SBO March 2010 by SBO School Band & Orchestra

MARCH 2010 $5.00

Carol Agler and Dan Kelley of the Ohio State School for the Blind

The Little Band that Could Report: Best Tools for Schools Roundtable: Summer Music Camps

Contents 8

March 2010

Features 8

UPFRONT: DISNEY ART FOR MUSIC

REPORT: BEST TOOLS FOR SCHOOLS Educators attending the music products industry’s 2010 NAMM Show unveil their selections of the best Tools for Schools chosen from the convention’s exhibit halls.

COMMENTARY: WHAT IS “IT”? SBO contributor Joe Allison weighs in on the practical concerns ensembles face when programming for competitive events.

UPCLOSE: CAROL AGLER & DAN KELLEY Carol Agler and Dan Kelley are the co-directors of the Ohio State School for the Blind’s five-year-old Marching Band. In a recent conversation with SBO, these extraordinary educators go behind the scenes of this remarkable program, detailing the events that culminated in their participation in the 2010 Rose Parade.

ROUNDTABLE: SUMMER CAMPS

PERFORMANCE: CONDUCTING J. Steven Moore provides 16 creative conducting tips aimed at eliciting inspired musicianship.

TECHNOLOGY: AUDIO CLEANING Dr. Kuzmich reviews new technology designed to enhance and restore audio files.

24 Columns 4 6 52

Perspective Headlines New Products

54 55 56

Playing Tip Classifieds Ad Index

Cover photo by Tania Schade, Schade Photography, Dublin, Ohio SB&O School Band and Orchestra® (ISSN 1098-3694) is published monthly by Symphony Publishing, LLC, 21 Highland Circle, Suite 1, Needham, MA 02494 (781) 453-9310, publisher of Musical Merchandise Review, Choral Director, Music Parents America and JAZZed. All titles are federally registered trademarks and/or trademarks of Symphony Publishing, LLC. Subscription Rates: one year $24; two years $40. Rates outside U.S.A. available upon request. Single issues $5 each. February Resource Guide $15. Periodical-Rate Postage Paid at Boston, MA and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER/ SUBSCRIBERS: Send address change to School Band and Orchestra, P.O. Box 8548, Lowell, MA 01853. No portion of this issue may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. The publishers of this magazine do not accept responsibility for statements made by their advertisers in business competition. Copyright © 2010 by Symphony Publishing, LLC, all rights reserved. Printed in USA.

2 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

@b]R_V\_ A\[R /NYN[PRQ .PaV\[ N[Q Rea_RZR =\_aNOVYVaf

'%รฐ! '(รฐ!'+รฐ! '.รฐ ('รฐ h^oZh VkV^aVWaZ ^c ;^WZg\aVhh! Eda^h]ZY 8deeZg! VcY =VbbZgZY 8deeZg Wdla dei^dch#

?d^c i]Z 6YVbh GZkdaji^dc ^c egd[Zhh^dcVa i^beVc^ edgiVWâîn# I]Z EViZciZY =Z^\]i 6Y_jhiVWaZ 9Z" 8djea^c\ 7VhZ Vaadlh i]Z Wdla id WZ fj^Xàn hZeVgViZY [dg ZVhn igVchedgi# I]Z EViZciZY GVc\Z IjcZg dei^dc Wg^c\h ndj ร cZg ijc^c\ VXXjgVXn lî] i]Z CZl 7VaVcXZY 6Xi^dc eZYVa hnhiZb# :Vhn Gdaa YdjWaZ adX`^c\ XVhiZgh! V ร mZY adX`^c\ (gY l]ZZa VhhZbWan VcY XdbeVXi [daY^c\ [gVbZ YZh^\c lî] Wjâi"^c XVggn^c\ ]VcYaZ ]Zae bV`Z i]Z GZkdaji^dc I^beVc^ jca^`Z Vcn di]Zg Ygjb ^c i]Z ldgaY#

6YVbh GZkdaji^dc i^beVc^ VgZ egdjYan Y^hig^WjiZY Wn EZVga 8dgedgVi^dc d[ CVh]k^aaZ! IC#

Perspective

Talent Knows No Barriers

“L

ike everyone else in society, regardless of my legal status, I am physically handicapped. For instance, regardless of my desire I can never be a professional heavy-weight boxer, a supermodel or a famous tenor... At least not without a some serious hormone therapy and a drastic increase in my calorie intake!” This quote is attributed to Dame Evelyn Glennie and her Web site: http://www.evelyn.co.uk/Evelyn_old/live/hearing_essay.htm. For those who don’t know Glennie, she is perhaps the most successful classical percussion soloist in the world, who also happens to be hearing impaired. Instead of hearing by traditional means, she is able to feel the vibrations of her instrument as well as those of the orchestras she performs with, as well as having visual cues from the conductor. In my interpretation, her point is that we all have shortcomings, whether they be physical, mental, emotional, or otherwise, which make us unique and which we all need to overcome. Unfortunately, many people in positions of authority assume and/or make determinations about individuals who have physi“The realms of the cal or mental challenges about what they are capable of, and what they are not capable of. However, in the case of possible for this Ms. Glennie, most people assume that one of the principal program have been elements necessary for performing music is excellent heartorn down.” ing. She has attained what many would have thought was impossible, by redefining the paradigms of what is physiologically necessary to perform music. In this issue, SBO provides an interesting look at a unique band program which took many people by surprise when they saw them marching at this year’s Tournament of Roses Parade. Carol Agler and Dan Kelley of the Ohio State School for the Blind did what many others would have thought to be impossible: to march down the boulevard with a group of talented, dedicated students who happen to be blind. Again, the realms of the possible for this program have been torn down, and replaced with an ensemble with a “can do” attitude. This positive attitude comes not only from the students, but from their teachers, who had the belief and open mindedness that their students were capable of this tremendous feat, based upon a variety of considerations. Unfortunately, many students who have challenges never have the opportunity to create or accomplish the things that they are really capable of, due to stereotypes and other misperceptions of ability. If people had told the students in the Ohio School for the Blind that they were not capable of having a marching band, that sentiment might have deterred the students. If Ms. Glennie’s teachers had told her that she was incapable due to her hearing challenges, then the world would not have access to the stunning, virtuoso performances and repertoire that she has created. You’ll find one of the most dramatic stories in this issue that SBO has ever produced and we welcome your comments, so please drop us an e-mail!

March 2010 Volume 13, Number 3

GROUP PUBLISHER Sidney L. Davis sdavis@symphonypublishing.com PUBLISHER Richard E. Kessel rkessel@symphonypublishing.com Editorial Staff

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Christian Wissmuller

cwissmuller@symphonypublishing.com

EDITOR Eliahu Sussman esussman@symphonypublishing.com ASSOCIATE EDITOR Denyce Neilson dneilson@symphonypublishing.com Art Staff

PRODUCTION MANAGER Laurie Guptill

lguptill@symphonypublishing.com

GRAPHIC DESIGNER Andrew P. Ross aross@symphonypublishing.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER Laurie Chesna lchesna@symphonypublishing.com Advertising Staff

ADVERTISING SALES Iris Fox

ifox@symphonypublishing.com

CLASSIFIED SALES Maureen Johan mjohan@symphonypublishing.com Business Staff

CIRCULATION MANAGER Melanie A. Prescott mprescott@symphonypublishing.com

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Popi Galileos pgalileos@symphonypublishing.com WEBMASTER Sanford Kearns skearns@symphonypublishing.com Symphony Publishing, LLC

CHAIRMAN Xen Zapis PRESIDENT Lee Zapis lzapis@symphonypublishing.com CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Rich Bongorno rbongorno@symphonypublishing.com Corporate Headquarters 26202 Detroit Road, Suite 300 Westlake, Ohio 44145 (440) 871-1300 www.symphonypublishing.com Publishing, Sales, & Editorial Office 21 Highland Circle, Suite 1 Needham, MA 02494 (781) 453-9310 FAX (781) 453-9389 1-800-964-5150

www.sbomagazine.com

Member 2010

RPMDA Rick Kessel rkessel@symphonypublishing.com 4 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

visit us on-line at bandshoppe.com

| order by phone at 1.800.457.3501

Jackets for $99.95 each with Free Embroidery (max 8000 stitches). Jackets are custom made so please call a Band Shoppe Sales Representative to complete your order. All Jackets, Bibbers, Trousers, Skirts, Sashes, Capes, and Gauntlets are Custom Made; Minimum Order of 3 Per Style and Color.

From Left to Right: IN832, IN823, IN8001, IN8006, IN8005, IN809

r rde uo f yo s. i 5% ail nal det itio more d d a for an v e t iv e . Sa senta r e rd re xt o Rep r ne Sales u o y on ll a 5% e ca ave Pleas s and 010. pay , 2 Pre rch 15 Ma

L A E D E V I F S U L P E FIV

HeadLines Midwest Clinic Accepting Applications

National Memorial Day Parade

he Midwest Clinic: An International Band and Orchestra Conference is now accepting performance applications and clinic proposals for its 64th Annual Conference (December 14-18, McCormick Place West, Chicago, Illinois). The Board of Directors welcomes performance applications from school, university, and community groups: chamber and jazz ensembles, orchestras, and bands. The Midwest Clinic also seeks proposals from clinicians who can advise, stimulate, and guide members of the instrumental music education community. Applications and proposals are due by 5:00 p.m. (Central) on Friday, March 12. The performance application, online clinic proposal system, and details about the 2010 conference can be found at www.midwestclinic.org.

he National Memorial Day Parade will take place in Washington, D.C., on May 31, 2010. The three-hour parade passes alongside the National Mall on Constitution Avenue between 7th and 17th Streets. The parade consists of marching bands from many of the 50 states. Patriotic floats and balloons will also be a part of the procession. More than 10,000 participants take part in the parade annually. For more information, visit www.nationalmemorialdayparade.com.

Arts in Education Grants Available

Best Buy Teams with the Grammy Foundation

small pool of funding is available at the U.S. Department of Education to support arts education in the nation’s schools. The U.S. Department of Education’s Arts in Education Model Development and Dissemination Program (AEMDD) is currently accepting applications for FY10 awards. These highly competitive grants enable schools and organizations to integrate standards-based arts education into elementary and middle school curricula and improve students’ academic performance. Eligible programs must be administered in partnership with a local education agency and can be up to four years in duration, with the first year used to plan an imbedded evaluation process. At least five previous AEMDD awards have supported school-based collaborations with orchestras, including the Annapolis Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Rockford Symphony Orchestra, Tucson Symphony Orchestra, and the Brooklyn Philharmonic. The deadline for applications is March 16, 2010. For more information, visit www.ed.gov.

Retailer Best Buy and the Grammy Foundation have joined together to launch the “Be The Next” initiative. The “Be The Next” initiative will expand on Grammy Foundation’s support of music education by leveraging Best Buy’s philanthropic @15 platform, Club Beats, and Best Buy Mobile resources. Through these programs, Best Buy will pledge up to $1 million in funds to at-risk music education programs in schools across the country. Cash awards will be given to selected schools through the Grammy Foundation’s Grammy Signature Schools program and its Enterprise Award designation. Created in 1998, the Grammy Signature Schools program recognizes top U.S. public high schools that are making an outstanding commitment to music education during an academic school year. To find out more, visit www.grammyintheschools.com.

Online Survey Results

Up-Front Footwear Relocates

Does your music program offer students the chance to participate in chamber groups?

yes 64%

no 36%

Visit www.sbomagazine.com and let your voice be heard in the current online poll – results to be published in the next issue of SBO. 6 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

After being headquartered in Lebanon, Penn. for the past 24 years, Up-Front Footwear, makers of DINKLES Marching Shoes, has moved to a new facility as of January 18, 2010. Jeff Savoca, president of Up-Front Footwear says, “My father Jerry Savoca founded Up-Front Footwear in 1986 and we’ve had a great home in Lebanon ever since. However due to issues with the railroad company which operates tracks literally a few feet from our front door, when we were presented with the opportunity to move to a great new location in Mount Joy, we jumped at the chance to relocate our operations.” Up-Front Footwear can now be reached at: PO Box 126, 33 N. Market Street, Mount Joy, Penn., 17552; Phone: (717) 492-1875 or (888) 346-5537; FAX: (717) 492-1866; Web site: www.dinkles.com; e-mail: bandshoe@dinkles.com.

Be Majestic. Transforming the percussive arts. Majestic timpani, mallet instruments, and concert drums are rapidly becoming the preferred instruments for todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s percussion sections and ensembles. New features that assure reliable performance and the best possible quality of sound allow performers, students and educators to focus on musicianship.

majesticpercussion.com

Be innovative. Be expressive. Be Majestic.

(800) 283-4676 info@majesticpercussion.com

SBOUpfront

Disney Art for Music

The hand-painted basses outside the Disney Animation building.

cclaimed bassist and composer Stanley Clarke recently joined with the Grammy Foundation and Disney Youth Programs to officially debut five hand-painted upright basses commemorating the 25th Anniversary of Disney Magic Music Days. John Stoner, president and CEO of Conn-Selmer â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a leading manufacturer of band and orchestral instruments, and the

company responsible for donating the five basses â&#x20AC;&#x201C; was on hand for the event, held February 4th at the Grammy Museum in L.A. The instruments were decorated with well-known Disney characters and painted by Walt Disney Animation Studio artists.

8 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

In addition to the colorful instruments on display, the focus of the event was also on music education and the importance of keeping it alive, as Stanley Clarke reaffirmed when he took the stage saying, “When music gets inside children, it is like turning

Disney artists introduce their work.

a light on.” The lively basses will be auctioned by Julien’s Auctions, in June at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, with proceeds benefiting the music education programs of the Grammy Foundation, which works year-round to bring national attention to the value and impact of music and arts education. The Foundation will assist in the auction and will distribute funds to various school music programs around the U.S. The basses are currently touring the U.S. and are being displayed individually at music and art museums across the country, including the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Disney animator Claire Keane & Stanley Clarke.

Come join a performance that’s been running for 25o years. Students always leave here with memories and stories about the past that last long into the future. Join us for unforgettable, interactive experiences that are both fun and educational, including guided tours, special programs, and hands~on activities. Fife and drum groups perform daily, along with demonstrations of 18th~century instruments.Visits can be tailored to any group’s needs, including lodging, dining, 18th~century tavern meals, and entertainment.

Group packages are available for 15 students or more. Be sure to ask about performance opportunities for music or choral groups of 25~75 students. To plan a trip or make reservations, call 1~800~4oo~2862 or visit colonialwilliamsburg.com/grouptours.

Be part of the story.

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 9

You’re one of a kind.

So is the copyrighted music you rely on.

... Did you know • t Infringemen law ht of the copyrig can result in fines of up to

$30,000?

Keep it legal. You want your students to value music. When you observe the copyright law you show them the way. The future of music is in your hands. Here’s how to keep it legal: 1. Know what you can do 2. Know what you can’t do legally 3. Get permission to use other’s property

Music Publishers’ Association of the United States 243 5th Avenue, Suite 236, New York, NY 10016 • admin@mpa.org • www.mpa.org

[ Y O U A R E G R A N T E D P E R M I S S I O N T O M A K E C O P I E S O F T H I S PA G E T O S H A R E W I T H Y O U R S TA F F. ]

Keep It Legal.

Copyrighted music is a piece of property, and if you want to use it, you must ask the owner for permission. You may or may not receive permission, but when you use someone else’s property, you must have their permission. This is true for musical works as much as for anything else you own. The music you use is created by composers, arrangers and publishers, and, to ensure future music is available, they must be compensated for it. The future of music is very much in your hands. Music Copyright Law Guide*:

What You Can Do:

Getting Permission:

1. You may make emergency photocopies to replace missing parts for an imminent performance, provided you replace all copies with purchased music in due course. 2. You may edit or simplify music as long as the fundamental character of the work is not distorted. Note: You may not alter or add lyrics. 3. Teachers may make 1 copy per student of excerpts of musical works for academic purposes. Note: The excerpts can not be used for performance. The excerpt can not comprise more than 10% of the complete work or comprise a performable unit. 4. Teachers may make a single copy of a student performance to be used for evaluation or rehearsal purposes. 5. Teachers may make a single copy of a recording owned by the institution or teacher for creating aural exercises or examinations. Note: This pertains only to the copyright of the music itself and not to any copyright which may exist in the sound recording.

The Music Publishers Association of the United States helps you find information on our website mpa.org so you can obtain permission from copyright owners.* 1. If you have a copy of the music, look for the copyright holder or publisher's name, and use the “Copyright Search” link on mpa.org to access the Music Publisher Directory and index of Publishers’ Imprints to find the publisher’s contact information. 2. If you do not know or can’t locate the publisher of the music, research further by accessing one of the three U.S. performing rights organization websites. Links to each are provided on mpa.org in the “Copyright Search” section. • ascap.com/ace ACE is the searchable database of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers • bmi.com Search by song name to access publisher information on songs licensed by BMI. Some additional non-BMI publishers will also be listed. • sesac.com Access the “repertory” link to search titles for the SESAC. While the organization is called the Society of European Stage Authors & Composers, the organization now spans internationally and in all genres. 3. How to secure permission for sound recordings? If you copy and distribute recordings of songs which you did not write and are not in the public domain. • harryfox.com Use the Songfile search and the License Music link to obtain mechanical and other rights information. 4. Permission forms are available on many publishers’ websites or use the forms provided at mpa.org/copyright_resource_center/forms 5. How do I know if a work is still protected by copyright, or if it is in the public domain? • Know the law: Works in the U.S. wth a copyright date of 1922 or earlier are in the public domain. Works created after January 1, 1978 will be protected for the life of the composer (author) plus 70 years. Copyrights in effect on that date, if renewed, will continue for 75 years from the date copyright was originally secured. Those works in their initial 28-year period of copyright on January 1, 1978 can be renewed for an additional 47 years, while the copyright of works in their renewal term on that date were automatically extended for an additional 19 years. • Still not sure? Try the Library of Congress. Visit copyright.gov/records to search for copyrighted works.

What You Can’t Do: 1. Do not copy or download music to avoid purchase. 2. Do not keep photocopies in your library. Destroy any unauthorized photocopies immediately and replace them with legal editions. 3. Do not copy out-of-print works without permission of the publisher. Note: If it is vital you obtain music that is out-of-print, contact the publisher directly. They can confirm if the work is out of print and can sometimes arrange for you to obtain a legal copy. 4. Do not make arrangements of works without permission of the copyright owner. 5. Do not copy music for use in performance unless you replace it with a legal edition in due course. 6. Do not copy without including copyright notice. 7. Do not copy to create anthologies or compilations. 8. Do not reproduce material designed to be consumable, such as workbooks, standardized tests and answer sheets. 9. You can not use the excuse of not knowing the copyright owner for not following copyright law. Resources are readily available to help you do so.

* This guide is based on the U.S. copyright law of 1976. The links to various sites are offered as a search tool. The MPA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions in the information found at these organizations' web sites. For more information, see The United States Copyright Law - A Practical Outline, available online at MENC.org

Music Publishers’ Association of the United States 243 5th Avenue, Suite 236, New York, NY 10016 • admin@mpa.org • www.mpa.org

SBOReport

Presents

“2010 Best Tools for Schools” Awards

he 2010 NAMM Show in Anaheim, California offered music educators a unique opportunity to participate in the music industry convention featuring hundreds of instrument, accessory,

and software manufacturers, publishers, dealers, and artists. For the first time, School Band & Or-

chestra magazine invited educators to walk the NAMM exhibit halls in search of the most useful products for use in the classroom and with student musicians. Teachers and school administrators in attendance filled out specially designed ballots indicating their top choices in 13 different categories. On Sunday, January 17th, a panel of five educators, along with SBO publisher Rick Kessel, presented the winners of the 2010 Best Tools for Schools.

Best Tool for Beginners

Best Tool for Intermediates

Sound Innovations Method Book

Guitar and Piano for Dummies, 50 Guitar Licks You Must Know

Alfred Publishing’s new Sound Innovations Method Book has been described as “revolutionary,” in large part because of the customizable curriculum options offered in the “Director’s Choice” edition. www.alfred.com

12 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

eMedia’s Guitar and Piano for Dummies and the complete Guitar Lab DVD series of 50 Guitar Licks You Must Know are designed for individual study and may be used as a complement or supplement to coursework. www.emediamusic.com

Best Tool for Improvisation

Best Tool for Music Theory

Definitive Piano Improvisation Home Study Course

Essentials of Music Theory, Vol. 1-3

Designed for intermediate and early advanced players, the Definitive Piano Improvisation Home Study Course is a step-by-step course of study featuring 26 different improvisation techniques on six DVDs, two CDs, and a binder. www.yokewong.net

Essentials of Music Theory, Volumes 1-3 is an all-in-one series that includes concise lessons with short exercises, ear training activities, and reviews. It is available in three separate volumes or as a complete set. www.alfred.com

Best Innovative Tool

Best Notation Tool

BodyBeat Compact Pulsing Metronome

Noteflight

Peterson Electro-Musical Products new BodyBeat Compact Pulsing Metronome allows users to feel the beat via a light electronic pulse instead of exclusively using visual or audio cues, like standard metronomes. Coming soon is a new master metronome that will have slave pulse units â&#x20AC;&#x201C; perfect for classroom use. www.petersonemp.com

Noteflight is an online music writing program that allows users to write, view, print, and hear music notation right in a Web browser. www.noteflight.com

Best Recording Tool

Best Web Tool

SoundSoap Pro

YouTube in Music Education by Tom Rudolph and James Frankel

Biasâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; SoundSoap Pro is an advanced noise reduction and audio restoration program that can remove individual frequencies, eliminating hums, crackles, rumbles, and clicks from a recording. www.bias-inc.com

14 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Noted educators and authors Tom Rudolph and James Frankel have published this handy volume which takes educators on an exploration of how to best utilize YouTube in the classroom and beyond. www.halleonard.com

It’s about music. Their music. Their music is important to you. And sharing your passion for music with students is your life’s work. Ours, too. SmartMusic is the recognized leader in music education tools for band, orchestra, and voice, with a unique Gradebook to easily document each student’s progress. To see how we’re revolutionizing music education go to:

www.smartmusic.com

Best Time Saver/ Assessment Tool SmartMusic Gradebook MakeMusicâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s SmartMusic Gradebook is a Web-based tool for distributing assignments, tracking student progress, and formulating grades based on customizable criteria. In a nutshell, Gradebook automates administrative tasks, allowing teachers to spend more time focusing on the music. www.smartmusic.com

Best Eco Friendly Tool Wheatware Wheatware is a company that manufacturers bio-compostable and biodegradable products out of wheat. Remarkably durable and sturdy, eco-friendly music products from Wheatware include drumsticks, guitar picks, and shakers. www.wheatware.com

Coolest Game

Best Gadget

Muzundrum: the Game of Musicians

Jammit app for iPhone

Muzundrum is a music-theory crossword game featuring 12-sided musical dice that are used to form scales and triads. www.muzundrum.com

OEm, Inc.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jammit is an iPhone application that takes original recordings of songs and formats them with synced notation for play-along use. It is also capable of isolating individual tracks, such as the guitar, bass, drums, or other instruments. www.jammit.com

Best Rewards & Incentives

Honorable Mention

AIM Musical Gifts

Rhythm Ring www.rhythmring.com

AIM Musical Gifts offers over 10,000 musical gift items, including musicthemed pins, magnets, toys, stickers, and key chains. www.aimgifts.com

Guitar Hands Cleansing Lotion www.truemoisture.com Sound Disk Beanies www.www.aerial7.com Mixcraft 4, Spin It Again www.acoustical.com iZotope RX www.izotope.com

16 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

We’re Still the One! Same $1.00 Bar. Same 50% Profit.

Do you need to stack up profits on your next fundraiser? Are you still having trouble finding the$1.00 bar with the 50% profit * your fundraiser needs? Now more than ever, you need the proven fundraising leader who delivers results! It’s time to choose the dependable leader who helps organizations like yours raise more money year after year! Maximum Returns: 50% Profit.* Instant Results. Best Chocolate: Highest Quality. Finest Ingredients. Guaranteed Freshest: No Middlemen. No Delays. Most Variety: $1, $2, & $5 Prices. Best Flavor Selection. Free Personalization:† Create Interest. Drive Excitement. Biggest Value: Enticing Coupon. Promote Purchase.

Together, one bar at a time, we will help you reach your fundraising goals! Contact Your Local Sales Representative www.WorldsFinestFundraising.com/StillTheOne 1.800.WFC.FUND (1.800.932.3863) *Excluding freight costs and applicable taxes

†Minimum order required

SBOCommentary

What Is ? or What It?

BY JOE ALLISON

ou hear it discussed by spectators at marching band and

drum corps contests. Performers have been known

to talk about it during rehearsal breaks. Contest judges talk about it frequently back at the hotel after an event. Veteran traditionalists decry the loss of it. You can even find it regularly in posts on the Internet! So, you’re asking, what is “it”? “It” is an ongoing controversy concerning the philosophy and practice of programming for the contemporary marching music ensemble. Drum corps or band – might concert bands and orchestras be affected, too? All photos by Music for All/Jolesch Photography

18 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

When I recently asked an underFew touched by the music eduhighly demanding (and frequently graduate marching band techniques cation community would deny that obscure) music. In fact, many spectaclass, “For whom will you design and great emphasis has been placed on tors have come to the logical concluprogram your show(s)?”, students the competitive aspects of high school sion that the more difficult a show is responded with a wide variety of anmusic ensembles. In fact, the perto understand, the more likely it is to swers. “For the judges,” “the Friday ceived success of bands (and therebe given First Place! A colleague who night football crowd,” “the band fore their directors) is measured in adjudicates extensively has semi-faceparents,” and even, “the educational part (if not totally!) by the results of tiously proposed a “melody credit” needs of the students,” were among festivals and contests. Some compare score in reaction to esoteric prothe responses. After a spirited grams that seem to exclude discussion, the class agreed that even traditional melodies! it is quite a challenging task “Music students and educators alike This perceived trend toward just to identify and prioritize are affected by a competitive environ- less-accessible musical matethe varied elements of an audi- ment in a direct and significant way. rial appears in direct conflict ence, whether it be outdoors or with the fact that the secondin – much less conceive, design ary school marching band, and implement a program that can be this to competitive athletics, where in particular, was developed primareffective with all! coaches have regularly gained or lost ily for entertainment and community Having spent a good bit of time jobs based solely on won-loss records, support functions. in many press boxes in many places rather than teaching effectiveness or One has to ask: is it possible to during the summer and fall months citizenship. Others would counter please an audience and a panel of the last few years (and concert halls that artistic competition is a comjudges at the same time? Most would constantly), I am convinced that we pletely different entity with no direct concur that there is a great need for are moving in several different and comparisons to competitive athletics. this answer to be “yes!” Yet, a proseemingly random directions reOn closer inspection it appears that gram package that can meet the regarding this particular aspect of the both similarities and differences exquirements of both audience and music pageantry world. In isolation ist between the two activities, but it adjudicator doesn’t reach its full fruthat might not be a problem, but I is also clear that music students and ition very often, in my experience. constantly overhear performers, dieducators alike are affected by a comWhat happens then between the conrectors, spectators, designers, and petitive environment in a direct and ception of an act and its production judges complain about problems significant way. that causes its goals not to be met? with the design concepts of shows. If competition is important to any What is it? Actually, the chatter is much like musical group, then curricuthe responses given by the aforelum and programming decimentioned marching band class! sions are directly affected. You’ll hear things like: “that’s just Conventional wisdom holds too complicated to be exciting,” or that there are certain attributes “the music is just an excuse for all inherent to a competitive perthat bizarre visual stuff.” Or: “What formance in any medium. The is it?” “What is it supposed to be?” musical literature explored is You hear so many different viewusually limited to the serious points and philosophies, some highly orchestral repertoire, contemthought-out, some maybe not. porary advanced band literaParadoxically, you can also hear ture, or highly technical (and people saying things like: “everybody usually contemporary) jazz. looks and sounds the same!” How Other genres are seemingly can those contrasting concepts be acdeemed “unfit” by the judging curate? Could this possibly be associcommunity, evidently lackated with an attempt to be “all things ing the merits to be worthy of to all people” when it comes to prochampionship consideration. gramming? Could this particularly If this scenario is true, why true with marching bands (with their would this be? more diverse audiences and funcExamples of the aforetions), as opposed to drum corps? mentioned practice are easily Again, what about indoor concert found. Contest results genergroups? What makes this subject such ally support this perceived a “big deal” with so many different bias, as the “winning” groups people? What is it? can usually be identified by School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 19

One aspect of the design package that seems often to “go awry” is the amount and nature of the demands being placed on the performers. So many shows appear to be so difficult for the individual students to master that a strong level of communication with the audience is rarely (or never) reached, especially in the early season. Perhaps the musical score is written at a challenging but attainable level, while the visual/movement design has a similar (or often higher) level of difficulty. When these two processes operate simultaneously it is simply too demanding for the performer to relax in his or her role and express the concepts of the design effectively. A significant proportion of current programs appear to be simply too difficult for all of the students to perform! Sadly, when forced to choose between movement and musical accuracy, the performer normally chooses to complete the visual task. Why? It’s much easier for observers to spot a movement or visual error than a musical one, and one can easily identify the culprit! A valid axiom is: “more people understand what they see than what they hear.” A likely factor complicit in this “difficulty-for-difficulty’s sake” is the complex group of examples produced yearly by the DCI World Class corps. They practically beg to be imitated, only with younger, less-experienced students, less production/planning time, less rehearsal time, less performance time, and usually less optimal physical conditions (venues, weather, et cetera). For both bands and drum corps, design teams tend to conceptualize the package for a show over a extended period of time, through intense study and experimentation. The infrequent observer (audience, judge) simply does not have a proportional time frame to digest the amount and depth of the material in a program, particularly if it is not supremely 20 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

well-coordinated (synergized) and/or performed at a consistently high degree of skill. As a result, a number of shows tend to go over the heads (or under the feet?) of the audience and the judges, if not the players themselves. Again, observers are left to ask: “What is it?”

At the same time, many designers and instructors regularly voice dismay at the lack of judges’ verbal recognition of concepts they feel essential to the appreciation of their show concept. Examples of this situation abound. I can vividly remember presenting a show of “Marches Around the World” with a high school band years ago. The conductors/drum majors were costumed in a “retro”/quasi-military look befitting the program concept. At one particular contest, the drum major judge spent fully one half of the performance explaining on tape the contemporary dress codes for drum majors, adding that they no longer use military shakos, maces, and whistles!

You can only imagine the reactions of our students upon hearing that judge’s tape! Aside from a good laugh, I’m afraid the situation may well have undermined their respect for the adjudication process. For our part, we really thought our concept was obvious. Obviously not! The point here is not to ridicule, but to point out that the seemingly most distinct concepts can easily be misunderstood or ignored. As my dad would say, “I wish I had a dollar” for each time I have counseled: “you can be tacky – you can be cliché, but you can never be too obvious!” Another consistent practice that seems to have lessened the effectiveness of some performances is the tendency to imitate (read: copy) effects or techniques from other designers/groups and use them in different contexts. This appears to be particularly true in the visual design of pageantry. The current debate in the business and academic worlds concerning intellectual property (the “it”) can and does apply in this activity. In the legal world, plagiarism does not equal flattery. State-of-the-art techniques of design/composition can be so subtle and sophisticated that sometimes what appears to be the intended design effect may not be the actual intent at all! We have all seen visual devices cloned from previous DCI or BOA winners that are used in an entirely different musical context, with the instrumentation so distorted that the result is near incoherent. “It” is confusing! This practice frequently occurs in varying degrees from severe to subtle. It is also instructive to note that the instrumentation of the marching band is more diverse in size, timbre and directionality than the more standardized drum & bugle corps. This makes the task of adaptation of visual designs even more complex for marching band “transcriptions.”

Paradoxically, there are many competing high school band directors who believe that a show without a selection of the latest drum corps or winterguard “hot licks” cannot be effectively competitive. Evidently, the idea is that judges do not consider a program worthy, or at least up to date unless it has borrowed elements of design from current practice elsewhere. In fact, one director of a nationally prominent band has suggested to me with reason that achieving score credit for originality in design captions often comes from plagiarizing other units! Stolen “it”? What a paradox that is! However, most would agree that not including certain fashionable and contemporary type devices in a show could lessen its competitive merit. Most would also agree that it takes more effective planning and effort to establish an identity for a group through unique creative design. So, given all of this seemingly conflicting information, how would you

address those aforementioned eager marching band techniques students who are mere weeks away from the possibility of staking their new careers on producing a successful marching band program? Are there any correct answers to this dilemma? Optimistically, maybe there are several – wouldn’t it be great? Perhaps there are refreshing alternatives to the “deep, dark, dense” programs being frequently explored the competitive arena. Challenging (A.K.A.: competitive) arrangements of recognizable (even singable!) tunes are being done. Sometimes from more eclectic idioms and media. It is certainly a challenge for arrangers to competitively legitimize this concept, but significant progress seems to have been made at the regional and national levels. Why haven’t we heard Country-Western material done at a high competitive level, anyway? (I hear that one a lot, oftentimes from my relatives.)

Judging systems from most, if not all, of the major national organizations are currently emphasizing the concept of performer achievement in competition. This achievement is defined as the combination of the “what” (being the audio and visual design) and the “how” (the level of performance). An important distinction should be made here about the term “performance.” In current practice, the term includes both the “execution” (mechanical/technical accuracy) as well as the expressive communication of the material, both audio and visual. Most everyone has witnessed a presentation of professional quality (the absence of obvious error) that was expressively dull and lifeless! That’s the contrast of execution versus performance. Any musical ensemble (indoors or out) is subject to this. Our emphasis on achievement was sought in part to help balance the importance of design/composition vs. the performing

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 21

skills of the musicians, and to encourage exploration and risk in programming. With a greater emphasis on actual performance (rather than simply the absence of error), the basic rationale is that “the best group can win,” rather than “the group with the best music/show will win.” Philosophical debates notwithstanding, most people involved in an educational activity feel that the kids in the uniforms should be the major

determinant of competitive results. Toward this end, the prevailing challenge is how to objectively assess the student’s performance skills in isolation from the vehicle that presents those skills. Many studied observers feel this is simply not possible. Another possibility for effective growth with marching ensembles might be the use of extended instrumentation and theatrical devices. The band activity in particular has

few restrictions with regard to instrumentation, and electronic keyboards, electric guitars, amplified acoustic instruments have all been used to great effect with marching units. One of my recent personal favorites was the use of an amplified harp in a program of orchestral music. Perhaps theatrical lighting is a concept whose time has come! How logical it would be to incorporate spotlighting, as well as other effects in the marching arena. Spectators largely agree that the highlight of the Opening Ceremonies of the Centennial Olympic Games was the presentation of backlit figures of the original Greek Olympians projected against the screens at the center of the field. It was even exciting on television! Who can forget the spectacular and extensive lighting effects included in the stunning pageantry of the Bejing Olympics? Certainly our activity has logistical and expense limitations, but those exist in every facet of the sport. All things considered, it appears there could be a number of possible solutions to this problem (if “it” actually is a problem) that is so frequently discussed in the marching music activity. Here’s hoping that refreshing alternatives will be explored, and that performers and audiences will be the beneficiaries of a new level of creativity and enjoyment. Maybe then we’ll all know “what it is!” In coming articles, I will focus my attention specifically on the selection and programming of music for any and all instrumental ensembles, whether they be in competition or not, indoors or outdoors. No one ever said this would be simple… or easy!

Dr. Joseph Allison is currently professor of Conducting and director of Bands at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond. He maintains an active judging schedule internationally, including events for Bands of America and Drum Corps International. He can be reached at joe.allison@eku.edu.

22 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

A Revolutionary Method for Beginning Musicians Robert SHELDON

| Peter BOONSHAFT | Bob PHILLIPS | Dave BLACK

Simple. Innovative. Yours. Ability to Customize Instrument-Specific Recordings Instrument-Specific Master Class DVD Available on SmartMusic™

for CONCERT BAND for STRING ORCHESTRA

Customize your method to fit your unique classroom DIRECTOR’S CHOICE EDITION

Customize the Cover & Introductory Pages Customize the Pedagogy (starting concert pitch, starting note values, and much more!) Customize the Tune Selection

DIRECTOR’S CHOICE

Add Enrichment Pages

Learn more with an interactive product tour at

alfred.com/soundinnovations

wo 03804

The Little Band

that

24 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

ould

Carol Agler & Dan Kelley of the Ohio State School for the Blind

he 2010 Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California was one for the ages. The Rose Parade is one of the world’s most prestigious marching band venues, with incredible performances being almost commonplace. Yet, this year, the music provided by one of the smallest marching bands in the Parade’s over-120-year history created a buzz that rippled across the country. Sure, the fact that the marching band from a small school in Ohio had only 32 members was significant, but that’s not what people were talking about. For one, the students in this marching band are blind. And, two, these kids could play.

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 25

The story behind the Ohio State School for the Blind’s unlikely participation in that great event goes back about a dozen years, when Carol Agler began her tenure as the school’s music director. Agler initially studied music education at Ohio State University and had taught at a regular high school for several years before leaving to start a family, during which time she continued performing, teaching private lessons, and working with an area choir. She ventured back into schools in the

didn’t even know about! Once I found those, I asked if I could revive the band program.” It turns out that there had been a band director who had retired 13 years prior and was never replaced, leaving a choral director to maintain the music department until Agler’s arrival. When Carol discovered those instruments, she started a pep band and a jazz ensemble to augment the school’s existing choir and general music program. The next dramatic step for the

perintendent, returned to school, he told me about the meeting and said, ‘Wouldn’t that be cool?’ And I said, ‘Yes! That’d be cool! I can’t think of anything more cool than that!’ And he said, ‘Wait, you mean you’d do it?’ And I said, ‘Sure. I always wanted these kids to have what a typical high school would have. Of course I’ll do it.’ Meanwhile, the secretary at the time was going, ‘Carol, Carol, just think about that for a minute. Look, you already do all of this stuff – Carol, learn to say no!’” Later that same night, some logistical complications gave Agler pause. “I was thinking about it,” she says. “I had nine kids in my high school band at the time, and five of them played keyboard. How was I going to pull this off? I didn’t have any marching drums. So I went to Lou the next day and asked how it was going to work because we didn’t have any equipment. He told me that he could get me some drums, no problem, and that it would happen and he didn’t have any worries. And I’m thinking, ‘Wait a minute, my reputation is at stake here. I’ve never done marching band before.’” Regardless, the football team was launched at the deaf school the ensuing year. The Ohio State School for the Blind marching band had five practices before playing their first halftime. “I had 13 students in the marching band that year,” says Carol. “Most of the keyboard players who were in the band the year before had switched to drums, which was great. We had one show, where we did ‘Script Ohio’ and spelled out ‘Ohio’ in Braille. I taught them a 16-bar segment of ‘Le Regiment’ – the song that OSU does – and we just played those 16 bars over and over again. We stood there in a line and we had two pep tunes, ‘Go Big Blue’ and ‘Hey.’ Then we marched right off the field and it was wonderful. It was the first time that these kids had ever played on a football field. Some of our kids are sighted – not with great vision, but they’ve got good mobility – so I had the sighted kids with a blind student on either side. They marched out

“Music for the blind is like color for the sighted world.” 1990s, this time around focusing on teaching music to students with disabilities. “When I joined [the Ohio State School for the Blind] in 1998, we were doing a show that involved a mariachi scene for a holiday concert,” Carol recalls. “Someone suggested, ‘Why don’t you use real trumpets in that scene? We’ve got them.’ And I said, ‘What? We have instruments here at this school?’ My music room at the time was a multi-purpose room, and what used to be the band room was a meeting room which had a closet full of great, old band instruments that I

26 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

music department took place seven years later. “In the spring of 2005, the superintendents of the deaf school [The Ohio State School for the Deaf] and the blind school [The Ohio State School for the Blind] were meeting and going over their next year’s plans. The deaf school superintendent said that they were going to revive their football program. Then both of them thought out loud, ‘Boy, it would be kind of cool if the blind school provided the marching band for the deaf football team, wouldn’t it?’ So when Louis Mazzoli, the blind school’s su-

there three-at-a-time, and I also had a couple of adults out there as marching assistants.” As one might imagine, that first performance was complicated by a few unexpected snags. Agler explains, laughing, “I had told one of our student leaders to walk out to the 40-yard line, then up to the hash marks, where he was supposed to place these other two students before going on to his spot. Well, he didn’t know what a hash mark was! So he placed one of the musicians on the number “40” and he placed another student on another number on the field, then he went to his spot. And I was so excited that when we marched out to the field – the students following me – we marched right past our marks! We were having so much fun, though, that people thought that was just a part of the show, that we had designed it to march past the stands and then double back to perform! We were having a ball.” Later that year, the School for the Deaf invited the blind pep band to play at their basketball games, and the program began to blossom. Understand-

The Ohio State School for the Blind at a Glance Location: 5220 North High Street, Columbus, Ohio On the Web: www.ossb.oh.gov Total Number of Students (K-12): 129 Music Director: Carol Agler Marching Band Co-Directors: Carol Agler & Dan Kelley Students in Marching Band: 35 ing that she had an extremely limited experience working with marching bands, Carol enlisted the help of Dan Kelley, who had studied to be a band director and was teaching technology at the school – and also happens to be blind – to take over much of the ensemble’s day-to-day operation. Much of the marching band world is dedicated to pageantry, a visual spectacle that, for many, carries as much weight as the actual music being played. This, of course, makes one wonder: exactly how does a band comprised of visually impaired and blind students pull it off? And how did this inexperienced group make it all the way to one of the marching world’s greatest stages? Chock full

of questions, SBO recently caught up with Dan Kelley and Carol Agler, who graciously explained the nuts and bolts of their program, elaborating on the details of this remarkable ensemble and their unlikely achievement. School Band & Orchestra: Would you tell me a little bit about your music program? How many students participate? Carol Agler: There are 129 students in the school and I see most of them. The only ones that don’t take music are the high schoolers who opt for other electives. As someone put it, music for the blind is like color for the sighted world. Most of the students here take music in some form. I teach School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 27

“I want these kids to have as close to a typical high school experience as they can.”

K-12 music: band, choir, general music, elementary music, and multiple disability music, which I guess you could think of as music therapy. Of the students that are eligible to take band, 65 percent of them participate. In a typical school you would be pleased to have a quarter of your students in the band program, and we’re running at 65 percent. For the first two years, we only had high school kids,

28 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

but then I realized that to get a really big sound, we needed more people, so I recruited eighth graders. Once we had 15 or above, that was a much bigger sound. A few more students makes a huge difference on that front. SBO: What is involved with teaching music to blind students? Dan Kelley: The kids have different learning styles – like all students

do. Our kids primarily learn music by ear, but like anything else, when you’re learning a new language or even learning English, you also need to learn to read and write in that language for literacy’s sake. We work with the kids on learning Braille music, print music, and staff notation. We blow that up and enlarge it for students that have low vision. Auditorily, when we’re working with the kids by ear, it’s anything from, “I’ll play the part and you play it back,” to using technology. When I’m arranging and running marching band rehearsals, I use programs called “Lime” and a program called “Good Feel,” which takes an electronic music file and translates it into Braille music. I can then print that out in hardcopy or on a device called a “notetaker,” which looks like a palm pilot and has a refreshable Braille display. CA: The totally blind kids have to memorize everything. They are just automatically trained as great memorizers because they have to memorize any information that they’re given. They do have Braille notes that they can write with, but most of the time they just memorize whatever information they hear. They have to be auditory learners. What we do is we use SmartMusic to load a complete score into Finale, and from that create the SmartMusic accompaniment files. We have eight computers, and our kids can go to any of those eight computers and hear their part by itself or with the whole band. They can select parts and hear them over and over, they can slow the music down, they can speed it up, and they can record themselves playing along with it – it’s just marvelous. Also, in this year’s band, we have 32 students and 11 of them have perfect pitch. This means that if they hear a pitch, they know what it is. Those are the first ones to learn the music because they don’t have to be coached much. We do everything in b-flat solfege, which really works well. By noon on the second day of band camp, we always have a few students who have all of the new material memorized. Finale will also create MP3s of the parts, and we make three of them for each song.

One is everything at full speed, the full band. Another is their part at full speed. The third is their part slowed down to half speed, which makes it much easier for the kids to hear exactly what they need to be playing. Our goal is to have the whole thing in their ear before they get here. Also, most of the students don’t have their own instruments – most of the instruments are the schools – so they really can’t start practicing their parts until they get here. SBO: And what about the marching element? How does that work, logistically? DK: On the football field, we do the eight-to-five marching style that OSU does, and so we work on a lot of fundamentals, a lot of repetitive things, like getting a good chair step with 22-and-a-half-inch spacing. We work the daylights out of that and give the kids a lot of feedback. In the case of working with a blind or visually impaired student, it’s probably going to take a little longer and you are probably going to approach it a little differently. You’re going to give a lot more verbal feedback and more tactile feedback. Using the ground or using some hands-on when you’re trying to teach someone how to do a horn flash or something, you have to slowly go through the motions of it and then put it all together. When you’re doing a horn flash and turn, your upper body is doing one thing and your feet are doing something else, so you start with the little pieces of the puzzle, see what those are, and then start putting those pieces together. It takes a lot of time, but it’s really worth it. Being able to have that experience when I was in high school was great on all fronts. I want these kids to have as close to a typical high school experience as they can and be able to share what we do with an audience – whoever we can share it with – to show that these kids are doing a lot of things the same way that a typical marching band would. There are some differences here, but they really don’t stand out. SBO: Many band directors use visual cues to keep time and to keep the band in sync during rehearsals. Do you do that, too?

DK: A couple of our percussion players can see me, and that’s one of the only reasons I conduct the beat. I don’t do too many visual cues about when to come in or cut off, and things like that. I do all my conducting in rehearsals, by walking students through the parts, telling them what I want the music to sound like and modeling it for them. During our performances, I’ll do the pattern for tempo’s sake, and you also just have to do that when you are up in front of the band – you can’t just stand there! [laughs] Really,

though, most of the directing comes from our work in rehearsals. What I do is give the kids their parts to a new piece, we’ll listen to the song together as a group, listen to a recording of it – the big picture, what I want it to sound like – and then give them their parts and send them home with it. They’ll either have it in print or Braille music, or use SmartMusic, or I’ll give them a CD with MP3 files so they can put it on their iPods or computers or however they want to listen to it. The students’ responsibility is to learn their

A music teacher’s most complete guide to the power and excitement of YouTube. by Thomas Rudolph and James Frankel

4This book tells you how to record and edit videos, add effects, and upload content 4It describes the basics of video production as well as advanced applications for classroom use 4Offers over 50 strategies for integrating YouTube into the music curriculum 4Gives you tutorials on video and audio production and preparing and uploading content Price: $17.99

Item: 00332856

Order today!

Voted “The Best Web Tool” in the Tools for Schools Poll!

Go to halleonard.com to place your order online from your music retailer. School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 29

part because no one likes doing notefor-note teaching in big band rehearsals. We don’t have enough time to do that – and, of course, sometimes we still end up doing it anyway!

CLARITY SPECTRUM

Visual Performance

Clarity Spectrum is a synthetic rosin designed to grab and release a bowed string precisely every time, every day. Unlike traditional sap rosin, its composition is superfluous to moisture and dry air so Clarity lasts longer and its performance qualities are consistent. For violin and viola.

www.SuperSensitive.com A Division of the Cavanaugh Company

MADE IN THE USA 30 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

CA: The students are so in tune to sound and shaping that sound. You’d better teach it right the first time, because that’s the way that the students are going to play it. You have to think through the music before you present it to them. You also have to count out fermatas. For example, you hold this note for four counts and then on the fifth count you take a breath and come in on the next beat, that sort of thing. You have to calculate these things and do them the same way every time. I also give audible cues instead of conducting cues. The hardest thing, however, is the choreography. It’s so time consuming, and in order to do it well, you have to have so much hands-on time per student. And then you have to talk it constantly while you are doing it in order to remind the students what they are supposed to be doing. SBO: Let’s talk about your performance at the Rose Parade. How did that opportunity come about? CA: I got a phone call from a Rose Parade volunteer who had been surfing the Internet looking for interesting bands. He was wondering if there was a blind band, and searching online, eventually he found us. He sent us an application and made it very clear that it was by no means an invitation to the parade, just that he was curious and thought it would be cool if it turned out that we were good enough to make it out there. I didn’t even talk to the administration at first because I thought that there was no way that we’d be able to raise that kind of money. I’ve never taken this group further than Circleville, which is only 45 minutes away. Every year we perform in their parade, and that’s the only parade we had ever done – and it was only one mile long! And at the end of those parades, there was usually some kind of drama from this person or that – that this drummer’s back was killing him and he was in tears – that kind of thing. And so we didn’t think that some of these kids

would have the conditioning to make it the whole parade. But Dan knew how to get the kids into shape. We started out marching the kids a mile around the track, and every week he increased the distance that the kids marched by half a mile, until they were up to about four miles going around the track and over and over again. Three weeks before the Rose Parade it got too cold out to practice outside, so that was as much as we could do. But Dan kept saying, “If you can do four miles, you can do six.” And he was right, when we finished the Rose Parade, the kids came up to me and said, “I can’t believe it’s over! It didn’t seem that long!” And they played well the entire time, so our conditioning really paid off.

the kids in the gym for an assembly. We patched the phone call into the PA system and he made the announcement that we’d been selected to march in the 2010 Tournament of Roses parade right over the loudspeakers. Everyone went crazy; the kids were really excited, and we started working on how we were going to get there – raising funds, getting some new instruments and some instruments repaired, new uniforms and just building up the program. And

the band grew, too, almost doubling in size; it went from 17 to 32. SBO: Thirty-two is still pretty tiny for a marching band. How do you deal with instrumentation? DK: I try to go for the open power chord kind of sound where you have a lot of open thirds, fourths, and fifths. We do some part doubling and kind of re-write some things, taking some notes from some parts and putting

DK: After Carol spoke to the fellow from the Rose Parade, she asked me what I thought. I told her that I didn’t think we were at that level – we’d only been in existence for four years – but, on the other hand, all they can do is say no, so why not give a try? We talked to the administration and they backed us, so we sent in our application and they responded saying they wanted some video of what we were doing. In the band camp of 2008, we told the students that we were in the middle of this application process to go to the Rose Parade and asked what they thought. We waited until about Wednesday of band camp to mention that, which is usually when kids start to fall into the mid-week slump. I warned them that in order to make it happen, we’d have to send in a video of us doing the halftime show, and it had to look good because they don’t take any slouch bands in the Rose Parade. That really pumped them up and gave them a lot of energy and drive to make our show good. We got a better show together in a shorter amount of time than we had in the past, sent in the video, and found out in October that we had been accepted. Carol and I had to keep it quiet for a couple of weeks while the selection committee contacted everyone who had applied, and we set it up so that the president of the Rose Parade Committee called the school while we had School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 31

them on other instruments. We’re trying to get 30 kids to sound like 100. You can do a lot with intervals to get that volume, but as far as instrumentation goes, we’re pretty typical, except for numbers. We’ve got sousaphones, baritones, trombones, tenor and alto saxes, trumpets, clarinets, flutes, bells, and percussion, just not too many of each. You go through and listen, and if I need to change a part to bring something out, I can usually do that with

one of my stronger musicians, who I know will be flexible enough to play the original part or make changes on the fly. It involves some tinkering around with that sort of thing until I get the sound that I’m looking for. SBO: What do you think this opportunity meant to the students? How would you describe that? CA: The opportunity itself was just a once-in-a-lifetime event. For many

“The Sound”

as requested by you.

You asked for the playability and sound of the early Otto Links. We listened. With structural changes both inside and out, “the sound” of yesteryear has been recaptured.

Otto Link Vintage for tenor sax.

www.jjbabbitt.com

MOUTHPIECES FOR CLARINETS AND SAXOPHONES

32 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

of our students, it was their first plane flight or their first football game at a major stadium, and just being there was an incredible experience. Beyond that, it was a great opportunity to raise the bar, to raise the expectations for people with disabilities, to raise the perceptions of what we can do. When we got feedback, we have not had anyone saying, “Bless their hearts!” We are on par, and we earned this spot. It was partly because we were blind, but it wasn’t solely because we were blind. DK: We had a lot of debate over why we were going to the Rose Parade. Was it because we are a talented band or is it because we’re a blind band? Those were questions that the kids wanted some honest answers to. I told them that it was probably a little bit of both and it was a balance. However, once you get into the driver’s seat, you have a responsibility to control what you’re doing. How do you want people to view you? Do you want people to view you as a blind marching band or as a band that’s a cut above the rest? There were some confidence issues at the beginning, but after we marched that parade and made it to the end, kids that may have been less likely in the past to try something new and take risks, get out of their comfort zone, will do that now because of this experience. Being committed to doing something for over a year, putting in the extra time and going the distance in that large of a venue, with that many people watching and having that much support – it was something else! My main goal and objective is to help kids keep realizing their potential. It doesn’t matter where we go. We’ve gotten invites to do the Macy’s Parade, the parade in Waikiki for the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, the McDonald’s Parade in Chicago. I’m not too concerned about the venue. I’m concerned about the students learning things that will make them better students, more well rounded people, and provide them with the life skills to be successful – having that discipline and drive, dedication, and work ethic. We need to make sure to teach our students that the payoff and results are a reward for the hard work we do.

Attention Educators!

Free Cymbals coming your way… from Zildjian…to your students… thanks to you. You demand the best from your students, so why not give them the best quality instruments your school dollars can buy. With Zildjian’s School Music Program you can afford to. Designed to help band directors stretch their budget, the program allows for three levels of buy-in, each with your choice of FREE cast cymbal rewards. From Elementary to College we make purchasing cymbals easy; because we’re as committed to Education as you are. For more details, contact our award winning Customer Service Department at 800.229.8672. Level I:

Purchase of Zildjian Products totaling $550 or more receive 1 Cast Cymbal* (up to 18”) - FREE!

Level II:

Purchase Zildjian Products totaling $1100 or more receive 2 Cast Cymbals* or 1 matched pair* (any size) - FREE!

Level III:

Purchase Zildjian Products totaling $2750 or more receive 6 Cast Cymbals* or 3 matched pairs* (any size) - FREE!

* K Constantinople Cymbals are e x c l u d e d f r o m t h i s f r e e o f f e r. zildjian.com

SBORoundtable:

Summer Music Camps

A Sampling of Summer Options

xtracurricular music programs come in all shapes and sizes, and those students who have the opportunity to attend some type of â&#x20AC;&#x153;music campâ&#x20AC;? during their summer break are faced with a vast array of options. Between

summer camps with a focus on the arts, university-run programs, and intense workshops aimed at targeting specific performance skills, there really is something out there for everyone, from the most dedicated students to those who are simply looking to infuse their summer fun with a musical tint.

To provide a better understanding of the range of offerings within summer music camps, SBO recently caught up with the directors of five prominent organizations, which, in sum, present a smorgasbord of exciting musical opportunities. Would you talk briefly about some of the unique benefits of attending your summer music program? What experiences or skills are you hoping kids will come away with? Heidi Stansell: The core of Blue Lakeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s philosophy is to provide a setting where students can grow and excel at their own level, without intense pressure and competition. Apprecia-

Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp 34 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Signature Music Camp at Ithaca College

Developing Musicians for College since 1993

Teen Camp

(students entering grades 10-12)

June 27 – July 10, 2010

Youth Camp

(students entering grades 7-9)

July 4 – July 10, 2010

signaturemusic.org 315-478.7840

Music Industry Sponsors:

Alfred Music Publishing~Antigua Winds, Inc.~Big Bang Dist.~Bosphorus Cymbals~C.B.I.Professional Wiring System~Calato Mfg.~Cannonball Musical Instruments~Conn-Selmer Inc.~D’Addario~Dansr, Inc.~DEG Music Products~Diversified Case Co., Inc.~Downbeat Magazine~Drum Workshop, Inc.~Eastman Music Co.~EMD Music, Inc.~Fishman~Ford Drum Co.~Gator Cases, Inc.~Hohner~Inc.~Humes & Berg Mfg., Inc.~Innovative Percussion, Inc.~J.J. Babbitt Co.~ Jupiter Band Instruments, Inc.~Kanstul Musical Instruments, Inc.~KMC Music, Inc.~KORG USA, Inc.~Manhasset Specialty Co.~Mapex USA~Meinl USA~Powell Flutes~Pro-Mark Co.~Remle Musical Products, Inc.~Remo Inc.~Rock Creek Steel Drums~Sabian LTD~Shure, Inc.~SKB~Taye Drums~ Vater Percussion, Inc.~Vic Firth, Inc.~Avedis Zildjian, Co.

tion and dedication to music is fostered by keeping it fun and building a sense of community that the students can carry with them beyond camp. In addition, we strive to provide varied arts experiences for our campers, whether that means going to an opera, viewing an art exhibit, experiencing Shakespeare in an authentic Elizabethan theater, listening to a live broadcast of a symphony orchestra, attending a chamber music recital, observing a master class, or watching a ballet – all of which are part of every session at Blue Lake. Also unique to Blue Lake is our International Exchange Program. We annually send seven performing groups on concert tours of Europe: a symphony orchestra, two symphonic bands, a concert choir, two jazz bands, and, in alternating years, a ballet ensemble and an adult symphonic band. Members of these groups are selected from Blue Lake’s summer campers. The following summer, after one week of intensive rehearsals at camp, members enjoy a three-week tour in Europe. While on tour, Blue Lake’s International groups present a performance in each community they visit and stay in private homes with host families.

Heidi Stansell

L. Scott McCormick

Camp Director Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp. Twin Lake, Mich. www.bluelake.org

Music For All Summer Symposium Normal, Ill. www.musicforall.org/programs/ symposium

Jeffrey Kimpton President Interlochen Center for the Arts Interlochen, Mich. www.interlochen.org

Carl Allen

www.juilliard.edu/summer/summer.html

Marc Dicciani: Our summer programs are designed to give precollege students the opportunity to study with professional artist/teachers in a college environment with other motivated students, and also the chance to see what daily life would be like in a University music school. Carl Allen: At Juilliard, we have worked very hard to create an environment where the students get a

Summer Music Programs 2010 BY THE MUSIC YOU PLAY.

FOR INFORMATION AND APPLICATIONS, VISIT SUMMERMUSICPROGRAM.ORG OR CALL 336-770-3290. SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE. SPACE IS LIMITED APPLY SOON!

Instrumental Workshops

UNSCA’s renowned artist-faculty immerse students in master classes, chamber music, private lessons, technique development, and much more. JUNE 20-25, 2010 DOUBLE BASS WORKSHOP, FLUTE WORKSHOP, TRUMPET WORKSHOP JULY 19-23, 2010 BASSOON WORKSHOP, CLARINET WORKSHOP, ORGAN WORKSHOP, PERCUSSION WORKSHOP, SAXOPHONE WORKSHOP

Chamber Music Institute June 20-July 24, 2010 Short Session: July 5-24, 2010 A rigorous and concentrated program integrating the study of chamber music with intensive private lessons. Applications accepted for violin, viola, ‘cello, and piano.

36 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Director of the School of Music University of the Arts Philadelphia, Pa. www.uarts.edu

Artistic Director The Juilliard School New York City, N.Y.

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA SCHOOL OF THE ARTS

DEFINE YOURSELF

Marc Dicciani,

Vocal Workshop

June 20 — July 10, 2010

Piano Workshop

June 20 — July 10, 2010

Composition/ Technology Workshop

July 5 — July 24, 2010

Guitar Workshop July 11 — 24, 2010

SUMMER MUSIC PROGRAMS 2010 WWW.SUMMERMUSICPROGRAM.ORG

realistic view of what it takes to become a better musician, while having fun going through the process. We have listening sessions where faculty members will play recordings and discuss the music and what we like about it. This is very important because many of the students are not going out to hear the music live, so the recordings help them to understand what it should feel and sound like. We want the kids to know how to get better in practice and performance. We have a saying: “private practice determines public performance.” Attendees at our summer program learn how to practice so that, in turn, they have a better performance. Jeffrey Kimpton: The specific skills developed and overall learning experiences vary by age because Interlochen Arts Camp works with students from the ages of 8 to 18. The benefits, however, are the same for all age levels, even though the experiences may differ by age. Our youngest musicians rub shoulders with advanced high school musicians every day, and learn from that. The days are full of different kinds of experiences, but the value of the experience comes from an environment where everyone shares the same purpose: personal musical growth and achievement in a rigorous environment with a great faculty and world-

Keepin’

Travel with the country’s top student travel planner. Performance Tours s Festivals Parades s Cruises s Bowl Games Clinics s International Disney©

Official Sponsor of

email: info@bobrogerstravel.com

www.bobrogerstravel.com (800) 373-1423 38 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

class conductors. Living, learning, creating, performing with other students from all over the country and world who care about their art is an incomparable benefit. Music programs at Interlochen Arts Camp provide students the opportunity to improve their skills through a demanding rehearsal schedule, master classes, chamber music and weekly private lessons with an accomplished member of the faculty. Students grow as musicians and people because they work hard as a community in an ensemble and individually through small group, chamber and private lesson experiences. Challenging repertoire and an ambitious performance schedule give students a taste of studying music at a higher level, an important experience for any student considering a career or higher education in music. High school musicians have many opportunities to network. The music program at Interlochen Arts Camp provides music students with a valuable sense of perspective. Many Interlochen musicians are accustomed to being among the top students in their home ensembles. Upon their arrival at Camp, students encounter other musicians who are as good as they are, or better. This can help students understand how competitive it is to get into quality music programs and inspire them to raise the bar on their own performance. L. Scott McCormick: The Music for All Summer Symposium offers a full-week experience that focuses teaching for high school-aged instrumental students, as well as professional development for teachers of both high school and middle school programs. One thing that differentiates our Summer Symposium is that a student can come and study in one of seven different disciplines, including concert band, jazz, strings, marching band, percussion, drum majors, and color guard. Additionally, all students come away with a leadership experience during their week. This allows a teacher to bring a group of student leaders from all areas of their instrumental

program to one location and get a comprehensive skill and leadership boost when they return home. Each evening of the Symposium, the students and teachers attend a live concert or event by renowned performing groups showcasing a wide array of musical genres, from chamber music to service bands to touring acts and a DCI drum corps competition. Where does your program draw the line between serious musical study and summer fun for elementary and high school-age children? Carl Allen: We try to make it fun, but the reality is that getting better at anything takes hard work. Contrary to what many people feel, I think that if you can make it interesting, kids don’t mind working. Sometimes it’s the parents who don’t want their child to work too hard, but many of the kids will embrace the load once they see the results. We do have to scale back on the number of hours of each teaching session because of attention span factors. If you mix it up, it can be enjoyable time for them. We also scale back on the level and intensity of certain courses, like Jazz Improv and theory. Heidi Stansell: Our campers receive six contact hours of instruction in their chosen major. This includes rehearsal time in their major ensemble and sectional or group technique classes. In addition, they select a one-hour minor ranging from campfire guitar and music composition to world music and jazz band. The remainder of the schedule is comprised of recreation, traditional camp activities and evening performances or workshops. Finding a balance between focused instruction and more recreational activities is critical to providing a wellrounded camper experience. Getting feedback from faculty, staff, and, most importantly, the student campers, provides an important gauge in providing the right mix. Marc Dicciani: Summer programs consume a lot of effort, time, and money, so we decided if we were

going to commit the considerable resources required for a successful program that we would ask that the students be similarly committed. We require that they be proficient on the instrument; they must submit a recording of their playing or singing and a letter of recommendation from a teacher to be considered for scholarship. Jeffrey Kimpton: We take great pride in blurring the lines between “serious study” and “summer fun.” With a skilled faculty and motivated peers, students work toward excellence and have a lot of fun by accomplishing great things together. There are, however, a variety of other activities available. All students have time for activities outside their studies. In general, high school musicians are more focused on their musical studies and their schedule is more demanding. Junior and intermediate campers have more time to explore other arts disciplines or for

recreation. Many students take advantage of the resources at Interlochen to explore other arts disciplines through elective classes in writing, dance, film, theatre or visual arts; the number of electives varies by program and age level. Interlochen offers plenty of opportunities for traditional summer fun, too. The camp is located in the scenic north woods of Michigan in between two beautiful lakes. Campers enjoy swimming, sailing and canoeing and take occasional trips to the sand dunes and Lake Michigan. High school students enjoy social “mixers” each week and almost everyone takes advantage of the campus ice cream shop, the Melody Freeze. Students also enjoy the opportunity to watch Camp performances or attend a concert at the Interlochen Arts Festival, the summer performing arts series that attracts a wide variety of performers in many musical genres, dance, theater and film.

<WSVHK `V\Y WOV[VZ NYHWOPJZ HUK TVYL [V JYLH[L `V\Y V^U J\Z[VT KY\T WHK -LH[\YL `V\Y LU[PYL WLYJ\ZZPVU ZLJ[PVU [V NP]L HZ H^HYKZ VY NPM[Z *OLJR P[ V\[ H[ WYVTHYR JVT PKWHK

3UR 0DUN &RUSRUDWLRQ

It’s a ´looks killer in practiceµ pad.

40 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

L. Scott McCormick: The Music for All Summer Symposium is appropriate for high school students or those who are about to enter high school. The six-day, five-night event is an immersion into their craft of making music and experiencing music. On average, the Music for All Summer Symposium averages 1400 student participants and 225 educators attending for professional development. The Symposium curriculum infuses relevant teaching with opportunities to rub shoulders with truly world-class artists in residence. We believe that the process of the week is the most important element for the students, to fill them with as much knowledge and experiences that they would not otherwise have the chance to participate in and allow the traditional “summer fun” element to be what they get to experience once they return home, so that their investment in scarce resources delivers an unequaled experience. Do you align your activities with a school music curriculum, local or otherwise? Jeffrey Kimpton: Most of our music experiences and electives exceed anything you would find in a typical school music curriculum. Students can take classes in music theory, composition, music literature, 20th century music, chamber music, jazz and more. With tens of thousands of alumni, and a high profile national faculty, Interlochen is fortunate to be well connected with many individuals and national organizations. The nation’s very best music schools and conservatories send recruiters to Interlochen throughout the summer. While some outstanding faculty do come from Michigan, we have always drawn a national and international faculty. We view Interlochen as an educational partner with all school music programs, and the quality of our educational program helps those who attend Interlochen in the summer return to their home programs as better musicians, leaders and role models for other students.

Carl Allen: In most cases we’re getting kids not just from the local schools but from cities from afar, so it’s often difficult to know what they’ve been exposed to by way of curriculum. Ideally, what we would like to see would be more band directors, music teachers, and parents get involved in promoting music camps. We want people to embrace the opportunity for their kids and not feel overwhelmed by the idea of us coming in. We have been developing relationships with teachers on a personal level with hopes of not only promoting the summer workshops, but to also let them know that we’re a resource for them on an ongoing basis. Often, we will communicate with a teacher throughout the year that we have met over the summer. It would be helpful to have more of them attend and observe their students in the workshops. I believe that when a student sees that involvement from their teacher during their personal

vacation time, they will have a different perspective and rapport with them during the school year. L. Scott McCormick: Some of our faculty comes from Illinois State University’s applied instrumental faculty, who serve as the host location for this event, however of our over 125 member teaching faculty only about 15 percent of them are from our host school. We attempt to bring the best and most relevant faculty available to us.

ferent major areas come together to attend clinics, take classes in improvisation and private lessons, and play in large and small jazz ensembles. Students can elect to take either week or both weeks. During the jazz workshop week, we closely align our activities with our undergrad curriculum. We work with high school band directors and private teachers throughout our region and in a few other geographic areas across the country, and even with a few schools abroad.

Marc Dicciani: We run two oneweek music programs in the summer. During the first week students are all grouped together and take classes in their major instrument – drums, piano, bass, voice, et cetera. Coursework includes private lessons, workshops, clinics, special guests, and performing with other instrumentalists and vocalists in ensemble and band workshops. The second week is a jazz workshop where students from the dif-

Heidi Stansell: As a Michigan based camp with 84 percent of our students coming from our home state, Blue Lake has always seen itself as an extension of the Michigan school arts program. From its inception in 1966, the camp has worked closely with the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association to ensure our curriculum compliments school instruction and we maintain close ties with the state’s leading mu-

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 41

6<17+(7,&

5 ( ( ' 6 GMLD9KLK ;9F= *(( LG ) )(( ;GFKAKL=F;Q ;9F := ;DAHH=< 9F< K@9N=< HD9QK AEE=<A9L=DQ

:9JA KL9J

OYje]j$ <Yjc]j Lgf]

Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp

sic educators, many of whom are on our faculty. We are in the process of evaluating our curriculum to ensure it meets the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s revised arts standards and benchmarks. What are some of the common obstacles that students might face in a camp program?

:9JA GJA?AF9D

:jaddaYfl$ NaZjYfl Lgf]

9N9AD9:D= AF2 9DD KLJ=F?L@K >GJ2 ;D9JAF=LK 9F< K9PGH@GF=K ZZZ EDULZRRGZLQG FRP

ZZZ P\VSDFH FRP EDULZRRGZLQG %DUL :RRGZLQG 6XSSOLHV //& $ 'LYLVLRQ RI WKH &DYDQDXJK &RPSDQ\

MADE IN THE USA 42 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

L. Scott McCormick: As students, parents, and music educators determine the kinds of summer music programs that they might attend, it is important to understand the outcomes that they are attempting to achieve before making the decision. One challenge that we all face today is the economic realities of choosing a camp experience. Make sure that you are comfortable with the faculty, the host organization and facilities that you will be attending. Ask about things like adequate and qualified supervision and medical staffs. Jeffrey Kimpton: The best advice is this: if you are serious about your instrument and want an intensive experience, then a summer music camp is something you should try. It provides an opportunity to focus on mu-

sic without competing with academics and other school activities. It is important for students to come ready to meet new people and try new experiences. At Interlochen, our cabin counselors strive to create a strong feeling of home from the first minutes; they understand that this is new for many students, and returning students help make that transition a positive one. Heidi Stansell: If students come to camp with a good attitude and open mind, they will have a positive experience. Our goal is to provide a nonthreatening, supportive environment where campers can grow and thrive. Blue Lakeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s staff is thoroughly trained to assist our students with adjustments to camp life. Marc Dicciani: Sometimes students arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t completely prepared for the intense level of practice and study, and the advanced level of the other students in the program. Also, because weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re located in the arts district in the heart of downtown Philadelphia, some students can become distracted by all of the concerts, jazz clubs, and other events that are presented throughout the area on a daily

basis. I think as long as students approach coming to our program with the understanding that it’s an intense program for serious music students, they’ll be okay. Carl Allen: Some of the challenges that some students face are the attention to detail that we require. We ask that they focus and retain what’s being covered. Some students are not used to this, but we feel without it progress becomes almost impossible, given the short amount of time that we have. As for the preparation process, just continue to practice and come with an open mind and willing spirit to learn. Is there anything in particular that you wish more people knew about summer music camps?

Quality Instruments

Heidi Stansell: A summer music camp experience prepares students for increased success in their school music

programs, nurtures personal growth and encourages independence and self-confidence. Lifetime friendships and memories are formed at camp that help to shape and define young adulthood.

tacular location is something every musician should try in the summer; many never get the chance. If you are serious about making music and have the chance, you should go to a summer music camp.

Marc Dicciani: Although the duration of these programs is usually short, the amount of learning and the depth of experience that takes place in a couple of weeks can positively affect the student for many years. Carl Allen: Yes, we want people to know that we bring in professional musicians who care about our students’ growth and development. We are there to help them learn and show them how we deal with the same challenges that they have or have had.

L. Scott McCormick: The right summer music camp experience can be the catalyst for a student to come of age with their instrument and decisions about their future. We have untold numbers of stories of students making the decision on becoming a music educator or performer from being a part of our own Summer Symposium. Whether a student is going to become a music teacher or performer the other major benefit from participating in a good summer experience is that a safe away-from-home collegiate campus experience prepares your young people for the next phase of their lives.

Jeffrey Kimpton: The opportunity to experience great teaching, learning, and performance in a spec-

That Your School and Students Can Afford

STENTOR

Musical Careers Start Here • Stentor offers high quality and value to string players at every level • Start playing with our best-selling outfits: - Stentor Student I and II • Step up to a - Stentor Graduate or - Stentor Conservatoire • Stentor Student I and Student II outfits are played in most schools in the UK and throughout the world

We are one of the leading suppliers of band and orchestra instruments to schools and music dealers throughout the United States. We offer a full line of brass, woodwind, orchestra and percussion instruments designed and crafted to educational standards. For a list of dealers in your area, or a catalog contact: schools@huntermusical.com by email or call. We respond to all school bids through local dealers. Samples are available for evaluation.

Hunter Music Instruments

3300 Northern Boulevard, Long Island City, NY 11101 (718) 706-0828 Fax: (718) 706-0128 www.huntermusical.com

• Stentor violins, violas, cellos and basses are hand carved from solid tonewoods with correct measurements and good tonal quality Request a brochure from the address below

www.stentor-music.com In the USA, please contact: KMC Music, Inc. 55 Griffin Road South, Bloomfield, CT 06002 Tel: 0860-509-8888 Email: sales@kmcmusic.com

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 43

SBOPerformance: Conducting

Creative Conducting: 15 Conducting Tips for Inspired Musicianship

BY J. STEVEN MOORE

s a conductor, you have one of the most creative jobs in the world â&#x20AC;&#x201C; you sculpt sound with your hands! You evoke, shape, and inspire sound with your conducting. Have you ever asked a snare

drummer to keep time for your ensemble? Many conductors are the visual equivalent of our snare drummer. If you were given the task of inventing conducting, would you pound the air on every beat regardless of the musical impetus? Or, rather, would you craft a set of gestures that indicates all aspects of the music, not just the meter. If you choose the latter, imagine your conducting as the artistic catalyst to inspired music making.

Tip #1 -

Conduct the music, not the pattern. Conduct only that which is in the music â&#x20AC;&#x201C; no more and no less. There is much more to music than the delineation of the meter. Time-beating usually results in over-conducting. Even lovely gestures, if not called for in the music, should not be present in the conducting. Look for techniques, clinics, or instructional materials to help you get out of the pattern box. Applying the language of Rudolf Laban may be helpful.

44 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Tip #2 -

Conduct the music, not the musicians. Allow each musician to assume responsibility for maintaining pulse, subdividing, entrances, and releases. You initiate and define the time, cue entrances and releases, but you do not function as a traffic cop directing a chaotic intersection.

Tip #3 -

Display the information in the tip of the baton. Imagine paint flowing from the tip of your baton on to your imaginary canvass. It flows smoothly in legato passages, creates dabs in normal articulations, and dots in staccato passages. The pulse should not be in your elbow. Preparatory beats should not be given with your head. By focusing on the tip of the baton, your body will automatically adjust to the most efficient movement.

Tip #4 -

Use the smallest tool for the job. Don’t use a hammer to insert a small screw. Similarly, don’t use your entire arm to depict light or normal articulations. Use the smallest hinge appropriate for the task: fingers, wrist, elbow, shoulder, body. With a normalsized 15 inch baton, you can trace a 15 inch arc from horizontal to vertical using only your wrist hinge. Add your elbow hinge and you are tracing 24-30 inches of space--more than enough for most musical situations. By using the smallest hinge appropriate for the music, you avoid over-conducting, beating the air, and large patterns.

often occurs on preparatory beats. (Video yourself from the side.)

Tip #7 -

Avoid deep knee bends. Allow your knees to be relaxed, yet stable. Let’s leave the knee bends to our beloved drum majors. (Video yourself from the side.)

Tip #8 -

Move your baton up and down at the same rate of speed. All beats have some type of upward and downward impetus that emulates the laws of physics. If you toss a small bean bag in the air, its landing is completely predictable. This predictable motion is helpful to the musicians. Do not rush to the downbeat or jerk the baton up quickly after the ictus is given. You may not realize you are doing this, so please record your conducting. If you flick

your baton up too quickly, you will become an “upbeat conductor.” The pulse will appear to be on your upbeat instead of your downbeat.

Tip #9 -

Begin with the end in mind. Show the musicians the location of the ictus by starting in that position. In other words, begin the beat where the beat concludes.

Tip #10 -

Release with your left hand. An elliptical motion with the left hand clarifies your intention for a release. Right hand motions may be interpreted as an indication to play the next note. When releases occur at the end of sections, movements, or compositions where there is not another note, right hand releases are perfectly acceptable.

Tip #5 -

Address your ensemble. Conductors often allow the baton to point to the left side of the ensemble. Hold the baton comfortably in your hand. Relax your fingers and wrist with just enough tension to maintain control of the baton. The baton is an extension of your forearm. It should not angle significantly to the left.

Tip #6 -

Stay grounded. Avoid going up on your toes by keeping your feet flat on the podium. This School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 45

Tip #11 -

Begin with your baton parallel with the floor. Often conductors allow the ictus to drift too high, sometimes chest and above. Save this position for indicating registration. For example, triangle cues are higher than trombone cues. Keep your elbows away from your torso and forward of your ribs. Many old (and some contemporary) conducting texts illustrate a fundamental position that is too high. The fundamental position for conducting includes: 1. Baton and forearm parallel with floor (or just slightly higher). 2. Forearms angled toward each other (45 degrees from elbow to wrist). 3. Elbows in front of your torso (45 degrees from shoulder to elbow).

Tip #12 -

All beats should move up and down, not in a straight line. All gestures that describe a beat should have an upward and

downward impetus. The more pronounced the musical articulation required, the more vertical the beat. The less pronounced the musical articulation required, the more horizontal the beat. Choose a pattern that aligns each ictus along a horizontal plane. Since a straight line does not indicate a beat, the “floor-wall-wall-ceiling” pattern is not the best tool.

Tip #13 -

Don’t mirror. Develop independence in your gestures. There is rarely a reason to mirror. If your left hand is not adding to the musical interpretation, it is adding to the confusion. Imagine your left hand: 1. Resting comfortably at your side 2. Cueing entrances. 3. Releasing sound. 4. Increasing or decreasing volume. 5. Signaling attention – something is going to change. 6. Shaping a phrase. 7. Sustaining sound. 8. Encouraging a musician.

Tip #14 -

If the air keeps moving, your hands keep moving. When you stop your hands, the musicians tend to stop the air. If you intend for the sound to sustain, keep your gestures in motion. If the air, the bow, or the roll is moving, your hands should continue moving. Your conducting should emulate a violinist moving her bow. Your ictus depicts how you want the bow, tongue, stick, or mallet to initiate sound.

46 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Tip #15 -

Trust your performers. Allow them to come to you. Train them to watch and respond. Teach them to internalize time. Expect that they will assume responsibility for the music. You will get exactly what you expect from your ensemble. This is true of young musicians as well as more experienced musicians.

Tip #16 -

Record yourself on video. One video study session can lead to tremendous improvements. You may notice a hitch at the top of the beat, an extra curly-que between beats, an oversized pattern, “thinking-man” expression, traffic-cop cueing, excessive mirroring, head in the score, or any number of issues that are easily resolved. Go easy on yourself as this is supposed to be a joyous activity. Whatever undesirable habits you have developed can be replaced with more artistic gestures. Visualize yourself conducting the music with tremendous artistry. Compare the video to the image in your mind. Allow yourself to gradually transition into the conductor you see in your imagination. Once you begin to move in the right direction, you will notice a rapid change. Remember: Your conducting makes a difference in the sound of the ensemble! J. Steven Moore is the director of bands at Colorado State University, where he conducts the wind ensemble and the marching band. As an associate professor of Music and assistant chair of the Department of Music, Theatre, and Dance, Dr. Moore also teaches music education and conducting courses. Prior to this position, Dr. Moore spent four years as the assistant band director at the University of Kentucky and 10 years before that as the band director at Lafayette High School and Jesse Clark Middle School, in Lexington, Kentucky, during which time the LHS won 6 state marching band championships and was awarded the Sudler Shield. Visit his Web site, www.beyondthenotes.com.

SBOTechnology: Audio Cleaning

Audio Tools for Music Educators: Noise Cleaning & Audio Enhancements

e are all familiar with those dramatic â&#x20AC;&#x153;before and

BY JOHN KUZMICH, JR.

afterâ&#x20AC;? weight loss ads. Now just as dramatic results are available to everyday music educators with audio archives and performances we want to share via In-

ternet blogs, podcasts, Web postings, CDs, and DVDs. While the recording industry has traditionally dealt with audio restoration, music educators have not because it was complicated and cost prohibitive. Fortunately, this is no longer the case.

Dr. John Kuzmich Jr. is a veteran music educator, jazz educator and music technologist with more than 41 years of public school teaching experience. He is a TI:ME-certified training instructor and has a Ph.D. in comprehensive musicianship. As a freelance author, Dr. Kuzmich has more than 400 articles and five textbooks published. As a clinician, Dr. Kuzmich frequently participates in workshops throughout the U.S., Europe, Australia, and South America. For more information, visit www.kuzmich.com.

48 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

“Audio restoration” is a generalized term for the process of removing imperfections (such as hiss, crackle, noise, and buzz) from sound recordings. It can also enhance the audio quality of the original recording. There are 19 before-and-after recording examples to listen to help illustrate this process for you at www.kuzmich.com/Audio_Tables.html. A list of recording challenges that new audio restoration software can correct include: • Removing Broadband Noise from a concert recording. • Using EQ and other tools with the spoken word. • Restoring an Historical Speech making voice more intelligible. • Removing clicks and pops from a concert on record. • Cleaning up a phone interview clipping. (You can’t remove clipping, but you can use click/crackle repair to minimize it. At the URL above, check out the WWII recording of a heavily clipped recording that was salvaged. • Removing guitar string squeaks. • Filling an audio gap. • Restoring old recordings removing unwanted noise. • Putting analog tapes or vinyl onto CDs.

Clicks and Pops Clicks and pops are common on recordings made from vinyl and can also be introduced by digital errors, including recording into a DAW with improper buffer settings. Most audio restoration products include both automatic and manual tools for removing clicks and pops.

Clipping Clipping is a common problem that occurs when a loud signal distorts on

input to a sound card/converter, mixing console, field recorder or other piece of equipment. The result is overload distortion.

Intermittent Noises Intermittent noises appear infrequently and may not be consistent in pitch or duration. Examples include coughs, sneezes, footsteps, car horns, cell phone rings, et cetera. Because noises like this are often un-

Before reviewing the audio restoration software applications, let’s look at some of the audio problems frequently found in recordings.

Hum and Buzz Hum is usually the result of electrical noise somewhere in recorded signal chain heard as a low frequency tone based between 50Hz or 60Hz. It only takes a few harmonics to create a hum or buzz. Software can suppress some of the harmonics.

Hiss and Broadband Noise Unlike hum and buzz, broadband noise is spread throughout the frequency spectrum and not concentrated at specific frequencies. Tape hiss and noise ventilation systems are good examples of broadband noise. Addition examples can be heating, ventilation, and air condition systems, as well as DV camera motor or needle hiss. School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 49

predictable, they usually need to be removed manually.

Gaps Sometimes a recording may include short sections of missing or corrupted audio. Using information around the gap to fill in the missing information with patterns and advanced re-synthesis is the usual remedy.

Audio Restoration Products I have found five products that remedy noise and audio problems while enhancing the audio recording by boosting high and low frequencies. • Spin It Again by Acoustica, standalone for PC. • Magix Audio Cleaning 15 by Magix, stand-alone for PC. • SoundSoap 2 by BIAS-Inc., both plug-in and stand-alone for Mac and PC.. • SoundSoap 2 Pro by BIAS-Inc., for Mac and PC plug-in only.

• iZotope RX and RX Advanced by iZotope, for Mac and PC plug-in and stand alone. As noted, some of these are standalone products and some are plugins that interface seamlessly with audio applications through either VST hosting applications, Audio Units (supported by Apple computers) or RTAS/AudioSuite (Real Time AudioSuite) for ProTools hosts. Popular VST hosting programs include Peak, Audition, Cubase, Digital Performer, GarageBand,Live, ProTools, Premier, and SoundForge., For a complete list of plug-in products, along with a host of other supplemental information related to this article, including links and examples, go online to www.kuzmich. com/SBO0310.html. A plug-in product lets you can run it seamlessly from inside of your familiar audio editing program using the editing program’s transport button, time-line, in-an-out markers

The Winds Of Change Vento has the Answers to Your Questions!

FAQs F: A: Q: S:

Fantastic Affordable Quality Stretch Your Budget

Vento 8340 800 Series BBƌ Tuba 3/4 with Piston Valves Vento 85X 800 Series Alto Saxophone

Available only from Why Pay More???

www.musicfactorydirect.com 50 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Toll Free: 888-368-7770

and apply buttons. The advantage of a stand-alone application is that is it doesn’t require a compatible host program.

Primer & Intermediate Levels For PC users who want an easy-touse product, Spin It Again by Acoustica does a superb job of basic noise reduction for tapes and records. It uses a wizard, which makes it very easy to achieve good results. I like how the product records vinyl LP or cassette to CD, dividing tracks, and also burns CDs. You can also record your LP collection and cassettes to your iPod or another portable MP3 player. There are 16 cleaning tools to get rid of clicks, pops, and crackles, all explained in further detail on the supplemental Web site. MAGIX Audio Cleaning Lab 15 Deluxe offers an amazingly clean interface. Simply click “Record” and the integrated recorder records everything that you hear via the sound card. Non-copy-protected audio CDs and MP3 files can be imported without any problems. With a single click, you can eliminate clipping, crackling vinyl, audio disturbances, noise, popping, and humming from any recording. The cleaning wizard automatically analyses the audio material, selects the appropriate effects and goes to work. Fine tuning is also possible with the equalizer. There are numerous effects for producing a perfect, neutral stereo image. MAGIX Audio Cleaning Lab 15 Deluxe can also optimize the audio on your video recordings and even remove typical basic noise caused by nearly every camcorder. Exporting restored files to various audio file formats is both simple and powerful. The interface works seamlessly with loading files, making recordings, and ripping CDs, all within one application. Another entry level application that works on both Mac and PC is the iZotope Music & Speech Cleaner based on their more powerful RX program. For more details, go to the supplemental Web site previously cited. It doesn’t have the wizard like Spin It Again, but it does have

settings specific to speech instead of just music. SoundSoap by BIAS-Inc. is designed to be very easy to use, for the digital audio novices among us. The interface is set up to allow “oneclick” noise reduction on pretty much any kind of unwanted background noise. SoundSoap is optimized for speech, but also works well with music. SoundSoap 2 dramatically reduces tape hiss, buzzing and hum, rumble and most other types of background noise. Just click the one-step “Learn Noise” button, and watch SoundSoap2 automatically clean your audio. This product can also fine-tune with its intuitive controls for even more professional results. You will like the Enhance slider, which boosts highs and lows, bringing old recordings back to life. SoundSoap 2 works on both PC and Mac and is a step up from Spin It Again with a few nice features such as: Preserve Voice, which removes anything that is outside of the range of the human voice, and Learn Noise, which finds the “noise” in your recording and removes it. The first few seconds of a recording will usually have silence before the music starts, so this is a good place for SoundSoap 2 to “learn the noise.” If you don’t have a full two seconds of silence, you can use the “Loop” command in a host app, or in the stand-alone edition of SoundSoap, in a shorter section. SoundSoap 2 will work as a stand alone or as a plug-in within another audio editing program. There isn’t a demo, but you can read about it in this article’s supplemental Web site. SoundSoap is the most widely used cross-platform high-quality noise reduction tool available in its price range. It is also used by law enforcement agencies for forensics because it is so easy and effective.

of choice. SoundSoap 2 Pro is the professional version of SoundSoap 2 and adds a number of features for advanced noise reduction. You can even compare 4 different settings at the same time to make the best selection. It combines four advanced restoration tools: BroadBand, Click & Crackle and Hum & Rumble, as well as a “Noise Only” setting so users can listen to what the program plans to remove. SoundSoap 2 Pro is particularly efficient in respect to click and crackle removal. Another powerful audio restoration software products is iZotope RX, which is basically a comprehensive toolbox for cleaning and repairing audio. RX removes hiss, buzz, eliminates clicks and crackles, and repairs distortion and even gaps in audio. It was designed for audio restoration and archiving, recording and mastering, broadcasting and podcasting, video production, and forensics. Key features include a denoiser, Spectral Repair, Declipper, hum removal, declicker, spectogram, and more. There are some videos available under the “Downloads” tab posted on this article’s supplemental

PSD410 $799

Web site. In addition to the usual noise reduction tools, iZotope RX has some very powerful tools such as the “Declipper” which can rescue recordings that were too “hot” and distorted. The “Spectral Repair” can actually fill in drop-outs or remove intermittent noises. Despite advanced features like these, the program is actually fairly easy to use.

Closing Comments While features themselves may seem important, educators really need to try the products to create an independent evaluation of how a particular product works. Contact manufacturers for a demo version or a 30-day money back option. And for those who are new to audio restoration and digital audio editing I suggest keeping it simple. If not used carefully, these unfamiliar controls and options could conspire to make the audio sound worse! For examples of these programs’ capabilities and other additional information related to this article, visit www.kuzmich.com/SBO0310.html.

PSD450 $1199

Professional Level SoundSoap 2 Pro exposes dozens of parameters that are preset in the more basic version. For advanced users who understand the different controls, this is the powerful audio restoration/noise reduction tool

Superscope Technologies · 1508 Batavia Avenue · Geneva , Illinois 60134-3302 · Phone 800.374.4118 · Fax 630.232.8905 · www.SuperscopeTechnologies.com

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 51

NewProducts Dinkles Marching Shoes

Dinkles Marching Shoes are equipped with shock-resistant soles and insoles, a cotton lining, and a stable, Dinkles-exclusive, “Triad” heel, designed to provide additional heel and ankle support. There is also a 4-part ball, flex-feature comfort pad built into each shoe. The soles of Dinkles shoes are made of 80 percent rubber. The skid-resistant Chevron-designed tread pattern prevents slipping and adds precision to all marching maneuvers. The high quality materials on these shoes, such as the protected leather used on the Vanguard and the high-grade vinyl used on the Glide and Formal, require little or no maintenance at all. Dinkles uses the same materials as shoes designed for postal workers and golfers. Dinkles now also offers a full line of gloves

www.dinkles.com

Neotech’s Trombone Grip

The Trombone Grip from Neotech is designed to be adjusted to fit both the instrument and the musician’s hand, to provide comfort, balance, and support while playing. In order to achieve a custom fit for any style/size of trombone, Neotech’s Trombone Grip comes with three types of wraps (bushings) along with several neoprene shims to create a platform for the hand grip to snap on. Once the correct bushing type is selected and firmly attached, the hand grip is quickly affixed. It can be adjusted forward and back as well as at a slight angle. The grip incorporates a soft, durable neoprene strap which closes securely across the back of the hand. It allows for a full range of movement, while keeping a secure hold on the instrument. While the custom-fit bushing remains on the instrument, the

grip portion can be removed for storing and transporting the instrument.

www.optechusa.com

Tycoon Percussion’s Entry-Level Cajons

The new cajons from Tycoon are handcrafted from premium-grade hardwoods, yet are positioned to be sold at a price-point under $100. Tycoon’s Supremo entry level cajon is designed for beginners and recreational drummers as well as serious players who are looking for value. Also joining Tycoon’s range of traditional, roundback, and electrified cajons is the new Acrylic cajon that combines a heavy-gauge, clear acrylic body with a traditional Black Makah Burl playing surface.

www.tycoonpercussion.com

Super-Sensitive’s Clarity Spectrum Rosin

Super-Sensitive Musical String Co. introduces Clarity Spectrum, a colorful collection of its hypo-allergenic rosin,

Rule your stage with LP HARDWARE.

Play the best. LPmusic.com • hear it • learn it • buy it

52 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

now available in red, pink, green, blue, and purple. Made from a synthetic hydrocarbon resin compound, Clarity is said to improve the performance of rosin, producing better grab and clearer string response. Clarity Spectrum is non-corrosive to instrument varnish and can be safely used on all valued instruments. Also, unlike sap rosin, hydrophobic Clarity resists the absorption of moisture, making it unaffected by humidity and allowing it to keep its full tack and effectiveness over time. Clarity includes a five-inch micro fiber cloth for a cleaner applica-

NewProducts tion and is packaged inside a hard top container.

www.supersensitive.com

Bari Woodwind Synthetic Reeds

Bari Woodwind Supplies adds two new strengths, medium hard (3.5-4.0) and medium soft (2.5 -3.0), to its synthetic composite reed line. Bari synthetic reeds come in two varieties: Bari Original which projects a clear, vibrant sound and Bari Star, which translates a warm and dark sound. Both Star and Original are available for Bb clarinet, bass clarinet, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, and baritone saxophone. With the addition of the new strengths, Bari synthetic reeds are available in soft (2.0-2.5), medium soft (2.5 -3.0), medium (3.0-3.5), medium hard (3.5-4.0), and hard (4.0-4.5).

www.bariwoodwind.com

MXL’s Live Series Mic

MXL’s LSC-1/2 Live Series microphone is a specially-designed live/stage condenser that features a metal body construction, three interchangeable capsules to create three polar patterns (cardioid/ omni/hyper-cardioid), and a roll-off switch with steep cutoff to reduce handling noise and proximity effect. The MXL LSC-1/2 Liv includes a 25-footmicrophone cable, mic stand adapter, cardioid/omni/hyper-cardioid capsules, carrying case and cleaning cloth.

www.mxlmics.com

Bag End’s Weatherproofed Loudspeakers

Any of Bag End’s loudspeakers can be weatherproofed by Bag End for

outdoor installation to protect them against the elements and extend their performance life. The cabinet is completely sealed inside and out; all hardware is upgraded to stainless steel and

vocal microphone, but is designed with a wider and flatter frequency response to capture a variety of instruments and tighter polar pattern to reduce off-axis noise. The mic is built around Blue’s proprietary dynamic capsule with a custom-designed diaphragm and coil windings that are matched to a tuned acoustic circuit, custom-built transformer for low noise, and high-pass filter to reduce stage rumble. While sporting a smaller grille for easy placement in tight spaces, the 100i shares the same build as the en•CORE 100 and 200, with a reinforced guard ring to protect the capsule, heavy cast zinc barrel for strength, and electroplated and hardened paint finishes for scratch resistance.

www.bluemic.com aluminum, and the drivers are sealed with advanced polymers offering corrosion resistance. Weatherproofing-Plus is added by Bag End at its facility before delivery, and is available on all of its many products. Weatherproofing-Plus will not interfere with a Bag End loudspeaker being able to deliver sound.

www.bagend.com

en•CORE 100i Live Instrument Microphone

Blue Microphones has expanded their en•CORE live stage microphone series with the addition of the en•CORE 100i. The en•CORE 100i gets its technology from the en•CORE 100 dynamic

Fund Raising

Madarozzo’s Band Instrument Bags

The Madarozzo 2010 Band Instrument Gig Bag Couture, a range of bags specifically designed by Martin Ritter to accommodate band instruments, now comprises 12 different models to choose from. Catering to the demands of brass and woodwind players, the lightweight, protective bags will carry different instruments from trumpets to saxophones. Available in a choice of colors, each model features soft interiors, a detachable backpack system, integrated semi-rigid panels, pockets, and pouches. The B050-Series accommodates trumpets, triple trumpets, alto and tenor sax, and trombone.

www.madarozzo.com

Request your FREE catalog and information packet:

1-800-311-9691

Your School, Church, Club, Team or Youth Group will work directly with the manufacturer to make 40% profit. Our proven Fund Raising system guarantees your success.

or www.RadaCutlery.com NOTE: Dept A10SBO Find out why our Fund Raisers say that “Rada knives sell themselves!”

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010 53

Brought to you by EPN Travel Services

Wind Sprints To get a better, broader sound, have brass players jog a few laps before rehearsal. We call these â&#x20AC;&#x153;wind sprints.â&#x20AC;? This can help them warm up the lungs and make it possible to direct more air into their instruments. Courtney Pride Sheffield High School Sheffield, Alabama

Submit your PLAYING TIP online at www.sbomagazine.com or e-mail it to editor Eliahu Sussman: esussman@symphonypublishing.com. Win a special prize from EPN Travel, Inc. Winning Playing Tips will be published in School Band and Orchestra magazine.

NOW ON-LINE!

College Search & Career Guide An Essential Resource for College Bound Music Students!

Students will use this essential on-line

resource filled with informative articles to help them make decide on the best college

music program.

This dynamic 2010 edition can be found at: www.sbomagazine.com

Expert Articles & much more!

54 School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Including information on over 100 music schools: Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q Q

College Music Programs Universities Conservatories Music Education Degrees Technology Performance Commercial Business Instrument Repair Military Band Programs Recording Engineering

Classifieds Classifieds

www.SBOmagazine.com www.SBOmagazine.com

ARRANGEMENTS

INSTRUCTION

MERCHANDISE

Custom Arrangements

For All Instrumental / Vocal Ensembles Tailored to Your Specific Groups Contact Al Newman (505) 681-1213 amnewman@earthlink.net 1424 Sara Way SE Rio Rancho NM, 87124

Free Marching Band Arrangements Contact or email International Education Service P.O. Box 15036 Alexandria, Virginia 22309 703-619-6268 IES9@msn.com

The NPS8210 Melody Chair

FUNDRAISING

MERCHANDISE

DOUBLE YOUR MONEY

With this hot selling bumper sticker alternative. They’re magnets printed with your school mascot and die cut into special shapes.

Visit:

LogoMagnet.com to request a sample pack.

STANDS, PODIUMS, FOLIOS, & MORE @ DISCOUNT PRICES! FREE MUSIC EQUIPMENT CATALOG

1-800-573-6013 www.valiantmusic.com Your One-Stop Music Resource AMERICA’S BEST PRICES ON MUSICAL MERCHANDISE FOR OVER 100 YEARS

GIFTS

BandGifts.com

Guitar • Horns • Piano • Strings T-shirts, Hats, Stickers, Jewelry, Keychains, Miniatures, Ties, and more.

has the same specifications as the most popular “Student”chair! NOT $79 but as low as $48.75 per chair! Go to www.tablesnchairs.com for the details!

GAMBLE MUSIC COMPANY Website: www.gamblemusic.com E-mail: custserv@gamblemusic.com Call toll-free: (800) 621-4290 ~ Fax:

(800) 421-3153

SPECIAL SALE PAGES ON OUR WEBSITE CONTACT US FOR CATALOG INFORMATION IMPRINTED FOLDERS ~ STAGING ~ FILING BOXES/ SUPPLIES ~ MUSIC STANDS & ACCESSORIES ~ PIANO BENCHES, COVERS & LIGHTS ~ COMPUTER MUSIC PROGRAMS ~ PODIUMS, MALLET MOVERS, BAND WAGONS ~ CONDUCTOR’S STOOLS & CHAIRS ~ COMPUTER SOFTWARE

equatone@earthlink.net

Well priced/great value instruments:

www.EncorePro.org Trumpets • Saxophones Clarinets • Trombones

and More….

Fully serviced 100% Performance Specifications

“Musicians serving Musicians with Integrity” School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

Classifi Classifieds eds

www.SBOmagazine.com www.SBOmagazine.com

MERCHANDISE

PUBLICATIONS

REPAIR TOOLS

MEWZKL PUBLICATIONS

“New Things For School Strings” www.mewzkl.com 410-841-6288 Request our sample CD!

ReedsCheap.com Advertise in the Classifieds!

For 60 years we have providedmusical instrument repair tools to technicians and musicians around the world. We have a wide selection of pads and other supplies in addition to our repair tools. Contact us today for a FREE CATALOG.

SOFTWARE

Call Maureen 1-800-964-5150 ext. 34 Or Write

mjohan@symphonypublishing.com www.SBOmagazine.com

AdIndex COMPANY NAME

E-MAIL/WEB ADDRESS

Alfred Music Publishing

www.alfred.com/dealer

America Longxing Inc.

www.huntermusical.com

PAGE #

COMPANY NAME

E-MAIL/WEB ADDRESS

PAGE #

MakeMusic, Inc

www.makemusic.com

Superscope Technologies

www.superscopetechnologies.com

MonteVerde Music

www.monteverdemusic.com

Music Publishers Association

www.mpa.org

North Carolina School of the Arts

American Way Marketing LLC

info@americanwaymktg.com

J.J. Babbitt Co. Inc.

www.jjbabbitt.com

Band Shoppe

www.bandshoppe.com

www.ncarts.edu

Bari Woodwinds

www.bariwoodwinds.com

Northeastern Music Pub.

www.nemusicpub.com

Bob Rogers Travel

www.bobrogerstravel.com

Pearl Corp.

www.pearldrum.com

Peterson Strobe Tuners

www.petersontuners.com

Philomuse

www.philomuse.com

Pro-Mark Corp.

www.promark.com

Pygraphics-Pyware

www.pyware.com

Rada Mfg. Co.

www.RadaCutlery.com

Signature Music

www.signaturemusiccamp.org

Stentor Music Company

www.stetnor-music.com

Cascio Interstate Music Company

www.interstatemusic.com

Charms Music Software

www.charmsmusic.com

Colonial Williamsburg

www.colonialwilliamsburg.com/groups

D’Addario & Co.

www.daddario.com

9 37

EPN Travel Services

www.epntravel.com

Festivals of Music/

www.educationalprograms.com

Hal Leonard Corp.

www.halleonard.com

Hawaiian Music Festivals

www.himusicfest.com

Super-Sensitive Musical String Co.

www.cavanaughcompany.com

Indiana Wesleyan University

cas.indwes.edu

Vento Music

www.musicfactorydirect.com

Vic Firth, Inc.

www.VicFirth.com

World’s Finest Chocolate Inc.

www.WorldsFinestFundraising.com

Avedis Zildjian Co.

www.zildjian.com

Jupiter Band Instruments, Inc. www.jupitermusic.com KMC Music, Inc.

www.kmcmusic.com

LP Music Group

www.lpmusic.comcom

School Band and Orchestra, March 2010

cov 4

10-11

cov2-1

7 52