School Band and Orchestra Magazine

10 School Band and Orchestra • Janaury 2012

Report: El Sistema

El Sistema

Music education programs

modeled after El Sistema,

the Venezuelan movement

of social empowerment through classical

music, continue to multiply and flourish

in the United States. Affiliated with ma-

jor orchestras, universities, schools, and

arts and cultural centers from Florida to

Maine and Southern California to Alaska,

there are now more than 50 individual

programs that share a mission of improv-

ing communities through the rigorous

teaching of children and young people

to play orchestral music. While most re-

ports on this exciting and widely heralded

movement in the United States indicate a

rapid-fire expansion, the future of an um-

brella organization or national governing

body for El Sistema-inspired programs in

this country is still unclear.

A student from Baltimore’s ORCHKids. Photo by Bill Denison.

in the United StatesFoothold found, but governing body still undefined

Roundtable(report).indd 10 1/5/12 3:04 PM

FREE SBO iPad APP NOW AVAILABLE

May 2012 • $5.00

Dr. Marion Roberts

Through MusicReaching People

for Over 40 Years

Roundtable: Purchasing Uniforms

Tech: Distance Learning

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2 School Band and Orchestra • May 2012

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 Merchan-dise Review, Choral Director, Music Parents America and JAZZed. All titles are federally registered trade-marks 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/SUBSCRIB-ERS: 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 © 2012 by Symphony Publishing, LLC, all rights reserved. Printed in USA.

ContentsFeatures12 UpFront Q&A: TI:ME’s

Mike LawsonMike Lawson, the executive director of TI:ME, proposes ways to use technology to bring more students into the school music program.

16 Roundtable: UniformsFive educators who have recently acquired new band uniforms weigh in on the finer points of the purchasing process.

26 Commentary: Personality TraitsSBO contributor Vic Vallo delves into the personality traits of the music educator/educator.

32 Upclose: Dr. Marion RobertsIn this recent SBO interview, Dr. Marion Roberts, now in his fifth decade in education, reflects on his philosophy of impacting as many students as possible at Blue Valley North High School in Overland Park, Kansas.

40 Survey: FestivalsSBO readers share their thoughts on the latest trends in school music festivals.

46 Technology: Distance LearningJohn Kuzmich presents an array of classes and workshops for music educators looking for a jumpstart on incorporating technology into the curriculum and classroom.

Columns4 Perspective

6 Headlines

52 New Products

61 Playing Tip

62 Classifieds

64 Ad Index

School Band and Orchestra • May 2012 3938 School Band and Orchestra • May 2012

Survey: Festivals

Trending:

Festivals

What are the most important criteria when se-lecting a band/orchestra festival to attend?

“When I plan a trip, the focus is musical. The trip is just an excuse to give the students a novel learning experience. However, the destination has to be appealing to the students.”

Salvatore TerrasiShorewood High School

Shorewood, Wis.

Do you prefer the festivals your groups attend to be:

“Both have value. I have attended excellent competitive and non-competitive events. It is the critique, clinicians, and concerts that make the event worthwhile.”

John SyversonFargo South High

Fargo, N.D.

“The best festivals get student musicians to-gether to share. Competition is okay, but it would never be my reason for taking my band or indi-vidual students to a festival. Note: That has not always been my position. A decade ago my band was one of the most competition-oriented in my state. A series of extremely successful competi-tions led me to realize that the benefits to the stu-dents were transient compared to when they got

72%

28%

I prefer to challenge

my students, even if that means

they don’t perform as well.

I prefer to program easier music that can

be played flawlessly.

28%

Competitive

Non Competitive

We attend both types of festival

18%

54%

28%

20%

20%

19%

9%

2%

2%

Judges’ feedback

The experience of watching peer ensembles

Camaraderie within the music program

The experience of performing in a unique venue

Ratings

Competitive placement

Other

46%

26%

15%

9%

4%

Location/Venue

Noted adjudicators

Extracurricular/non-musical activities

Festival size (number of participants)

Prestige

72%

28%






28%

Competitive

Non Competitive


18%

54%

28%

20%

20%

19%

9%

2%

2%

Judges’ feedback




Ratings


Other

46%

26%

15%

9%

4%

Location/Venue

Noted adjudicators



Prestige

72%

28%






28%

Competitive

Non Competitive


18%

54%

28%

20%

20%

19%

9%

2%

2%

Judges’ feedback




Ratings


Other

46%

26%

15%

9%

4%

Location/Venue

Noted adjudicators



Prestige

together to share.”Dean Lamp

Glidden-RalstonGlidden, Iowa

What are the most important takeaways from the festivals your students attend?

“We are so busy in our own little musical world at school that we sometimes lose focus on the bigger picture – sharing our music with others. It’s important to be able to hear other groups and get feedback from respected professionals, and to share what we’re doing in our program.”

Marianne BallLa Salle High School

Union Gap, Wash.

“Band festivals tend to attract the best bands in our area. It’s great for our kids to hear these ensembles.”

David M. MillerValley Middle School

Apple Valley, Minn.

“I want my students to reflect on what the judges told us, accept the rating we received, and, most of all, watch the other groups and support their performances.”

Kurt StalmannSantana High School

Santee, Calif.

What are the latest trends that you’ve noticed in the music festivals your groups attend?

“I am certainly seeing more festivals add a clin-ic component. This has been a healthy develop-ment.”

Patrick J. Kearney

In the microcosm of an instrumental music program, participation

in a music festival is typically one of the primary highlights of the

year. When else do music students have the opportunity to show

off the fruits of a year’s worth of labor to a peer audience, receive feed-

back from professional adjudicators, and bond with each other and

members of other school ensembles? This recent SBO educator survey uncorks the latest trends on these events – what

directors are looking for when selecting a festival, tips on performance, another chapter in the old competitive versus non-competitive debate, and much more.

School Band and Orchestra • May 2012 17

Joe Bartell: We just purchased brand new uniforms this year. When we decided to make this purchase a couple of years ago, we started to set aside money from various fundraisers into a uniform account. We were able to raise the funds quickly because we host a running event in our city that brings in a great amount of revenue. Administration was not involved since it is our own booster group that made the purchase, plus our administration doesn’t like to get involved with those types of decisions. They allow me, the director, to have creative freedom over the design of the new uniform.

Raymond Thomas: We also save money through the boosters. When I got to this school, there wasn’t much in the way of savings. However, we were able to save five, six, or seven thousand dollars each year, and put that money away. By the time we got to the point where we really needed new uniforms, we were able to go out and get them. That system works.

I have also taught at schools where the Board of Education bought the uni-forms, which is a very different situa-tion. Now I’m in a district that has five high schools, so there’s just no funding for uniforms. I also worked at another school that had to take out a loan to purchase uniforms. Every school that I’ve worked at has been a little bit different. I think the plan of saving money is the best way to go because then you’re ready to make the purchase when you need to.

Susie Marin: Prior to committing to the purchase of new uniforms, a se-ries of meetings were held first at the school site with our principal and then at the district with the assistant super-intendant of business services. Since our district supplies half the money for the purchase of new uniforms, we had to have approval at that level before we began our fundraising campaign. Be-cause of the financial difficulties many California schools are facing, we had to plan two years in advance so the money could be put into the district’s budget.

In our case, money was raised and then donated to the district for the pur-chase of the uniforms. So the district is responsible for the contract and pay-ments. The uniforms become the prop-erty of the district, not the boosters. Normally we are allotted new uniforms every seven years, but this is dependant on the boosters’ ability to put forth half the costs of the new uniforms. We waited 10 years since our last uniform purchase this time around due to the economy and financial difficulties.

The boosters set up an aggressive fundraising program to raise our half of the funds for the uniforms. Some of the fundraisers included working con-cessions at the Rose Bowl, a menudo cook off, a silent auction, car washes, and a letter writing campaign for dona-tions. The challenge was to raise funds for the uniforms while also raising funds for our operational budget. The boosters had to submit our half of the funds in full before the contact would be signed and the order placed with

uniform company.We have committed to putting

money into a savings account every year until our next purchase to help keep us on schedule and to make the whole process less stressful.

Marla Weber: The school pays for all of our uniforms. It’s a fixed cost, just like football uniforms and everything else.

The PurchaseWhat is the typical process you go through when choosing a design and selecting a manufacturer/supplier?

Marla Weber: We are fortunate to have a uniform manufacturer here in our town, and we like to keep our busi-ness local so we go with them. Our staff works with their designers. Our main concern is getting the most uniform for our buck. We try to push for three dif-ferent looking uniforms coming from one main outfit. So, for example, we have a breast plate that can be worn one way for one look, reversed for a second look, and removed for a third.

ShawnMcAnear: We are fortunate to have a great working relationship with the uniform company we use. In our opinion, they are the leading de-signer of marching band uniforms in the country. With that said, over the last two cycles, they were the only company that we discussed our design ideas with. Upon getting district ap-proval to proceed, we will meet with a designer from the company to dis-

Roundtable: Uniforms

In order to uncover potentially helpful tips on funding and executing a per-formance apparel purchase, SBO reached out to five music educators who have recently acquired new band uniforms for their programs.

FundingHow do you go about financing uniform purchases?

Shawn McAnear: In Cy-Fair ISD, the school district sets the process and the amount of the purchase. We are free to seek out whatever uniform design we wish from any company. The central administration will use past uniform expenses to craft a budget amount and either approve the expense as bid or ask us to remove items to lower the expense. We have been fortunate through two cycles to have our uniform approved without any changes from a finance standpoint. The school district supports this purchase as a capital outlay expense and is on a cycle of every ten years. With ten high schools in the district, basically one complete set of uni-forms is purchased each year. We are fortunate that our band parent organization is not responsible for funding this expense, as outfitting our 250 member band was roughly $98,000.

UnravelingWhile uniforms are an integral part of the pageantry of

the marching band, they can also be a major headache

for band directors. The immense cost alone makes uni-

form purchases something that must be planned with great care and

consideration, and factors like design, durability, and maintenance

only serve to further complicate the planning and buying process.

“The biggest aide in choosing a design is actually going to regular band competitions.”

Shawn McAnearCypress Falls High SchoolHouston, Texas

Joe Bartell, Brea Olinda High SchoolBrea, Calif.

Raymond ThomasNorth Forsyth High School BandCumming, Ga.

Susie MarinAzusa High SchoolAzusa, Calif.

Marla WeberEisenhower Instrumental MusicGoddard, Kan.


the Band Uniform Purchase40

16

MAY 2012

Cover photo by Sharon Fate, Fairway, Kan.

32 Dr. Marion Roberts

“ It’s about keeping kids in my class, and teaching them to love music.

”


Report: El Sistema

El Sistema
























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Perspective

Music MemoryA few years ago, there was a huge publicity campaign when it was (mis-)re-

ported that students listening to Mozart prior to taking standardized tests would show a marked improvement in their exam scores. The idea that passively listen-ing to music would actually make a person “smarter,” while a nice thought, has been largely refuted. Conversely, there has been far more evidence to support the benefits of learning to play a musical instrument, especially with respect to jazz improvisation. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University discovered while having

musicians improvise within a functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (FMRI) machine (that’s got to be some trick!), “When you’re telling your own musical story, you’re shutting down impulses that might impede the flow of novel ideas.” Basically, the brain creates the connections that allow greater freedom of expression – another benefit of playing music.

Going one step further, however, there is now evidence that suggests that passive musical listen-ing may indeed actually have significant benefits to the brain. We’ve all had the experience of hearing a tune that brought us back to a specific place and time, immediately giving us a vision in our mind of surroundings, people, and perhaps events. It’s a powerful feeling, it’s extremely personal, and it’s mostly related to music that we have grown up with. Evidently, the neurological pathways in our brains become almost “hard wired” when we lis-ten to music, and music elicits a powerful response in people, even those suffering debilitating mental

conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. A recent documentary, Alive Inside, sug-gests, “Even though Alzheimer’s and various forms of dementia will ravage many parts of the brain, long-term memory of music from when one was young very often remains. So if you tap that, you really get that kind of awakening response. It’s pretty exciting to see.”

Dan Cohen, the author of Alive Inside, took an unusual approach to his studies, and rather than simply playing music for all of the patients in his test groups, he developed a plan to “create personalized iPod playlists.” The idea was that certain people react to “their” music in much more significant ways. After all, some folks would rather hear Duke Ellington or Ella Fitzgerald, while others may prefer a va-riety of other artists. Obviously, the cost to implement a personalized plan for these patients is costly. Cohen has attempted to take advantage of the rapidly changing technology and get folks to donate old iPods and MP3 players that can then be uti-lized in nursing homes and care facilities to help elderly patients. As musicians and educators, it is certainly another positive benefit to music making, and we should all consider going to a local retirement or nursing home to perform for a very appreciative audience. If you have the opportunity, take a look at this important documentary that adds even more evidence of the power of music.

Rick [email protected]

“There is now evidence that suggests that

passive musical listening may indeed actually

have significant benefits to the brain.”

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Headlines

U-MASS Adds New Marching Band Headquarters

The University of Massachusetts (Amherst) recently unveiled its new marching band headquarters, the George N. Parks Minuteman Marching Band Building. The building’s opening marks the first time the band has had its own building since it moved from its old home in the Old Chapel in 1997. The building is named after the band’s famed professor, who led the group for 33 years. Parks passed away in 2010.

The building can easily accommodate rehearsals and performances for the 300-piece band, along with a space for the percussion section as well as smaller group practice rooms. U-Mass funded the new building with $4.5 million from the school and $1.3 million from private donations. Find the Minuteman Marching Band at www.umass.edu/band. �

Kennedy Center Honors Band Director John M. Long with Sondheim Award

The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts has named Dr. John M. Long, director of bands emeritus at Troy University, as one of 10 winners of the Kennedy Center/Stephen Sondheim Inspi-rational Teacher Awards. Seventeen of Dr. Long’s former students from Rob-ert E. Lee High School in Montgomery and Troy University submitted letters of nomination. Each recipient receives a $10,000 cash award.

The Sondheim Award marks the sec-ond major honor for Long this month. Earlier in March, he was named an Honorary Life Member of the American Bandmasters Association, one of only two living bandmasters to hold this dis-tinction.Visit www.kennedy-center.org. �

Music Education In Public Schools Gets A Passing Grade

The U.S. Department of Education recently issued a rather hopeful report titled, “Arts Education In Public Elementary and Secondary Schools, 1999-2000 and 2009-10,” in which it found music education to be almost universally available in Ameri-can public schools.

“In the 2009-10 school year, music education was almost universally available in the nation’s public elementary schools, with 94% of schools offering instruction that was designated specifically for music,” the report states. “Music instruction was available in almost all public secondary schools,” with the actual number given at 91%. Furthermore, the number doesn’t seem to have changed over the past decade.

Teachers, surveyed by the report gave less positive answers. Elementary school music specialists rated the support for their teaching “somewhat or very inadequate” in a variety of areas: funding (40%), facilities (27%), materials, equipment, tools and instruments (23%), instructional time in the arts (28%) and the number of arts specialists (36%).Find the full report at nces.ed.gov. �

Headlines.indd 6 5/7/12 3:58 PM

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The finished clarinet bodies then travel to Antigua’s state of the art facility where precision manufacturing technology is used to produce the keys. Morrie’s ongoing training is evident in the care given to hand fitting posts, rings, rods, keys and springs, ensuring that each Antigua-Backun clarinet performs optimally.

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Headlines

CORRECTIONIn the Best Tools for Schools report that appeared in the March 2012 issue of SBO, the description of the Rovner Versa-X Ligature Educator Sample Pack erroneously mentioned mouthpieces. The Rovner Versa-X Ligature Educator Sample Pack contains ligatures, not mouthpieces.

Oregon Metro Youth Symphony Awarded $100k Grant

Portland, Oregon’s Metropolitan Youth Symphony (MYS) has been awarded a $100,000 grant over two years from Meyer Memorial Trust in support of music education and performance for youth. MYS is extremely grateful to the Meyer Memorial Trust for their belief in and support of its mission to develop young musicians.

The grant follows right on the heels of the announcement of new Music Director Andrés Lopera, who will join the organization in July. A farewell concert for Maestro Lajos Balogh is set for the season finale on June 10.To learn more about the MYS, visit www.playmys.org. �

2012 Best Communities for Music Ed AnnouncedThe NAMM Foundation has announced the results of its 13th annual Best Com-

munities for Music Education(BCME) survey, which acknowledges schools and districts across the U.S. for their commitment and support for music education as part of the core curriculum.

In all, 176 communities were recognized in an announcement in anticipation of NAMM’s National Wanna Play Music Week, (May 7-13). The announcement of the 2012 Best Communities for Music Education campaign comes during a crucial time as school districts nationwide finalize budgets. The Best Community designation is a dis-tinction worthy of pride, but is also a call to action for local music education advocates to help preserve and potentially expand access to their current music education programs. Each school receiving the “Best Communities” designation scored in the 80th percentile or higher in the survey’s grading process.The complete Best Communities for Music Education roster can be viewed at www.nammfoundation.org.

NAMM Foundation and White House Form New Arts Initiative

Presidential appointed artists Chuck Close, Yo-Yo Ma, and Damian Woetzel will join many others to work with schools in eight states as part of a new initiative called the Turnaround Arts initiative lead by the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Hu-manities. The program was developed in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Edu-cation and the White House Domestic Policy Council.

The Turnaround Arts initiative being launched in Washington, D.C. will work to turn around low-performing schools with strategies that expand access to comprehen-sive music and arts education as part of the core curriculum. The program is designed to narrow the achievement gap and increase student engagement through the arts. Working in some of the nation’s lowest-performing elementary and middle schools, this program will test the hypothesis that high-quality and integrated arts education boosts academic achievement, motivates student learning, and improves school culture in the context of overall school reform.Find out more at www.turnaroundarts.pcah.gov.

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Headlines

Dear Rick,

I enjoyed very much your article in the March issue of SBO. I also grew up in a high school and town band that played the great classics. I am now the conductor of the Na-perville Municipal Band (my 47th year) and our summer crowds are anywhere from 1,500 to 6,000 each week. I was exposed to Raymond, Oberon, Morning, Noon & Night, Light Cavelry, Poet & Peasant, Wil-liam Tell, La Gazza Ladre, and many others. When I started on my mas-ter’s degree and was in an advanced conducting class, we were working on Zampa. The instructor asked how many in the class had even heard this overture and I, along with about five others, raised our hands. When I told them of all the Overtures and classic band compositions I had played, he told the class that I had the best edu-cation of any in the class.

I program at least one of the clas-sic overtures on every concert along marches, and that brings me to my next gripe - many college bands and a lot of high school bands don’t play marches, which are the voice of the band! Sousa, King, Fillmore, Rich-ards, Jewell, and many more have written some great marches that need to be played.

Enough preaching, I really en-joyed your article! Thanks for your efforts.

Ron KellerNaperville Municipal Band

Naperville, Ill.www.napervilleband.org

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TI:MEYour Side

is on

Mike LawsonUpfront Q&A

Mike Lawson has been affiliated with TI:ME since it was founded and currently serves as the organization’s executive director. In this recent conversation with SBO, Lawson speaks about how technology can help music teachers engage a new generation of music students.

School Band & Orchestra: What areas of music instruction have benefitted the most from technologi-cal innovation?

Mike Lawson: Because of the longstanding history of MIDI and notation, music the-ory was really the first implementation of technology in the music classroom. Those go hand in hand with being able to interactively and visually teach theory. Instead of handwriting notes on mimeographed paper, you can place notes, hear them, see them, and play them. And this is throughout all grade levels – there are educators using technology to teach basic theory to elementary school kids up through college.

SBO: Aside from the historical angle, does that also jibe with your own interactions with educators?

ML: The biggest opportunity I’m seeing today is how tech-nology is being used to draw interest from non-traditional mu-sic students. TI:ME came around originally because there was a decline in traditional music program enrollment: marching band, chorus, and so on. With declines in enrollment come cuts in fund-ing. If students aren’t interested in something, it won’t get funding. TI:ME recognized early on that when you offer non-traditional courses – guitar lessons, recording software, and so on – there where often waiting lists for kids to take the classes, and with waiting lists comes more interest from administrators to fund the programs.

What’s happening now is that we have some really pioneering, innovative teach-ers who are using everything from Garage Band on an iPad to full on work stations set

At the forefront of the movement to revolutionize music instruction is the Technology Institute

for Music Educators (TI:ME). A non-profit organization that boasts a tagline of, “Helping music

teachers integrate technology since 1995,” TI:ME maintains an impressive array of resources for

educators including workshops, conventions, and online forums.

UpfrontQ&A.indd 12 5/8/12 9:35 AM


up with keyboard audio interfaces and a variety of applications. There’s really no limit on the brands and flavors of software that people are using.

SBO: What do you see as the biggest hur-dles for educators to integrate new tools into their teaching?

ML: The biggest challenge is not pedagogy or finding resources, it’s selling their administrators on mod-ernizing the centuries-old methods of teaching music. We have a lot of ex-

cited teachers who want to integrate technology in the classroom, but it’s the funding to set up the equipment – even the basic workstations – that can be most challenging and frustrating for educators.

SBO: With so many different types of tools out there, where do you draw the line between technology that is neces-sary to keep up with modern times ver-sus luxury items?

ML: We could have that discussion on math, as well. It was fine to teach math with an abacus for years and years – they

didn’t even have pocket calculators not that long ago. Now, every-one is required to purchase an

$80 graphing calculator. I think it comes down to, frankly, some per-

sonal priorities and affinities for the arts within administrations. There

are some public school programs that have much more emphasis on things like sports or other pet projects by ad-ministrators. The administrators who favor music and offering their students the best possible learning environment are the ones who step up to the plate and help the teachers solve the problem of getting more kids interested in the arts and in learning music. At the end of the day, our goal is not to teach technology, but to teach music – and to use the latest technology to do it.

SBO: Along those lines, what would you recommend for educators who may not be early technology adapters?

ML: I would recommend two things. First, they should join TI:ME. I say that now more emphatically than ever because we have reinvented who we are this year in terms of what we of-fer our members and the ability of our members to network with other edu-cators. There is no easier way to solve some of these problems than through discussion with people who have been through it. A teacher might come onto our system and say, “I’m kind of new to all of this. Where should I start?”

Other educators will join the discus-sion, either in public or in private, ex-plaining options. So that’s a good place to start.

We offer courses around the coun-try, and we also have some events that could be very helpful. The events move every year, and our National Confer-ence is an excellent place to learn. This year it’s going to be in Texas alongside the TMEA show. It’s basically going to be three-and-a-half or four days of training. Then, a month later, we’re do-ing the same thing in Ohio, for people that might not be able to get to the Texas show.

Networking with peers is the best first step anyone can take, and TI:ME provides a great place to make that happen, with people who are actually doing this. Many of our members are already using this stuff in the class-room. Most of them have already im-plemented some kind of program.

I also can’t recommend YouTube enough, and there are some wonderful Facebook groups that educators can get involved with.

SBO: Do you see a dramatic generation-al gap in terms of which educators are adapting the latest teaching tools?

ML: Part of what’s going on here is a changing of the guard that is slowly starting to happen. There are a lot of band directors moving towards retire-ment. The older band directors are the ones who are least likely to adapt.

“We’re not here to teach technology, we’re here to teach music.”

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Many of the newer ones coming in are already familiar with some of the more widespread music software, but they still haven’t spent a ton of time doing audio production or recording. Those educators could still benefit from some training on a basic understanding of the physics of sound and how to ex-plain that to kids. The bottom line is that TI:ME wants to help teachers fig-ure out how to solve these problems.

SBO: What problems are you referring to that technology can really address?

ML: I knew from the age of eight or nine that I was going to be a musician. From the day I got my first guitar, I knew that this was what I wanted to do with my life. My musical educa-tion opportunities in public schools growing up in the ‘70s and ‘80s were extremely limited. Any aspirations outside of marching band and choir

were highly discouraged by the music educators of that era – in my school, at least. I took music classes in spite of that, because I had a desire to learn. I know that there are a world of students out there who would be life-long music lovers if they were able to have some hands-on technology in front of them that could help make sense of compli-cated musical processes.

These days, kids are into all differ-ent kinds of music, and you have to hit them where they live. The elec-tronic tools, software, controllers, all of these things ignite the spark and get them interested. A certain percentage of those sparks are going to turn into raging fires. I see technology in music education as a means to igniting that spark and start a fire in some of these kids that will burn inside them for the rest of their lives. So what if they’re initial interest is making beats or loops or dropping samples? Get them inter-ested, give them some gratification, let them see some progress in what inter-ests them, and it will grow from there.

I don’t want to give the impression that I’m down on traditional band di-rectors, because I’m not; they play an important role and truly music can be taught without any technology. I would just encourage people to not discount new ways of doing things, to not look at new tools as toys or cheats to learning music just because we had to learn the hard way when they were growing up.

We don’t know who we’re teaching, what the kids in our classes are going to go on and do. There is that oppor-tunity now to reach a whole new level of students and interest them in music. You never know if another little Miles Davis is sitting there and drawing in-spiration from being able to put some-thing together, someone who might decide, “You know, instead of dropping that trumpet sample down, I’d like to learn to play it myself.” That’s what we’re hoping to ignite. TI:ME wants to be here to support interest in music and adapting technology to teach mu-sic with. Again, we’re not here to teach technology, we’re here to teach music and let technology aid in that.

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Roundtable: Uniforms

In order to uncover potentially helpful tips on funding and executing a per-formance apparel purchase, SBO reached out to five music educators who have recently acquired new band uniforms for their programs.

FundingHow do you go about financing uniform purchases?

Shawn McAnear: In Cy-Fair ISD, the school district sets the process and the amount of the purchase. We are free to seek out whatever uniform design we wish from any company. The central administration will use past uniform expenses to craft a budget amount and either approve the expense as bid or ask us to remove items to lower the expense. We have been fortunate through two cycles to have our uniform approved without any changes from a finance standpoint. The school district supports this purchase as a capital outlay expense and is on a cycle of every ten years. With ten high schools in the district, basically one complete set of uni-forms is purchased each year. We are fortunate that our band parent organization is not responsible for funding this expense, as outfitting our 250 member band was roughly $98,000.

UnravelingWhile uniforms are an integral part of the pageantry of

the marching band, they can also be a major headache

for band directors. The immense cost alone makes uni-

form purchases something that must be planned with great care and

consideration, and factors like design, durability, and maintenance

only serve to further complicate the planning and buying process.

“The biggest aid in choosing a design is actually going to regular band competitions.”


the Band Uniform Purchase



Joe Bartell: We just purchased brand new uniforms this year. When we decided to make this purchase a couple of years ago, we started to set aside money from various fundraisers into a uniform account. We were able to raise the funds quickly because we host a running event in our city that brings in a great amount of revenue. Administration was not involved since it is our own booster group that made the purchase, plus our admin-istration doesn’t like to get involved with those types of decisions. They allow me, the director, to have cre-ative freedom over the design of the new uniform.

Raymond Thomas: We also save money through the boosters. When I got to this school, there wasn’t much in the way of savings. However, we were able to save five, six, or seven thousand dollars each year, and put that money away. By the time we got to the point where we really needed new uniforms, we were able to go out and get them. That system works.

I have also taught at schools where the Board of Education bought the uni-forms, which is a very different situa-tion. Now I’m in a district that has five high schools, so there’s just no funding for uniforms. I also worked at another school that had to take out a loan to purchase uniforms. Every school that I’ve worked at has been a little bit different. I think the plan of saving money is the best way to go because then you’re ready to make the purchase when you need to.

Susie Marin: Prior to committing to the purchase of new uniforms, a se-ries of meetings were held first at the school site with our principal and then at the district with the assistant super-intendant of business services. Since our district supplies half the money for the purchase of new uniforms, we had to have approval at that level before we began our fundraising campaign. Be-cause of the financial difficulties many California schools are facing, we had to plan two years in advance so the money could be put into the district’s budget.

In our case, money was raised and then donated to the district for the pur-chase of the uniforms. So the district is responsible for the contract and pay-ments. The uniforms become the prop-erty of the district, not the boosters. Normally we are allotted new uniforms every seven years, but this is dependant on the boosters’ ability to put forth half the costs of the new uniforms. We waited 10 years since our last uniform purchase this time around due to the economy and financial difficulties.

The boosters set up an aggressive fundraising program to raise our half of the funds for the uniforms. Some of the fundraisers included working con-cessions at the Rose Bowl, a menudo cook off, a silent auction, car washes, and a letter writing campaign for dona-tions. The challenge was to raise funds for the uniforms while also raising funds for our operational budget. The boosters had to submit our half of the funds in full before the contact would be signed and the order placed with uniform company.

We have committed to putting money into a savings account every year until our next purchase to help keep us on schedule and to make the whole process less stressful.

Marla Weber: The school pays for all of our uniforms. It’s a fixed cost, just like football uniforms and everything else.

The PurchaseWhat is the typical process you go through when choosing a design and selecting a manufacturer/supplier?

Marla Weber: We are fortunate to have a uniform manufacturer here in our town, and we like to keep our busi-ness local so we go with them. Our staff works with their designers. Our main concern is getting the most uniform for our buck. We try to push for three dif-ferent looking uniforms coming from one main outfit. So, for example, we have a breast plate that can be worn one way for one look, reversed for a second look, and removed for a third.

Shawn McAnear: We are fortunate to have a great working relationship with the uniform company we use. In our opinion, they are the leading de-signer of marching band uniforms in the country. With that said, over the last two cycles, they were the only compa-ny that we discussed our design ideas with. Upon getting district approval to proceed, we will meet with a designer from the company to discuss our likes/dislikes and our vision for the uniform.

Shawn McAnearCypress Falls High SchoolHouston, Texas

Joe Bartell, Brea Olinda High SchoolBrea, Calif.

Raymond ThomasNorth Forsyth High SchoolCumming, Ga.

Susie MarinAzusa High SchoolAzusa, Calif.

Marla WeberEisenhower Instrumental MusicGoddard, Kan.


On The Good Foot: The Footwear Purchase

Susie Marin: Shoes are purchased every year by the students. We do a shoe fitting, the students place their or-der with me, and I do a mass order. Next year I plan to take advantage of what some of the supply companies are setting up, where students go online to place their order and pay by credit card, and the shoes are delivered to the school in one mass order. This will save me from running around and trying to collect the money individually from each student.

We changed footwear this year because we wanted a more athletic shoe – something more supportive and de-signed for field marching. We don’t do many parades so we wanted a shoe that was flexible with a beveled heel and arch support.

Marla Weber: We have always gone with the same type of marching shoe. This is my 30th year of teaching and I’ve found that they’re the most stable, so we have gone with them for the past 20 years. Color depends on the pants. When we had red and white pants, it was difficult to do anything other than white shoes. However, with the white shoes, it’s easier for the judges to notice anyone who’s out of step – it just shows off. White pants and white shoes are great, but I’m now at a school that has black as one of our colors, so we now have black shoes and black pants.

Shawn McAnear: Shoes are a separate item for us and the students pay for them themselves. We look for something that is comfortable and durable – a shoe that can last for the four years of high school if need be. Price is lower on the list of priorities as this is hopefully a purchase that will last for a few seasons.

Joe Bartell: Shoes are not provided in the uniform bud-get. We ask students to purchase those on their own. If we run into a problem where a family is experiencing some financial difficulties, then we usually have a couple old pairs lying around, or one of our parents provides a kind donation to purchase the shoes for that student. I don’t really have too much of a desire for the footwear decision to be anything other than if I like how it looks. I know there are many designs out there that promise to do this, that, and the other. In my opinion, as long as they look good, are affordable, will physically stand the test of a marching season, and are comfortable for the kids, then that is what we go with.

Raymond Thomas: Our students also purchase their own footwear. We’ve gone through three different types of footwear since I’ve been here. When I was talking to one of the designers about our new uniforms, he actually sold me on our current footwear. He talked through the differ-ent models and designs out there, explaining the strengths and weaknesses of each shoe. We tried out a few different kinds, and ended up with one that the kids really liked. So in the process of researching uniforms, we found the foot-wear. Whenever we find something that kids will like better or that will help us perform better on the field, we tend to transition.


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From there, they will do a sketch and the process begins. Because we are very picky, we went through three re-designs of the uniform to find the one that fit our group. This took place over several weeks until we had a uniform that everyone was excited about having for the next ten years. While the initial designs were great, given that we keep them for ten years, we have to stay a little more traditional as to not have a dated look down the road.

Susie Marin: I started researching designs first by picking out uniforms I liked. I would go to shows or watch DCI and Bands of America and see colors, coat designs, and shakos that I liked. I would then ask colleagues who designed their uniforms, what they liked about their uniforms, how expensive they were, what the care was like, and so on. I then narrowed down my manufacturer choices and visited booths at my state conference and at Midwest. I made appointments with designers and sales representatives to

see fabrics and care options first hand.It was important to me when choos-

ing a manufacturer that the design be cutting edge, use modern fabrics, the cut of the uniform be more athletic and free moving, I want options for machine washing parts of the uniform, and that the company be well estab-lished. Price was somewhat of a con-cern, but getting what I wanted in the uniform was the big issue.

Reliable delivery was very impor-tant. I wanted to get what I requested and match the sample I had received. I didn’t want any surprises on delivery; I wanted to make sure colors in the

sample were the same as the delivered product.

The company we went with did a great job of showing me options; they designed many uniforms to my requests. They let me know my con-struction and accessories options, as well (plumes, special fabrics, buttons, et cetera). They were great through our manufacturing process. They gave us realistic delivery dates and even in the touchy delivery stage they gave me weekly updates. They were in constant contact during our final completion and delivery.

Joe Bartell: I would have to say the biggest aspect that was considered was the price. We wanted to get a uniform that was durable, would stand the test of time, but was of good quality. I submit-ted requests to a couple different uniform manufacturers, met with their sales reps, and ultimately decided on who we went with because they could provide the de-sign options we wanted with the price we were able to spend. The biggest aid

“Whenever we find something that kids will

like better or that will help us perform better on the field, we tend to

transition.”

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in choosing a design is actually going to regular band competitions. While we are waiting around for awards or while we are unloading/loading the trailer I am always checking out the other uniforms. You develop a taste for what you like and what you don’t. I brought those ideas to the table, met with the rep from the uni-form company, and with a little creative guidance from the professionals, we were able to come up with a product that I, and all the invested parties, loved.

Raymond Thomas: I spoke with all my colleagues who had recently bought uniforms or who had a uniform that they were happy with. I asked them who they have bought uniforms from. I looked at the styles that were being pro-duced that we liked, and then I spoke with every company about quality, de-sign, how the uniform is produced, and the kinds of options they offered in terms of materials and every other thing. Once we started sorting through

the companies in that sense, we nar-rowed it down to two companies and started talking to representatives about specific designs. From there, we evalu-ated the designs we got back and looked into each company’s customer service. When we contacted these companies, some of them came to our school and brought a bunch of product to show us. Other companies weren’t that interested in doing that. Customer service comes to play in anything but it really came into play at that stage in the process.

TipsDo you have any advice for teachers who may not have experience with this process?

Marla Weber: Find someone who is really knowledgeable in the area of uniforms and has been in the business for a long time. Sit down with them be-fore you start the process, and ask as many questions on what you should be looking for. One of the main things is to always look into the future. Over the years, colors don’t stay the same, so if you see your band growing at any point in the near future, it’s best to get more than you need because matching col-ors – with fabrics and dyes – might be a problem when you try to order more.

Joe Bartell: The biggest advice I can offer is to look around and really figure out what is out there that you like and don’t like. I would also suggest going into the design meeting with an open mind. When I created our uniforms, I had in my head exactly what I thought the new uniforms would look like. Af-ter talking to the rep and listening to his input, I realized that some of the aspects I wanted wouldn’t look good in person, were too expensive, couldn’t actually be made how I had envisioned it, or were just bad design. These reps really know what they are doing, and if you let them help you in the process, work with them and maybe compro-mise on some of what you thought were “must haves,” then you will come out of the process with a really good looking uniform.

The other bit of advice that I would share with teachers is that they shouldn’t be afraid to ask for help. Call around and

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talk to other directors, exchange emails with the uniform reps, and get some input on the design of the uniform. Just because you solicit input doesn’t mean you have to take it. But, you never know who might suggest something that turns out to be an amazing idea. After all, you are going to have to live with these uniforms for many years, so you want to make sure that it is something you are happy with, and some-thing that will make your band look great!

Susie Marin: When designing a uniform, get input from students, par-ents, and faculty. Present people with multiple drawings and take a vote of which design they like best. Ask ques-tions what they like and dislike about the designs. Have a sample or multiple samples made. Have kids wear them and don’t be afraid to make changes!

You can save money in a new uniform by using a stock shako and pants and put your money into a nice coat and plumes. Ask your sales rep for money saving ideas, like do you really need new shako boxes or plume cases? Can these items be

bought second hand? Also look into sell-ing your old uniforms to bring in a little extra cash.

Shawn McAnear: Find a company that you are comfortable working with. We have had a relationship with the company we use since 1999. This is key to being happy with the design and the overall uniform. In addition, do not settle for a design that is not what you want just because it may be the designer’s vi-sion. Utilize their expertise along with your vision to design a uniform you are excited about for many years to come.

Raymond Thomas: Start early – I would suggest a year and a half out from when you want to buy. Also, order early. If you want your uniforms on a particular date, order at least six months in advance. Uniform companies will tell you that, too, but they’re right.

It is really important to feel comfort-able with the representatives of the uni-form company. The reps need to be there not only when you’re buying, but also

afterwards to take care of anything you might need. That actually ruled out a few companies that we were considering – we heard that they had really poor customer service after the uniforms had arrived. That can be problematic, especially if the uniform quality is an issue. Right now, if I called my rep today and told him that I had a problem, he would take care of that today. I know that about him. We had to do some fill-ins; as soon as I called, the process started right away, and we got our fill-ins no problem.

Also consider the “extras.” Some com-panies will take you to their plant, other companies will send a designer or man-ager to your school, and others will set up a meeting with one of their major design-ers. Take advantage of any of that, if you can. When we sat down with some of the big designers from companies, not only did that help me in other areas, it was a true education for me. Even if you don’t go with a particular company, they might help teach you about something you may want to do in the future – maybe haven’t even considered yet.


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There are a number of books and ar-ticles that tell us of the variety of traits considered important to becoming an effective music teacher. In an article written in 1989, Joy Lawrence noted that successful music directors often display certain qualities that help them achieve their goals and that these quali-ties can be grouped into three general categories: personal qualities, musical

Today’s school band, or-

chestra, and choir di-

rectors are really con-

ductor-educators who must

simultaneously perform the

roles of leader, musician, and

pedagogue. There are a num-

ber of personality traits that fa-

cilitate this feat, both on and

off the podium. These personal,

musical, and pedagogical quali-

ties and skills help the music

teacher reach his or her musi-

cal and educational goals. This

article will discuss such traits by

first focusing on their theoretical

importance and then examining

their practical importance to the

successful music conductor-ed-

ucator.

By Victor Vallo Jr.

Commentary: Personality TRAITS

The Traits of a Successful Conductor-Educator

knowledge and skills, and effective teaching techniques. References to such traits are also mentioned by other authors who were more specific in their research and found that self-confidence, sense of humor, sincerity, human understanding, re-straint, moral character and friendliness were helpful for the music teacher and conductor. Ward Woodbury found that leadership behaviors were also important to have for a conductor-educator, while yet another author stated that the music director is expected to lead and combine the skills of a musicologist, instrumental-ist, community organizer, and psychologist to accomplish his goal of leading an ensemble to communicate musically.

The effects of conductor behaviors on students was the subject of a study by Cornelia Yarbrough, who discovered that when an ensemble director’s noticeable behavior in a rehearsal is dynamic, it can positively affect the students’ perfor-mance and attitude. She also found that the students preferred to be taught by the high magnitude conductor and were more attentive to the high magnitude conduc-tor as compared to the low magnitude conductor. Other studies have been done on traits in relation to teaching and conducting music, finding that it was important to have the ability to use effective rehearsal techniques, good verbal communication, and a sound knowledge of psychology in leading successful rehearsals.

Throughout the various books and articles on teaching and conducting, many traits were found that included certain personal, musical, and pedagogical traits and skills needed by today’s conductor-educator to be successful, both on and off

Commentary.indd 26 5/7/12 4:04 PM


PERSONAL TRAITS: enthusiasm, assertiveness, commanding presence, friendliness, human understanding, integrity, organi-zational ability, self-confidence, self-discipline.

MUSICAL TRAITS: aural skills, baton technique, expressive gestures, knowledge of music history, knowl-edge of musical styles, musical modeling skills, personal musician-ship, and knowledge of musical instruments.

PEDAGOGICAL TRAITS: applica-tion of rehearsal methods, com-munication ability, having goals and objectives, knowledge of psychology, knowledge of assess-ment/evaluation, mastery of sub-ject matter, having a philosophy of education, being a role model, and use of resources.

the podium. Here is a summary of some 27 common traits that were commonly and consistently mentioned in these studies, articles, and books:

While many sources allude to the theoretical importance of having and demon-strating various personal, musical, and pedagogical traits for teaching and conduct-ing, it was decided to compare theory with practice to see if there was a correlation of importance. Information on the practical importance of these various traits by school ensemble directors was gathered through an opinion survey sent to a ran-dom sample of current ensemble directors who are middle school and high school band and orchestra directors in several states in the United States. These ensemble directors were asked to rate 27 traits on a standardized scale with “5” rated as the highest in importance and “1” rated as the lowest in importance. Here is what was found from these surveyed school band and orchestra directors. Hopefully, this will be of practical value to today’s music teachers.

The results show that many, if not all, of the personal, musical, and pedagogical traits were considered important by these surveyed ensemble directors (Table 1). The traits rated the highest were enthusiasm, aural skills, communication ability, self-confidence, assertiveness, and mastery of subject matter. Among the lowest rated traits were expressive gestures, knowledge of music history and music theory, philosophy of education and knowledge of psychology. Asked to list separately what the ensemble directors considered the two most important traits, these teach-ers consistently mentioned enthusiasm and human understanding. This appears to hint that the directors’ perceptions and beliefs that the personal traits are consid-ered to be of the most practical and important in successful teaching and conduct-ing. It is also interesting to note that these surveyed ensemble directors rated the

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three categories in different degrees of importance as well (Table 2). It was found that the three categories of traits were ranked in importance as follows:

Personal Traits: 1st Importance Mean: 4.547Pedagogical Traits: 2nd Importance Mean: 4.347Musical Traits: 3rd Importance Mean: 4.218

The information from this survey also suggests that all three categories of traits (personal, musical, and pedagogical) are considered essential in both the articles and books as well as by the school ensemble directors themselves, but in vary-ing degrees of importance. Interestingly, both the articles and the results of the survey seem to indicate that the personal traits are considered the music conduc-tor-educator’s strongest asset with enthusiasm being the highest and most valued overall trait. This may imply that the personal qualities provide a foundation for the teacher’s personal and interpersonal skills which enable him/her to earn the student’s respect and attention. When students hold a positive view of their teacher as personable, the classroom environment can and generally does become more conducive to teaching and learning.

In addition, if would seem helpful for music teachers to also know that having a demonstrable balance of both musical and pedagogical qualities would enable their students to hopefully see and realize that their ensemble director has such skill-based traits and is willing to demonstrate these traits for their educational success. Sometimes students need to know that their ensemble director can both “talk the

talk” and “walk the walk,” which can only lead to students’ increased will-ingness to learn and growing respect for the music teacher.

But what does all of this mean? The results suggest first of all that

ensemble directors believe that who-ever possesses and demonstrates a blend of certain personal, musical, and pedagogical traits can be a successful conductor-educator in the music class-room/rehearsal hall. That being said, the results may also suggest for en-semble directors to be aware of and fo-cus more on developing one’s personal qualities in working with students, faculty, and staff. A proper balance of all three sets of qualities could help ensemble directors to provide better and more meaningful and memorable musical experiences for all of their stu-dents.

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Overall Ranking of Importance of TraitsBy Surveyed Music TeachersTABLE 1

Trait Mean Standard Deviation RankingEnthusiasm 4.813 .422 1Aural Skills 4.788 .425 2Integrity 4.744 .505 3Communication Ability 4.725 .488 4Self-Confidence 4.631 .610 5Assertiveness 4.625 .580 6Mastery of Subject Matter 4.563 .600 7Human Understanding 4.566 .601 8Goals and Objectives 4.513 .663 9Appl. of Rehearsal Methods 4.506 .633 10Personal Musicianship 4.500 .644 11Understanding Instruments 4.469 .726 12Self-Discipline 4.456 .717 13Organizational Ability 4.438 .733 14Commanding Presence 4.400 .771 15Role & Performance Model 4.369 .774 16Knowledge of Musical Style 4.356 .772 17Musical Modeling Skills 4.325 .789 18Friendliness 4.263 .789 19Baton Technique 4.175 .829 20Knowledge of Eval. Methods 4.131 .817 21Utilization of Resources 4.113 .861 22Philosophy of Education 3.891 .974 23Knowledge of Music Theory 3.894 .962 24Expressive Gestures 3.800 .917 25Knowledge of Music History 3.656 .997 26Knowledge of Psychology 3.594 .992 27

also some practical and hopefully help-ful implications and things to think about from all of this:1) Because of the relatively high im-

portance of the personal qualities as found in the articles and books and as deemed by the surveyed music teachers, there should be a conscious effort by music teachers to concentrate on and demonstrate these personal traits by continuing to work on personal and interper-sonal skills in promoting healthy working relationships with stu-dents, parents, and administration, both on and off the podium.

2) Because enthusiasm was rated high-est by the conductor-educators, there is an implication that the

music teacher’s subjective qualities (such as personality) are deemed most valuable and practical to have and demonstrate in teaching and conducting.

3) Because expressive gestures was rat-ed among the lowest in importance, ensemble directors should consider teaching their students about what these gestures can and do mean on the podium. Another suggestion is possibly using expressive gestures more often so that their students will be able to recognize and respond to them more quickly and interactively in rehearsals and performances. An article by Corey Francis, “Expressive Conducting,” highlights this point and is worth reading.

4) With an extensive number of these 27 traits being derived from articles and books, it is apparent that a num-ber of these traits can overlap. The resulting implication is that these traits can be separated into three distinct categories, be interrelated, and can be used all at the same time in teaching and conducting school bands, orchestras and choirs.In summary, through a balanced

blend of personal, musical, and peda-gogical traits, conductor-educators – and all music teachers, for that mat-ter – should have and demonstrate a variety of traits, qualities, and skills with which to guide students to their own learning. By the same token, with better prepared teacher/role



models, students will be better pre-pared for the real world and to hope-fully become better people. Students often remember not only how well their ensembles played, but also well they were treated as people. As the saying goes, “People only care about how much you know when they know how much you care!” Let us all continue to do our best in teaching

music to today’s music students while realizing that whom we are teaching today may become tomorrow’s con-ductor-educators!

Dr. Victor Vallo Jr. is a professor of Music and the chair of the Department of Music at Georgia College & State University (GCSU). Dr. Vallo has been conductor and guest conductor for a number of orchestras and bands around the

country, including the Im-maculata Wind Sympho-ny, Anderson Symphony Orchestra (SC), Arkansas Festival Orchestra, Ala-bama All-State Orches-tra, and South Carolina All-State Orchestra. Cur-rently, Dr. Vallo is the music director/conductor of the Oconee Regional Symphony Orchestra.

Ratings and Rankings By Category of the Importance of Traits by Surveyed Music TeachersTABLE 2

Trait Mean Standard Deviation RankingPersonal Traits: Assertiveness 4.625 .580 6Commanding Presence 4.400 .771 15Enthusiasm 4.813 .422 1Friendliness 4.263 .789 19Human Understanding 4.556 .601 8Integrity 4.744 .505 3Organizational Ability 4.438 .733 14Self-Confidence 4.631 .610 5Self-Discipline 4.456 .717 13OVERALL RATING/RANKING 4.547 .636 (1st)

Musical Traits: Aural Skills 4.788 .425 2Baton Technique 4.175 .829 20Expressive Gestures 3.800 .917 25Knowledge: Music History 3.656 997 26Knowledge: Music Theory 3.894 .962 24Knowledge: Musical Styles 4.356 .772 17Musical Modeling Skills 4.325 .789 18Personal Musicianship 4.500 .644 11Understanding Instruments 4.469 .726 12OVERALL RATING/RANKING 4.218 .785 (3rd)

Pedagogical Traits: Application of Rehearsal Meth. 4.506 .633 10Communication Ability 4.725 .488 4Goals & Objectives 4.513 .633 9Knowledge of Psychology 3.594 .992 27Knowledge of Evaluation Meth. 4.131 .817 21Mastery of Subject Matter 4.563 .600 7Philosophy of Education 3.981 .974 23Role & Performance 4.369 .774 16Utilization of Resources 4.113 .861 22OVERALL RATING/RANKING 4.277 .759 (2nd)

GRAND TOTAL RATINGS: 4.347 .727


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SBO|UpClose Dr. Marion Roberts

Through Music forReaching People

Over 40 Years

UpClose.indd 32 5/7/12 4:06 PM


By Eliahu Sussman



A he high school level, there is virtually un-limited variety within

the marching arts. Some bands strive for perfection, while other bands simply play to entertain. Innovation and ambition must often be balanced with acces-sibility and constraints of time and funding. Throughout his illustrious career, Dr. Marion Roberts has performed in drum corps, presided over the Kansas Bandmasters Association, direct-ed the Baker University March-

ing Band and even chaired their music department, among a slew of other notable posts and hon-ors. However, now in his 27th year at Blue Valley North High School in Overland Park, Kan-sas and 42nd year as a fulltime educator, Dr. Roberts is simply trying to reach as many students as possible.

In this recent conversation with SBO, Dr. Roberts reflects on the chal-lenges of maximizing student partici-pation in his music program and navi-gating bureaucracy in today’s schools.

School Band & Orchestra: Would you tell me a little bit about your current program?

Marion Roberts: This is my 27th year here. When we opened the school, it was the second school in the district. We initially had 54 band students. We grew to about 200 students, and they opened another high school. Then we grew to 300 students, and they opened another high school. Now our enroll-ment is pretty steady between 180 and 200 students in the band program. There are 1,500 students in the school itself, and there are now five schools in the Blue Valley District.

We have three concert bands: a symphonic band, a concert band, and a ninth grade band. We also have a non-auditioned jazz ensemble and two pep bands that are divided evenly between the three concert bands, so all of the students are participating in the extra-curricular activities.

We march two marching bands. One is just the upperclassmen, grades 10-12, and then we march a second band that also includes the fresh-men. They do two completely differ-ent shows. Because the ninth graders are in the school, I feel like they need to be a part of the whole program, so we incorporate them two mornings a week for a half hour, and then one eve-ning a week for an hour, just teaching them the fundamentals of drill. We go to marching festivals every year so they have the opportunity to be involved in the evaluation process, all the home football games, and a parade so all of

the kids have the opportunity to expe-rience that.

SBO: Is participation in the march-ing band voluntary or required?

MR: It’s part of the academics and a part of our curriculum. The first quarter is marching band. If a student chooses not to be in marching band, they can’t be in the symphonic band. If they’re a senior and they have a direct conflict with a required course that’s only offered at that time, then we’ll al-low them to be in the symphonic band if they earn it through audition. But if they just choose not to do it, then they can only be in the concert band second semester.

SBO: But it is curricular, so students are getting course credit.

MR: Oh, yeah! It’s during the school day. We’ve wrestled with that over and over again because we know that some of the finest programs in the country have it before or after school, but that wouldn’t work for our kids. I think we had 30 kids who were cross country runners; we had 30 or 40 kids who are debaters; we have kids on every one of the varsity teams, and if you do it outside of school, you’re running up against those other schedules.

I try to keep the kids a part of our program throughout their high school career in any way I can. It’s difficult, now that the sports are starting to be more and more intense – 12 months out of the year and practice before and after school – but the parents seem to be very appreciative that we allow the kids to be a part of the music program. They know that most of the kids are not going to go on and be professional athletes.

SBO: With your ensembles all meet-ing during the school day, do you face challenges scheduling against other academic areas?

MR: Not at all! In fact, we had one Presidential Scholar in band last year and another one in band this year. We have 10 kids that were National Merit finalists in the band. The gifted pro-gram at our school loves us because our kids have a chance to use a differ-ent part of their brain. It’s that whole

t



“music makes you smarter” thing. They really have bought into the fact that our kids are well rounded. Part of that is that we are flexible. We have kids that are missing school – and band – to be on a robotics team that travels. We have kids that are entered in science competitions. And we just say, “Great!” Just like any other team, we wish them well. But we’ve kept them involved with the program. We’ve been very fortunate – knock on wood. Music is an integral part of the curriculum at all five high schools in the district.

I know it just sounds like propa-ganda, but the kids who are enrolled in instrumental music do indeed suc-ceed at a greater level than those who do not. We haven’t had to sell people on that; they have bought into it on their own. At the University of Kansas medical school, there is a band, an or-chestra, and a choir because so many med school students performed in the band, orchestra, and choir when they were in high school or as undergradu-ates. Parents understand, and they’re

probably our greatest support. They feel very strongly about our kids be-ing a part of our family. They know that teachers and the other students here care about their children. It’s a very diverse group. Within our band program, we have national merit kids and kids who are trying to figure out how to put their horns together.

We’re not one of the big go-to-contest bands. We try to not take up every weekend because, between all of their other events, the kids might have an opportunity to stay with our program. They don’t have to make a choice between us and another activity and we’ve had pretty good luck keep-ing kids involved for those reasons.

SBO: Is it more that you don’t think that festivals and competitions are an integral part of the high school music experience or are you simply prioritizing in a different direction?

MR: Prioritizing in a different direc-tion. I spent nine years marching with


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drum corps – I love drum corps. And I think for my kids who want to do that, that’s where they should go. But my personal feeling is that we’re be-coming coaches with instruments, and that part of our program then becomes, “We have to succeed by beating some-body else.” While competition is a part of our lives, my philosophy has always been that the kids should be compet-ing against themselves, doing better than they did yesterday, and just con-tinuing to improve.

We don’t march as well as some of the other bands in our district. They’re fine band programs and they’re well rounded. They’re also half our size. We always have first division ratings at festivals, but that hasn’t been the rea-son we’ve ever gone. I wrestle with it more than anyone else. The parents like it because they compare the sched-ule we have to other schools, and say, “I’m glad my son or daughter can also do other things.” I wrestle with it as a band director, thinking, “Shouldn’t we be going to contests every week so that we can put ourselves up against our peer groups?” The administration at this school, along with the students, has said, “No, please don’t; we really like it the way it is.” We’re part of the fabric of the school.

And I’m not throwing stones at people who do those things. Like I said earlier, I have swimmers that are here at five o’clock in the morning. If we start putting in two-hour practices, I’m going to lose many of my students. I know some people will say, “Well, people have to make choices.” But my thought is, “they don’t have to make a choice to make music.” It’s about keep-ing kids in my class and teaching them to love music. Later in life, I want them to be a part of our educated audiences.

SBO: What is your approach to how you run the marching bands at Blue Valley North?

MR: What’s happened over the years is that, increasingly, people have been doing shows that are designed to be observed by other marching bands, and not necessar-ily by the public. We’ve tried to maintain that entertainment factor. Our major goal, honestly, is to entertain crowds at our foot-ball games. If we took that away, people

could care less if we had a marching band. While we’re doing that, we also want the kids to raise their expectations and perfor-mance level, and that’s why we do at least two marching festivals every year. Every time we take the field, I tell my students that they’re competing against themselves, and also with the audiences.

When we go to the evaluative festivals, we are realistic enough to not take them to some of the Bands of America festivals, be-cause we won’t do well there. We haven’t spent the time to perfect the idiosyncrasies and micro-movements that it takes to be successful in that arena. But we are com-petitive in that we have done well and are

Blue Valley North High School Band

At a GlanceLocation: 12200 Lamar Avenue, Overland Park, Ks. On the Web: www.blueval-leyk12.org/bvn/bandStudents in School: 1,550Students in Instrumental Music: 280Band Director: Dr. Marion Roberts

Ensembles:2 Marching Bands3 Concert Bands2 Pep BandsJazz Ensemble

“I know some people will say, ‘Well, people have to make choices.’ But my thought is, ‘They don’t have to make a choice to make music.’”



typically rated well, and our scores in the music are always rated as highly or better than anyone else’s.

SBO: How do you balance the latest trends in marching band without be-coming too esoteric or specialized?

MR: I worry about that a lot. We don’t do a lot of the new movements. Last year we purchased new uniforms, and many bands now are going with 14” or 15” plumes, and offset – things that will make it look unusual. Well, we have a tradi-tional cadet-style uniform that has been modified over the years to keep it con-temporary with current lines. We try to do shows that are really popular and current. We’ve done a couple Gary Gilmore shows, and people have really enjoyed them. But I have trouble justifying the expense of the music rather than concert instruments, concert music – budgetary concerns enter the process, too.

Our students have to pay to be a mem-ber of the band program. They pay $100 as freshmen, and $200 to be in the upper-classmen band. Some of the other schools

in our area charge $1,000 to be in the band. Then you get the problem of par-ents saying, “We can’t afford that.” How-ever, people don’t call us and say, “I can’t afford to be in band, I’m sorry. We’re going to take biology this semester”; they just don’t appear anymore. So we’ve fought re-ally hard to keep our cost at a minimum. For the kind of program that I operate, I just can’t see the worth of the expense for going to contest every week, building props, commissioning the music to be ar-ranged specifically for them, coming up with the design, and so on.

SBO: Do you have any advice for other directors as far as handling budgets and finances?

MR: The paper work, the rules, and the expectations are a brave new world for teachers just entering the field. There are great student teachers that come through here, and there is no way that they have any kind of experience with the red tape that we all have to deal with. Each school is different in that regard. Around here, administrators ask all new

teachers, “Do you want anything you say to appear on the front page of the Kansas City Star tomorrow morning?”

The budget should be handled the same way. It is a business. As much as we’d like to think that this is our chance to help young people – and that part is true – it’s also a business. Because of the amount of money that we’re dealing with and the liabilities that we incur by doing what we do with travel and everything else, we really need to have a checklist of all the loose ends. It’s hard to expect the universities to teach everything.

I got my masters in education and my doctorate in performance because I wanted to be able to play in both courts of the old battle of practicing the craft versus studying the craft. We need to add a com-ponent to that on promoting the program. The best advice is to meet the bookkeeper in the school and ask some questions. Our new teachers get a pamphlet on dealing with the budget and meeting the district’s expectations. Like any job, you learn more in your first year doing it than you ever did in college. Don’t be afraid to ask ques-

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tions. As I tell my students, if you don’t know the answer to something, don’t assume that you’re the only person who doesn’t know.

We’re lucky to have a really hard-nosed bookkeeper who scares the beje-sus out of me. And now I’ve learned that she’s just keeping me out of jail. So to answer your question, ask questions and don’t surprise anybody: make sure your bookkeeper and principal know what you’re doing. Leave a paper trail.

SBO: As you see it, what’s the role of the music program in schools these days?

MR: I think it’s to teach students about the history, the styles, the great composers, why the music was writ-ten, how it makes you feel, and what it was intended to do. Basically, it’s to try to help students understand the in-trinsic value of music, what makes it so special, and how kids can connect with the music in their own lives.

We have kids who don’t succeed at very many other things, but they do

succeed at music. And we have kids that succeed at everything, and they also succeed at music. It’s a part of be-ing human that music is important to us. We get caught up with, “Here’s how you hold your lips,” and “Here’s how you hold your horn,” but for the kids, it’s all about the satisfaction of produc-ing something. They are the ones who are making the sound.

SBO: What are the most important les-sons that you’ve learned over the course of your many years as an educator?

MR: That the kids are so smart. Every one of these kids has so many amazing talents. It’s just fun to watch them grow up, to watch them develop from being like turnips to being people. They’re all delightful. I haven’t had one kid that I can say, “I wish I hadn’t had that kid.” Really. They all contribute something to my life, too. They’re just really fun to be around. And it’s fun to have them make music. When they feel the music, that’s when it gets really fun.

Boy, there have been lots of lessons. You’re going to get beat up some. I’ve done so many things wrong over the years that sometimes I feel fortunate to have a job. But you learn how to dodge bullets and if you’re trying to do a good job and your intent really is to help the kids, you’ll get a lot of support. One of the lessons is that you’re not going to please everybody all the time. That’s a hard lesson, because a lot of us are pleasers.

The other lesson is to continually learn. I learned so many things here that I never thought I would ever want to learn. The accounting princi-ples we talked about, and how to deal with so many different varieties of people. It’s wonderful to be in a cul-ture here where we have large Jewish, Muslim, Mormon, and Catholic com-munities, and everyone gets along. It’s fun to watch these people work together. If the world could work to-gether as well as these people do, it would be magical.

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Survey: Festivals

Trending:

Festivals

In the microcosm of an instrumental music program, participation

in a music festival is typically one of the primary highlights of the

year. When else do music students have the opportunity to show

off the fruits of a year’s worth of labor to a peer audience, receive feed-

back from professional adjudicators, and bond with each other and

members of other school ensembles? This recent SBO educator survey uncorks the latest trends on these events – what

directors are looking for when selecting a festival, tips on performance, another chapter in the old competitive versus non-competitive debate, and much more.

Survey.indd 40 5/7/12 4:09 PM


What are the most important criteria when se-lecting a band/orchestra festival to attend?

“When I plan a trip, the focus is musical. The trip is just an excuse to give the students a novel learning experience. However, the destination has to be appealing to the students.”

Salvatore TerrasiShorewood High School

Shorewood, Wis.

Do you prefer the festivals your groups attend to be:

“Both have value. I have attended excellent competitive and non-competitive events. It is the critique, clinicians, and concerts that make the event worthwhile.”

John SyversonFargo South High

Fargo, N.D.

“The best festivals get student musicians to-gether to share. Competition is okay, but it would never be my reason for taking my band or indi-vidual students to a festival. Note: That has not always been my position. A decade ago my band was one of the most competition-oriented in my state. A series of extremely successful compe-titions led me to realize that the benefits to the

72%

28%






28%

Competitive

Non Competitive


18%

54%

28%

20%

20%

19%

9%

2%

2%

Judges’ feedback




Ratings


Other

46%

26%

15%

9%

4%

Location/Venue

Noted adjudicators



Prestige

72%

28%






28%

Competitive

Non Competitive


18%

54%

28%

20%

20%

19%

9%

2%

2%

Judges’ feedback




Ratings


Other

46%

26%

15%

9%

4%

Location/Venue

Noted adjudicators



Prestige

72%

28%






28%

Competitive

Non Competitive


18%

54%

28%

20%

20%

19%

9%

2%

2%

Judges’ feedback




Ratings


Other

46%

26%

15%

9%

4%

Location/Venue

Noted adjudicators



Prestige

students were transient compared to when they got together to share.”

Dean LampGlidden-Ralston

Glidden, Iowa

What are the most important takeaways from the festivals your students attend?

“We are so busy in our own little musical world at school that we sometimes lose focus on the bigger picture – sharing our music with others. It’s impor-tant to be able to hear other groups and get feedback from respected professionals, and to share what we’re doing in our program.”

Marianne BallLa Salle High School

Union Gap, Wash.

“Band festivals tend to attract the best bands in our area. It’s great for our kids to hear these ensembles.”

David M. MillerValley Middle School

Apple Valley, Minn.

“I want my students to reflect on what the judges told us, accept the rating we received, and, most of all, watch the other groups and support their performances.”

Kurt StalmannSantana High School

Santee, Calif.

What are the latest trends that you’ve noticed in the music festivals your groups attend?

“I am certainly seeing more festivals add a clinic com-ponent. This has been a healthy development.”

Patrick J. KearneyJohnston High School

Johnston, Iowa.



“I am noticing that there are more independent festivals being run at schools and universities rather than just having the state music educators groups sponsored festival.”

David LesserClovis North Educational Center

Fresno, Calif.

“Festivals seem to be allowing more time for bands to mingle. A definite positive!”

John StetlerElida High School

Elida, Ohio

“Band (directors) are too concerned about the level of music they are per-forming, even if it does not fit their ensemble. Just because you’ve always performed ‘level 6’ in the past does not mean it will always fit your group. Sec-ond to that is the value placed on tro-phies. The takeaways should be, ‘How did your students feel about the perfor-mance?’ And, ‘Did it move the listener?’”

Michael WalshAlpharetta High School

Alpharetta, Ga.

In a festival setting, how do you balance challenging your students with demanding repertoire versus selecting music you know they can perform really well?

“This is a very fine balance. Over-

programming is the vanity of high school directors. I challenge my stu-dents with music that should be achievable within their instrumenta-tion and potential.”

James QuirionCypress High School

Cypress, Calif.

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“I think it is important to play music that your kids can play flawlessly at a contest. I push the kids with harder lit-erature at their other concerts through out the year.”

Hugh GrubbsGraham Junior High School

Graham, Texas

Do you have any special tricks or tips for preparing students for a festival performance?

“I try to get the dimensions of the stage, then set my band hall to match.”

Cynthia MixonKelly Lane Middle School

Pflugerville, Texas

“‘Repetition is the mother of skill.’ We will spend a lot of time in section-als, lessons and good old wood-shed-ding the pieces so as to address all the concerns and challenges of the pieces we select.”

D. Thomas BuschPulaski High School

Pulaski, Wis.

“The day before our ensembles par-ticipate in an away festival we schedule a two-hour rehearsal/clinic conducted by music staff of a university in the area of the festival. After the clinic, we tour the campus and eat real college food. For some of my students, it is their first time on a college campus. A uni-versity director telling my students the same things that I have been saying for months really gets them ready for the festival.”

John MuellerIncline Middle School

Incline Village, Nev.

“I do a substantial amount of re-cording-playback so the students can acts as the Adjudicator as well as the Performer, with total objectivity as the goal. In addition, I’ll often record an excerpt and play it back for the students, immediately followed by a second playback of the same excerpt as performed by a college or profes-sional ensemble. I have also invented an objective self-and-peer evaluation program that I’ve used for the past de-cade; it allows students to use an easy-to-understand rubric to assess their own performance. In addition, I use a lot of ‘randomness’ techniques within the daily rehearsals (for example, I’ll say, ‘Now let’s hear the same passage but only the 2nd and 3rd chair players should perform; now only the Fresh-men & Sophomore class; now only the females,’ and so on).”

Robin LinaberryMaine-Endwell High School

Endwell, N.Y.

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Technology: Distance Learning

Technology is changing how we deliver education. However, getting up to speed on the innova-

tive opportunities that come with new software and hardware can be helped by an occasional

jumpstart. At the end of this column is a link to a listing of over 130 online workshops and course

offerings that cover every aspect of music technology education. While traditional travel and housing

expenses have been eliminated, you’ll need four things to participate: a fast internet connection (broad-

band or higher); a Pentium 4 computer or a Mac (with 4 GBs of RAM); a microphone connected to the

computer; and access to videoconferencing software for the interactive classes. GoToMeeting and WebEX

are popular examples of videoconferencing software that work well over broadband internet connections

without special hardware requirements. Skype also offers multipoint conferencing. Webcams are usually

optional, although many laptops now include built in cameras.

By John Kuzmich, Jr.

Music Technology Courses & Workshops

Distance-learning instruction comes in two styles of delivery: synchronous and asynchronous. Asynchronous classes offer pre-recorded lectures and demonstrations, while synchronous is live, real-time interactive streaming over the Internet. Some asynchronous workshops offer live chat sessions so students can interact occasionally with the teacher; these are called “blended learning.” Blended learning may also have prerecorded material presented after the live chatroom transmissions. Three model approaches for distance-learning featured here are: lynda.com, berkleemusic.com, and IUPUI. Lynda.com offers well over 50 asynchronous courses for quick and easy training on a monthly subscription basis. Berklee-music.com offers blended learning in-struction. IUPUI offers both asynchro-nous and synchronous instruction.

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Three Models of Distance-Learning InstructionLynda.com

Technically, lynda.com is not distance learning. Rather, it’s an online resource for anyone who wants to learn software, technology, business, or creative skills without academic pressure. With a lynda.com subscription, members receive ac-cess to the entire library of video tutorials in nine different content areas: 3D/Anima-tion, Business, Design, Developer, Home Computing, Photography, Video, Web/Interactive, and, perhaps most useful for our purposes, Audio. This helpful struc-ture has been in place since 2002 when Lynda Weinman and Bruce Heavin began posting training videos online at www.lynda.com. With over one million indi-vidual, corporate, academic, and govern-ment subscribers, lynda.com was recently ranked the 13th fastest-growing, private-ly-held education company in the U.S. by Inc. magazine. Schools are partnering with lynda.com so students and teachers can stay on top of ever-evolving technology.

Lynda.com currently offers 50 courses

that focus on teaching digital audio tools and skills, such as mixing, mastering, music production, recording, and scoring and composition. For example, there are courses in audio software such as Pro Tools, Ableton Live, Garage Band, Soundbooth, Fi-nale, Reason, Sibelius, and Soundtrack Pro-Tools. They also offer courses to learn skills surrounding these digital tools, such as Digital Audio Principles, Foundations of Audio, and Audio Mixing Bootcamp.

Courses vary in length. For example, Pro Tools 10 is a nine-hour course and iTunes Essential Training is a four-and-a-half-hour course. However, each course is divided into bite-sized sections so stu-dents can learn at their own pace. There is no homework (or grades) associated with the video tutorials. Students either need to own the software or have access to it. Since all of the courses are video courses, the faster the Internet connection, the bet-ter. Their service requires up to 440 KB/s per individual user. With self-directed asynchronous learning, you go at your own pace and direct your own learning path.

There is no need to send large data files. All of the lynda.com courses are available online. Lynda.com is always publishing new courses for further learn-ing, and are often the first to offer training when new software versions are released on Mac, PC, mobile, and tablet technol-ogy. There are no deadlines for completing any courses all of which are available for a monthly subscription fee. This approach allows the flexibility to be able to watch a course from beginning to end, watch nu-merous courses in one session, or watch specific videos that cover particular skills and topics. Linda.com also provides 24/7 access to the library from a Mac, PC, smart phone, or tablet.

Berkleemusic.comBerkleemusic.com was launched in

2002 and now offers 150+ courses and certificate programs. The purpose of berk-leemusic.com is to provide avenues for learning music technology instruction ei-ther for recertification or academic exper-tise. Music technology changes so fast that it is essential that there be avenues for such

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study, and the variety and wealth/depth of instruction at Berklee is incredible.

A maximum of 20 students per class allows for more personal interaction be-tween students and teacher. For larger classes, Berklee offers multiple sections of a course to keep that ratio. Out of the 150 courses, there are many areas of mu-sic technology with which to engage. The music production area, for example, has between 30 and 35 courses. There are professional certificate programs, such as their most popular course of study, mu-sic production and technology, which is a collection of 12 different courses. In mu-sic production, there are about 30 courses and 20 certificates that give students more than 50 options of study. Because of the number of courses offered, students can become very proficient in what’s being taught. There are abundant courses for entry, intermediate, and advanced levels: four or five ProTools courses and advanced mixing and mastering techniques ranging from Music 101 to 301. Professional stu-dents have taken courses while on tour, including musicians from groups like

Sugarland and the Dave Matthews Band. Every course is 12 weeks long and

available on Mac and PC. Berklee doesn’t offer any short-term courses. Within ev-ery course, there is a one-hour chat in-teraction on a weekly basis. The live chat uses WebEx to coordinate all students in the class. The teacher uses video, audio, and screen-sharing to answer questions and may add additional information to the course in the weekly chat session. For the rest of the instruction, the stu-dent does the work privately in an asyn-chronous mode. Generally, five hours of outside home is required for every hour of on-line instruction each week (chat, as-signments, and quizzes). Students gener-ally own their own software, but Berklee has partnered with companies directly to provide educational discounts for such programs as ProTools, Aberton Live, Logic, Sonar, and Cubase. They also use freeware, like a. Every course has hardware and software requirements, but Internet speed requirements are not that specific. Web-cams are not required, but some teachers may request them.

IUPUIIndiana University-Purdue University

at Indianapolis (IUPUI) has a long history of innovative leadership in music technol-ogy offerings at both the undergraduate and graduate level, and IUPUI is currently developing a doctorate program in music technology. Some undergraduate course-ware is transmitted over public television, while others are delivered asynchronously over the Internet. Most graduate degree courses are transmitted synchronously with a few courses utilizing podcasts or recorded video.

IUPUI offers 10 online courses, plus elective courses for the masters degree in Music Technology and 10 courses for the masters degree in Music Therapy program. All elective courses and three of the music technology core courses are available to students who are not en-rolled in a degree. These include: Music Website Development, Using Flash, Us-ing ProTools, Using Finale, Sound Design, Teaching at a Distance, Teaching with Social Media, and the yearly Interna-tional Music Technology Conference and

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Workshop. The average course has 42 hours of instruction for students. There is a designated time limit which conforms to university deadlines for completion of campus courses, usually a day or two af-ter the final exam period.

The faster the Internet connection the better, but students can use DSL at 768k or cable internet connections at 1.4 Mbps. All graduate courses have access to a live chat during class through Adobe Connect Pro and Oncourse. Students may also videocon-ference through Connect Pro during class and can Skype or iChat with an instructor or chat online outside of class meetings. The music department uses Tandberg’s H.323 MOVI system for high-end videoconfer-encing. Students do not need a webcam for any class. The department’s courseware is Mac and PC compatible.

IUPUI runs their annual International Music Technology Conference and Work-shop during the third week of June. This year it will be held June 20-23, 2012. It is videostreamed live with on-campus stu-dents present.

Closing CommentsThere are so many ways to access the

latest learning in music technology. Ex-amine the directory for a myriad of top-ics via both on-site and distant-learning. Hopefully, you will find what meets your needs and incorporate technology skills in your teaching. Also, check out the web supplement at: www.kuzmich.com/musictech12.html for late submissions. You might also consider earning a profes-sional music technology certificate offered by TI:ME (Technology Institute for Music Educators), which has workshops taught by their certified instructors from coast to coast. The April 2009 and 2010 issues of SBO magazine will give you good look at TI:ME and its advantages for music edu-cators. Many of their workshops are listed in this directory.

I invite you to peruse this directory of music technology classes for opportunities in professional growth and career devel-opment. On-campus instruction is repre-sented coast-to-coast. Distance learning is everywhere. This is a rich resource for both summer study and year-round learning.

Dr. John Kuzmich Jr. is a veteran music educator, jazz educator and music technolo-gist with more than 41 years of public school teaching expe-rience. He is a TI:ME-certified training instructor and has a Ph.D. in comprehensive mu-sicianship. As a freelance au-thor, Dr. Kuzmich has more than 400 articles and five text books 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.

To view the music tech workshop directory, scan

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or visit sbomagazine.com.


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Submit your PLAYING TIP online at www.sbomagazine.com or e-mail it to editor Eliahu Sussman at [email protected]. Winning entries will be published in School Band and Orchestra Magazine and contributor will receive a prize gift compliments of EPN Travel Services, Inc.

Brought to you by EPN Travel Services

Charting Rehearsal“Organizing a practice sessions will help students achieve so much more, and actually make the time fly by. I have my students go through a checklist each time they practice. For example, the wind players start with long tones, then go to scales, technique exercises, etude studies, solo work, en-semble work, something fun, and then finish with long tones again. Doing this is really productive and can make practice a much more enjoyable experience.”

George DragooStevens High School

Rapid City, S.D.

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COMPANY NAME E-MAIL/WEB ADDRESS PAGE #

Alfred Music Publishing www.alfred.com/dealer 15American Way Marketing LLC www.americanwaymktg.com 50Antigua Winds, Inc. www.antiguawinds.comcom 7J.J. Babbitt Co. Inc. www.jjbabbitt.com 22Band Today LLC MarchingBandPlumes.com 52Bari Woodwinds www.bariwoodwinds.com 58Beret’s Publications www.beretspublications.com 60Bob Rogers Travel www.bobrogerstravel.com 13Brightspark Inc www.brightsparkevents.com 45Burkart-Phelan www.burkart.com 9Carnegie Hall www,carnegiehall.org/nyousa 39Cascio Interstate Music Company www.interstatemusic.com 10Charms Office Assistant www.charmsoffice.com 60Colonial Williamsburg www.colonialwillamsburg.com/grouptours 27DeMoulin www.demoulin.com 5EPN Travel Services www.epntravel.com cov 4Festivals of Music www.educationalprograms.com 57Festivals of Music www.educationalprograms.com cov2-1Four Winds Travel & Tour www.FourWindsTours.com 42Full Compass www.fullcompass.com 37Gateway Shoes www.gatewayshoes.com 24Gator Cases www.gatorcases.com 54Good for the Goose Products www.chopsaver.com 60GraceNotes, LLC www.SightReadingFactory.com 54Hunter Music Instrument Inc. www.huntermusical.com 38Jarvis Industries Inc. www.jarvisonline.com 53KIconcerts www.kiconcerts.com 43Krispy Kreme Donut Corp. www.krispykreme.com 8Fred J. Miller www.fjminc.com 23Pearl Corp. www.pearldrum.com 3Performing Arts Consultants www.usafest.org 31Peterson Strobe Tuners www.petersontuners.com 47Pocket Songs/Music Minus One www.pocketsongs.com 51Rada Mfg. Co. www.RadaCutlery.com 28Rivar’s www.rivars.com 42Row-Loff Productions www.rowloff.com 55Dan Ryder Field Drills www.danryderfielddrills.com 48Dan Ryder Field Drills www.danryderfielddrills.com 49SKB Corp. www.skbcases.com 14Stanbury Uniforms www.stanbury.com 21Stormworks www.stormworld.com 35Super-Sensitive Musical String Co. www.cavanaughcompany.com 56The Synthesis MIDI Workshop www.midiworkshop.com 38The Tuba Exchange, Inc. www.tubaexchange.com 25Up-Front Footwear Inc. www.dinkles.com 20Vic Firth Company www.vicfirth.com 19Vic Firth Company www.vicfirth.com 18Woodwind & Brasswind www.wwbw.com 44Avedis Zildjian Co. www.zildjian.com 11

Ad Index www.sbomagazine.com

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Save

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ate

!Networking the

jazz arts community... local to global!

Jazz Education Network

4th Annual Conference

The Jazz Education Networkis dedicated to building the jazz arts community by advancing education, promoting performance, and

developing new audiences.

For complete membership information/benefits please visit us at:

www.JazzEdNet.org

Atlanta, GeorgiaJanuary 2-5, 2013

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Documents

School Band and Orchestra Magazine