 Kluge Road
Cypress, TX 77429
281-320-7021
john.morrison@cfisd.net
Alfredo Vélez III
Past President
Lone Star College-Kingwood
20000 Kingwood Drive
Kingwood, TX 77339-3801
281-318-4335
email@alfredovelez.com
Michael Brashear
Executive Director
Texas Bandmasters Association
1002 Central Parkway South
San Antonio, TX 78232
210-492-8878
mbrashear@texasbandmasters.org
Texas Bandmasters
Association
2013-14
Board of Directors