RANDALL COLEMAN

President’s Message, Randall Coleman, cont.

I would like to take a moment to express my thanks and gratitude to my amazing friends and colleagues on the NBA Executive Committee and Board of Directors. The Board of Directors met during the Midwest Clinic in Chicago, and I am always so impressed with the work that these educators accomplish each year for the NBA. I am very proud of the accomplishments of the Board on behalf of all our NBA members. There are so many projects underway with our various committees and project chairs and so many goals have already been accomplished. The members of the Executive Committee are some of the most dedicated educators I have ever worked with, and it is my honor to serve NBA alongside you all. Our new NBA Executive Secretary, Dr. Scott Tobias, did an outstanding job organizing all the details at Midwest, and he and I eventually figured out how to set up the NBA display booth! Our annual General Membership meeting took place in front of a standing room only crowd in our meeting room. Honoring many NBA members, ensembles and icons is one of the most gratifying things that our organization does. Congratulations to all our award winners, competition contest winners, and Programs of Excellence winners. The various winners are listed elsewhere in the issue of the NBA Journal. Please take a moment to read and reflect on these very special programs and people!

The winter and spring seasons, for most of us, mean honor bands, concerts, all-state bands, and auditions. I always smile when I hear someone ask a band director “now that marching season is over, what do you do?” Most of us are probably equally as busy during this time of the year as we are in the fall. Here’s hoping all your concerts, festivals and plans exceed your expectations this winter, and that your students enjoy both individual and ensemble success as you move through the semester.

It was wonderful to see so many of you in Chicago and I hope everyone has FINALLY made it home! Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can ever be of assistance to you or your program. Never forget that you provide your students with many of their “unexpected” changes that will be a meaningful part of their memory for a lifetime, and it’s always the changes we don’t plan for that often change us the most.

Randall Coleman President The National Band Association

As we embark on a new year of opportunities, I can’t help but reflect on the joys and challenges of 2022. The process of “getting back” what changed during COVID has been both frustrating and illuminating. On the one hand, the true value and impact of what we do in leading, participating in and supporting bands has arguably never been more apparent. On the other hand--for our teachers especially--the weight of twoplus years of rewriting curriculum, revamping artistic goals, and losing precious ground with students’ development continues to echo in band rooms all across the country. There is no way to wipe away those challenges, so we shouldn’t pretend that we can; rather, what we can do is focus on doggedly building forward, and doing everything possible to remind ourselves--and those many of us are charged to inspire-- why we continue to persevere in this opportunity to make music together.

In the Marine Band, we felt the effects of this first full year getting back from COVID shutdowns in a bit of a different way. In our role for the national community, we felt called to collectively push forward, carefully, but with determination in the face of these challenges. Our mission was to rekindle the spirit of music-making in every way possible, which I hope has served as a model and encouragement for others. As military bands finally went back out on the road across the United States and, for us, also venturing to Europe this past summer, I was keenly focused on who would show up again to hear live performance. I have to admit that I was very nervous that we had perhaps all unwillfully entered a new era where it would no longer be a priority for many to leave the house to hear a concert, and that the opportunities to share live music would be forever diminished. But what we found quashed that fear. We encountered people in every community, from every background, who could not wait to interact with us. We found people who came back because music is an absolutely essential vehicle for connection between humans. The people who returned also brought a palpable appreciation for sharing those experiences that felt somewhat different than before—first and foremost, it felt as though it was filled with gratitude.

So, I left 2022 also filled with gratitude, and feeling like I have a new charge. There is a window here and now for us all to access a new level of creativity and vigor in celebrating our profession and lighting a fire in the next generation of musicians and music-lovers. This is the moment that the community of the NBA was made for: to create new experiences for each of us; to recognize excellent achievement and motivate each other to take a new step in our own development; to foster an environment where we are eager to share ideas and inspire each other, and to lift up and mentor those who will carry the flag for our special community after us. These are some of the areas in which today’s NBA focuses its energy and its resources, and we will continue to receive creative ideas from all corners of our nation and our collective. I have so enjoyed the conversation we have had thus far about the kinds of activities, advocacy and projects that matter and I look forward to the continued dialogue in this fresh and exciting new year of possibilities for the National Band Association.

President-Elect’s Message, Jason K. Fettig, cont.

In the Marine Corps, we frequently say to each other “Semper Fidelis”— always faithful. If there ever was a time for us to embody this ethos toward our chosen creative life in bands, this is the moment!

Jason K. Fettig President-Elect National Band Association

Greetings one and all! Admittedly, I am writing this not long after the New Year, so my mind is still thinking about resolutions for the year ahead. I have been crafting New Year’s Resolutions for at least two decades now. They are largely the same from year to year, like limiting caffeine, exercising more, and watching my diet. One that is particularly meaningful for me this year is trying to be a more mindful, fully present person. We will see how well I have stuck to my resolutions by the time this is published!

Here is the issue at hand: Years of working hard have made me an excellent planner. So much so, that my mind is constantly racing ahead to the next thing that needs to be accomplished. I have noticed in the last several years that I sometimes struggle to let my mind unwind and simply enjoy the moment. Sound familiar? I’m sure we have all experienced that feeling in a meeting when you are thinking about all the other things that you need to get done … or in a particularly bad meeting, thinking about how your time could be better spent. I do not want to feel like my job is one ongoing meeting, where I am never fully present with the people around me. The best strategy I have learned is to notice when I start doing this and to shut it down immediately.

The same conundrum can exist on the podium. It is all too easy to become fixated on the things that could be going better (future), rather than acknowledging the things that already are (present). The book that introduced me to the concept of being fully present as a conductor was The Creative Director: Alternative Rehearsal Techniques, or simply A.R.T., by Past President Edward Lisk. There is good reason why Mr. Lisk’s approach to teaching music is featured in multiple volumes of Teaching Music through Performance in Band. Great pedagogy is great pedagogy, period. I discovered his book, A.R.T., after teaching for ten years, and the timing was perfect for me. In particular, I highly recommend reading (or re-reading) Chapter 7 where he describes the importance of turning off our critical ears in performances. As conductors, we need to shift from a reactionary mode to a performance mode, where we can appreciate an ensemble’s joint artistic achievement in real time.

Another component of mindfulness is making sure we are aware of others’ needs. We must take the time to listen closely to what others are saying and feeling. One of my mother’s favorite quotes was from To Kill a Mockingbird, when Atticus Finch says, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from [their] point of view... until you climb into [their] skin and walk around in it.” To that end, the NBA Inclusion-DiversityEquity-Awareness (IDEA) committee created a Welcome Statement this past fall that acknowledges how vital it is to hear and consider every NBA member’s voice. Our inspiration was drawn from the ever-growing use of “safe classroom” statements that many schools have developed.

Vice-President’s Message, Matt Temple, cont.

I am pleased to report that the NBA Board of Directors has approved our use of the Welcome Statement, which reads as follows:

“The National Band Association acknowledges and embraces that our organization is strengthened by diversity. We welcome all peoples, inclusive of their culture, economic status, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, and abilities. The NBA is committed to including all voices in our organization and invites everyone to join us in the advancement of our mission and educational purposes.”

In conjunction with our new

Welcome Statement, the IDEA committee helped revise the Educational Purposes for our organization. The revisions were approved by the NBA Board of Directors when they met at the Midwest Clinic and will be submitted for a vote by the general membership this spring. Both the Welcome Statement and newly revised Educational Purposes represent a wholly positive step forward for our organization. I believe they demonstrate the NBA’s commitment to being mindful of the many ways in which we can support all members.

Remember, the National Band Association is for everyone! And as always, we are here to serve you.

Matt Temple Vice President National Band Association