In the last journal entry I talked about how I believed the band was hitting a major turning point. At UIL we made a 2 in Sight Reading and a 1 in Concert. The concert rating was significant because it was the first 1st Division in Concert Contest since 2009 for this group, also because we got a 3 at Marching Contest, and also because that meant they would get to perform at the UIL State Wind Ensemble Festival. It generated a lot of excitement, not just for the kids, but for the community as well.
| The Meyerson was gorgeous. I'll never forget it, and hope to go back some day. |
I made sure to hype it up as a special event, where they would perform on one of the top 10 music halls in the world, and the judge's expectations were very high. This really motivated them to push beyond the level of a 1st Division and begin to delve into the artistic side of music making. I was so grateful for that. Keep in mind, while many bands in Texas go to contest in early or mid-April, our contest was the first Thursday in March. I would hate to think of what we would've lost out on if they didn't have that big event around the corner to motivate them!
They were very nervous in the warm up room, and we also had tuning issues both there and on stage that were abnormal. But given their nerves and the lack of sleep (we started driving at 3:30 AM), they did really well. We managed a Superior rating, and they also were complimented by the event staff for their demeanor on and off stage. That kind of thing, to me, was equally important for the sake of our reputation with the administration and community. We had an incredible time at Malibu SpeedZone, the Galleria Mall and Medieval Times. We went through Director's Choice Tour and Travel and I have no complaints about the trip or the service in planning the trip. This was a great thing for the program!
So we started up again the first week of April with just about four weeks until the UIL State Wind Ensemble Festival. The band started showing signs of fatigue, but we pushed on. The new piece we had been working on, as well as a tough march we scrapped for Concert Contest and pulled back out, were both starting to sound clean and musical. They started to grasp the idea of phrase shaping (finally), and I must say it was probably the most enjoyable time of the entire year. Almost every day was a good day, with musical moments to be had. I wish we would've made it to that point sooner! But then again, I have to remind myself that it's the first time they've ever reached that level. That makes a big difference!
5th and 6th Grade Bands, which continue to have very poor behavior, went to a non-UIL Festival. When the 7th Grade was split from the HS Band, they went to festivals, but this was the first time for 5th and 6th graders to go. I figured both bands would make 2's across the board (I don't think they give 3's at this festival) and I might have a hand full of the 15 soloists made a 1. Actually it was far more successful than I predicted! 5th Grade Band performed in Concert Contest and made a 1, the 6th Grade Band did both Concert and Sight Reading and got a Sweepstakes. 13 of the 15 5th and 6th graders made a 1 on their solo! The judging was admittedly very forgiving, but it was still a big success for the program and I think ultimately it will help build these kids up and prepare them for what I want them to do in high school.
This was such a big deal to the principal that, unbeknownst to me, she had the entire school make a spirit tunnel leading up to the double door entrance of the school, complete with signs, so that when our bus pulled up the kids would walk through it to the cheers of the lower grade levels and faculty members. It was the most incredible thing I've ever seen an administrator do for a band! Check out this video...
Imagine if they did something like that every year! I teach 1st Grade and up, so almost all of the kiddos are excited about getting to be in the band some day. But after this I can only imagine that anticipation is going to rise. What a great thing for the students, but also for the future of this band! I wish everyone could have administrators like mine.
The UIL State Wind Ensemble Festival - some small school directors don't do it because it's expensive (or their admin won't pay for it), and I've even heard it's "exclusive", probably referring to the fact that state medals have never been awarded to Class A and AA bands. But even knowing this, I was still looking forward to it. Personally, all but of a couple of my most rewarding musical experiences happened on that stage. I fell in love with band music for the first time playing Granger's "Lincolnshire Posy" at that very festival, so to take my own band there felt like coming full circle. I just hope some of them will look back on that performance the way I looked back on the first one I got to be part of.
The event was well run from what I could tell. We were obviously in the first part of the day, but everything was either on schedule or ahead of schedule.
| The Bates Recital Hall was another great place to perform. The setting was intimate and the acoustics were fantastic! |
Afterwards they got to work with Sarah McKoin, the director at Texas Tech. She was incredible! Students always listen to clinicians more and do things for them better than they do for us, but what she was able to get out of them was spectacular. They rehearsed for half an hour on maybe 30ish measures of music, but what they did work on sounded vastly more mature than anything I had heard from them in the past. It was really, really cool.
They seemed to really enjoy the listening portion of the festival as well (which is required of all bands). This surprised me because, to be honest, I often slept through a lot of that in high school. But not these kids. We got to listen to two great Class AA bands, including one that is regarded as being in the elite. It rarely occurs to me that my students have never even heard band music this complex, nor performed at this high of a level. They heard some music that they really liked, and hopefully have a better concept of sound and musicality. More than that, I hope they're gaining a deeper appreciation of how good you can get, and how much effort it takes to get there.
No fun stuff on this trip. We ate at a near by college hot spot, Players. The burgers were good for par, and cheap. I would go back. After that we headed home with just a week to finish preparing for our Spring Concert.
I was stressed about the home concert. We had kids out a lot during the week, and a lot of bad playing. The band was exhausted, and at times I had flashes of what it was like in the Fall. But all of the bands performed really well, and I had a great time! The home audience was raving again about the band and how much improvement they've made. Another neat comment was when one of the parents came up to me afterwards, who went on the Meyerson trip with us, and commented, "This hall doesn't do them justice. They sounded great, but after hearing them at the Meyerson, there's just no comparison!" It was a reminder that not only had the students never done something like that, the parents had never been to a place like that either. I have a feeling I won't get as much complaining about the cost per student for next year's trip (as much being the key).
You could also tell the difference in their performance abilities. At one point performing was something they were nervous about. Now they just get excited and only slightly nervous. The good kind of nerves. In fact, I think performing at the Meyerson helped them a lot at State because they had already performed at such an incredible venue. By the Spring Concert I got the sense that this was a much more seasoned band. This, too, was part of why I wanted to push them into these bigger performance situations. Hopefully when we go to Region Marching Contest next year, it won't be as intimidating since most of them will have performed at the Meyerson and the UIL State Wind Ensemble Festival. I guess we'll see!
Anyway, it's been a great year over all. We have a lot of work to do to improve. Many mountains still to climb. That goes for me personally as well. I still have so much to learn. I have ideas on how to prepare better for sight reading, but marching is going to be the big hurdle. Have I made the right programming decisions to allow them to get to a superior level? Will my marching rehearsal technique have improved enough? Time will tell, but I sure hope so. This band hasn't made a 1st Division in Marching since 1999, and that needs to change!
I'm very proud of my students. I'm sad to lose the seniors. On the upside, we'll also be losing the students who were the root of many of the band's attitude problems throughout the year. At the same time, they'll be replaced by a hand full of high school students who are getting back into band after a hiatus (in some cases, a 4-5 year hiatus) but who now want to be a part of it. Next year's 7th Graders will still have a tough time in the beginning, but they're much better off than this year's 7th Graders were when we started our summer camp, so that's positive. The band is growing, and this year they went from being looked down upon by everyone to now being a source of pride. Even though our UIL Ratings could've been better, that's still a major improvement.
I can't wait to see the difference between next year's band at the start of Summer Camp compared to where we started with them at the beginning of next year. I'm looking forward to hitting the ground running. But first - some well earned time off!
Thanks for reading, and until next time, take care!
Musically yours,
Mr. Cooper
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