Bandmasters Review - September 2019

Texas Bandmasters Association Bandmasters Review • September 2019 2 Phillip Clements, 2019 - 20 TBA President Phillip Clements President Texas A&M University-Commerce P.O. Box 3011 Commerce, TX 75429 903-886-5285 phillip.clements@tamuc.edu Roland Sandoval President Elect Department of Music-UTSA 1 UTSA Circle San Antonio, TX 78249 210-737-8929 roljack@satx.rr.com Daniel Allen Vice President Franklin High School 900 N. Resler El Paso, TX 79912 915-236-2266 dallenep@aol.com George Little Treasurer Lufkin High School 309 South Medford Drive Lufkin, TX 75901 936-630-4134 glittle@lufkinisd.org Reagan Brumley Secretary Highland Park High School 4220 Emerson Dallas, TX 75205 214-780-3737 rabrumley@gmail.com Christopher Yee Sergeant-at-Arms Cedar Park High School 2150 Cypress Creek Road Cedar Park, TX 78613 512-570-1200 christopher.yee@leanderisd.org John Morrison Past President Cypress-Fairbanks ISD Secondary Music 10300 Jones Road, Suite 724 Houston, TX 77065 281-897-4042 john.morrison@cfisd.net Michael Brashear Executive Director Texas Bandmasters Association 1002 Central Parkway South San Antonio, TX 78232 210-492-8878 mbrashear@texasbandmasters.org TBA Board of Directors 2019-20 Remembering Why We Love What We Do! The beginning of the year is a wonderful time to remember why you love what you do. Why is it that you enjoy teaching? Why do you love music? Why is it important that students have the opportunity to learn music and experience the wonderful culture we call TEXAS BANDS? When the sounds have faded and the contests and concerts are over, you want your students to love what they have experienced in your program, but to also have developed a life-long love of music. At the end of their time with you, the most important thing they can learn is a passion and a true love for music! Music education is not only teaching them about music and how to perform music, but why music is central to our lives as human beings. Taking time to reflect on your own passion for music can be a helpful reminder of what you can share with your students every day. Consider the following ideas you can use in your teaching to guide your students towards their own love of music: 1 Talk with your students about why you love music and why you love sharing it with them. 2 Remind them that they are fortunate to have the opportunity, talent and ability to create music every day. This will do wonders for your own attitude as well. 3 Tell them about your favorite pieces and why you enjoy certain composers’ music. 4 During rehearsal, take the time to share with your students why you selected a piece of music, what you like about it, and what they will learn from it. 5 Describe for them why the composer wrote the piece and what they were trying to portray or say through the music. Remember, even a march is trying to portray a feeling. 6 Describe for them how a piece makes you FEEL and ask them about their feelings about the music. 7 Celebrate successes in rehearsal in a way that makes them realize that only music can make them feel this way. For example, say: “I love the way we arrived at that final chord-what a moment!” 8 Describe to them what the composer did in the music to evoke a certain feeling. “Notice how the composer changes keys and brings back the theme in major to make us feel that everything is okay.” 9 Remind them you care about them and that making music with people we care about is better than making music alone. 10 Remind them that in a world where bad news seems to be all around us, music can make them feel safe, connected to others, and feel a way that words cannot. They need to know WHY they need music in their lives.