As a slight change from the recent discussions on showdowns and jamborees, I thought that I would throw out a series of questions for each area. I am interested in as many factual statements as possible. I do not want this discussion to turn in to a "this is better, no it's not" type of discussion.
What area or city are you answering from?
1. Do middle school band programs in your area participate in any type of marching band or pep band music?
2. If so, do these middle school band programs participate or perform at all with the high school band? Either rehearsals or performances?
3. Do middle school bands in your area prepare students for high school music? If not, what deficiencies do you feel like the kids are coming in with?
4. How are your music classes set up? Do classes meet every day? Some type of block?
5. What is your program's rehearsal schedule for the year? Do you meet every day after school? When do you rehease marching music, concert music, etc.
6. How many band directors do programs in your area have at the school? Are the middle school band directors on staff at the high school as well?
7. Do you feel that directors in your area place too much emphasis on the next performance rather than learning the concepts of playing the instrument?
I want to thank you all in advance for answering these questions.
Replies
1. Our middle school is now trying to participate in parades, basketball and football games, but it is a new thing. they are kinda rebuilding their program.
2. They are starting to. The high school has clinics where the middle school can come and play with us. The middle school has done one performance with us, and probably more in the future.
3. Before now our middle school has not prepared the students for high school music. Coming in to high school we did not know how to read music, or have common knowledge of our own instruments.
4. Music class in high school is every day 7th period. Sometimes we work on theory, and sometimes hit the feild, or stands, depending on what we have coming up.
5. Football season there is practice every day. Concert season we meet a couple days out of the week, sometimes everyday. At the end of the year (BOTBs) we meet everyday, or certain days of the week.
6. My school has one head director and two assistants. The middle school band director is not on staff at the high school.
7. I feel that we could spend more time on learning about our instruments, but concert season partly takes care of that.
not all of our middle school bands are ... serious about performing at higher levels. i think the kids just don't see the benefits of being in a high school band, then going to a college band. my favorite excuse is, "I don't know how to play." they don't understand that the point in joining the band is to LEARN.
Sorry if this is wayyy too long lol. =]
lolita carter said:
I will mention mine as well as most of HISD because each situation is unique.
1. Middle schools in HISD were told two years ago not to do any marching or pep music because two directors who are anti-showband called TEA and filed a complaint. I wont say what school. Some of the band directors do it anyway because its the only thing keeping the kids interested in the program. Its a great incentive. Sad thing in our district most of the minority middle schools have no music program whatsoever so marching or playing period isnt even an option.
2. THe ones who do have a band program do perform with the high school from time to time usually as special guests. I allow some of the 8th grade students who are doing exceptionally well to accompany my band to various events especially the fun stuff (trips, rodeo etc.) Only with their band director's recommendation.
3. In my case, I think they are prepared musically. The only thing lacking is the mentality of them. Half of my 9th graders quit every year mainly because they dont want to practice after school. LAZY MOFOS
4. Mine are set up quite different because here I am the only music teacher. I teach
Music History
Choral Music (yes Im the choir director)
Dance/Drill Squad (yes Im the dance teacher too.)
Percussion - my asst. mostly handles them and does a great job
Winds
5. Daily rehearsals begin at 3:45pm and end at 7pm. I never practice past 7pm under any circumstance. I dont care if we have competition the next day and the kids dont have anything ready. They have enough time. Concert and jazz usually end around 5:30 or 6. Also anytime we have a Friday rehearsal, I try to end early usually 5:00 or 5:30pm at the latest. My feeling is "If you dont have it ready by Friday, then its not to be ready at all."
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6. Most schools in our district have ONE director with the exception of the "other" races. Some of them have 3. Some of the good inner city schools are lucky enough to have an hourly assistant band director.
7. I admit I do. Then I wait until after something happens to work on technique again. I need to change that.
Baker, Louisiana
1. Yes, we are doing the pep band/concert band setup at my school. It is the only way that I think you can keep the kids interested in the band program by doing both, plus the school asks us to perform at football games and basketball games, so you have to be prepared. We actually marched in a Mardi Gras parade this year, and we will be doing probably 4 parades throughout the next school year.
2. Not yet, but that probably will happen in the very near future since the pool of students at the high school is so small, and the athletic coaches are trying to recruit all of the males in the school.
3. I think so many schools in the BR area are lacking middle school feeder programs, so the non-magnet, minority schools often have to recruit and start their players in high school. Our program was very strong in the past, but is in a serious rebuilding stage right now. The problem I saw with my students is their mindset, anything they viewed as hard or challenging, they would immediately shut down to it. I try my best to reach all of my students, but some of them just want no part of learning these important concepts. Seemed to have more success with my beginners, hopefully year 2 is better.
4. Classes meet everyday for 50 minutes, but in the 2nd semester many of the students are pulled out of their elective for test remediation/test prep for 4 days and only get 1 day of band.
5. Normally won't have after-school rehearsal unless I see that a certain section is struggling with their part and need the extra work, or if a major performance is coming up and I need to combine the classes together to work on balance and other ensemble issues.
6. I am the only director at my school. No I am not on staff at the high school.
7. At times I do when a major performance is coming up and the students appear to be a little shaky on their parts. I usually try to spend about 15-20 minutes on the concepts and the last 30 minutes on the music. It worked out fine with my beginners, but the advanced band really needed a lot of work in time for our performances. Seeing how 95% of my students never practice at home, we often have to spend a lot of time correct issues that could be solved during 1 10-minute individual practice session.
They do Marching, Concert, few do Jazz. The bands take part in the same competitions and events as high school bands. Most miusic classes on a middle school level now are kind of messed up. at one time band was an Elective course of the Arts during the school day. now only band members are assigned to one or 2 class periods with the director. one usually being Beginning band (or Introduction to Music as listed at some schools). one being intermediate band.
Middle School Directors have their own staff. usually through common connections, high school directors may host camps & clinics which include middle school students.
As far as directors placing emphasis on performances vs learning concepts.. Due to N.O's bands being on call every week. Both has to take place within the process of learning. Many Directors Teach Songs and not musicianship at that point their bands either fail or don't progress so I understand why these questions are being asked.
It's all gotta be done to better the band programs.
New Orleans, Louisiana
1. The middle schools in my area are EXPECTED to perform as a marching band or as a pep band- at least as a unit within there own school.
2. The Middle School Bands often perform at the same events as far as parades and battles. Middle School children do not perform "with" the high school bands though each unit is separate. High schools in my area have not been inviting middle school kids to their games as "guest groups" and I don't know of any middle school sitting practicing with the high schools ever-because each group is their own distinct entity.
3. Depends. Most are prepared to go on to the next level but the weeding out process starts early like in the 6th grade. Music in my middle school is an non-grading elective therefore I have no real consequences for the kids that refuse to read music proficiently. But the ones that put forth the effort usually go on to be core members of whatever band they join section leaders and such. When I first started i asked a high school band director what is he looking for from students of my program he stated the he simply wanted the kids to know how to assemble and disassemble their horn, and how to hold it-and if they could actually play then that was a plus. So in that aspect yes the middle schools prepare the kids for high school. Also from a marching band perspective middle school kids are playing the same music that high schools play so its not all the different but concert music is a totally different beast.
4. Music classes are set up by grade in my school. Classes meet 4 times a week for about an hour and once a week for 90 minutes.
5. We rehearse monday through thursday from 3-5 usually. on certain days practice will go on as late as 6 or 6:30 for the drum section.fridays the children generally have off unless there is an event that we are attending. But between Mardi Gras and Spring Testing we have "voluntary practice" that ends at 4:30. In the summer we meet for a month from 9am to 3pm and then we have sectional practices until school starts.
6. Each school in my area has its own band director along with their own staff and the middle school band directors are not on staff at the high schools. Each School is separate
7. Each Band Director is different. I try to teach musicianship through performance and to constantly improve from one performance to the next, I mix playing concepts with with performance concepts throughout the year and I have mixed results.
im answering from stone mountain, georgia (Stephenson high school)
1. Yes most middle schools have a pep band
2. The 8th graders in middle school are allowed to march with the high school during the regular marching season, and the 7th and 8th graders march at this event called the jamboree.
3. For the most part middle schools such as(stephenson,redan,miller grove,lithonia, chapel hill) are feeder schools to the biggest names in georgia(stephenson,swd,redan,mlk, and miller grove) and so the band directors at these middle school defienntly work to prepare these students for high school music.
4. At my school we have 4 classes a day(block schedule) and 1st period is planning period 4 the band director but 2nd period is beginning band 3rd period is intermidiate band and 4th is advanced band. And we go 2 whatever class that we are taking everyday.
5. School ends at 3:10 and marching band practice begins at 3:45 and ends at 7pm. Most of the time we never get out on time, we normally be on the field until 8 but if we have a big game we might be on the field until 9. And during symphonic band season the schedule varies(but we must be doing something right because we have been making straight superiors since the school opened in 96')
6.Well I dont know about everyone but we(stephenson) have 4. And no the middle school is not on staff at the high school.
7.LOL defiently not. In class we do nothing but work on ALL scales work on tone, staying in tune etc. Only time the director lets us work on marching band music is really at practice.
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