Giving Thanks

I am thankful for:

* The parents of Beginning Drummer Dex, who upon reading my e-mail about his disruptive behavior, immediately scheduled a conference with me. When they showed up to my office, they apologized profusely for Dex's behavior and pledged their full support to finding a solution to his behavioral problems.

* My students - Trombone Dan, Band Mom, His Royal Highness, Jimmy Sniffle, Princess Jasmine, Lucky the Drummer... basically all the kids who make my life infinitely easier, rather than harder. I could try to name them all day long and still manage to leave some out.

* The fact that the issue with beginning band yesterday was more because of a wacky sub than a rowdy class. basically, as the day wore on - I got more and more reports (from people I trust) that she was 'out of line' and by the time 4th period rolled around, my anger had dissipated. I had planned an activity for the drummers that was meant as a punishment - but somehow it evolved into a meaningful lesson.

* The absence of Former-Principal Palpatine in my life.

* All my friends who are teachers are darn good teachers. I'm hoping that says something about me.

When The Cat's Away.....

Had to be out with a sub today. Sick day... not for me, but for my wife who had minor surgery and needed a ride to and from the clinic as well as post-operative care. I was out sick last Monday, too. It seemed to go well, so I wasn't worried. Before I drove my wife to the clinic, I was putzing around on the internet, and I inadvertently left my Facebook account open. Much later, when I returned to my home office, I found a message from my music club president waiting for me:

Trombone Dan: Hey Mr. M. I hope your wife is okay. Um, did you hear about the drummers in the beginning class?

Trombone Dan: Mr. M. ?

Trombone Dan is offline.

I tried responding-as-a-message, calling and texting him. No dice. I guess I'm going to have to wait until tomorrow to find out what happened - but I'm going to get some detention slips ready.

What's got me extra pissed off is that this year's class of beginners, as goofy as they are, was turning out to be way more cooperative than last year's class. On Friday I even said something to the effect of: "Okay, I'm going to be out with a sub again on Monday. You guys did great last time - keep on being cool and you'll have way more privileges than last year's class did."

Alas.

The Hardest Lessons

We all know how hard it is to get through to a demoralized / unmotivated student. I actually think it's sometimes harder to teach highly motivated and capable students. It's not a matter of skill or knowledge - it's a matter of expectations, ethics and the acceptance of one's place in the universe. The following is a list of things that are really hard to teach to the top-level kids:

1) Talent is no substitute for professionalism. While you are a big fish in a little pond, you may find it easier to get away with things like being late (or not coming at all) to rehearsal, canceling at the last minute, bringing food, wearing the wrong things to performance, texting/web surfing during rehearsal/performances, etc. At the upper levels, this kind of behavior will cost you playing opportunities and (more importantly) paying gigs. One screw up can cost you the trust of many people. Not only will you lose the next call from that contractor, but the person who recommended you in the first place will stop referring work to you - because their reputation is on the line as well. You are not the only talented performer out there. You're parents think you are amazing. Of course they do - they are your parents. You are probably far more talented than the average person. But when you start swimming in bigger waters, you will discover that there is a lot of talent out there... I mean a lot. And when everyone you are competing with can play the gig equally well - it's going to come down to your qualities as a reliable worker and as a congenial human being. Don't fuck it up.

2) You will never reach a point where you have nothing to learn. And while you may encounter some teachers/conductors who have little or nothing to offer you - the vast majority will. Give them your respect and your attention. Humility and modesty are virtues that no musician should be without.

3) Music is more than a technical exercise. It is a never-ending endeavor to bring beauty into the world. It is a means of saying something important. If the most important thing that you have to say is "Look at how good I am" then you are missing the point.

4) Be nice to people - even the people you are competing with. Professional musicians are in competition with each other, but they also rely on each other. If you've been a rat bastard and talk shit about them behind their back, chances are they won't call you for gigs. No one wants to work with a prick, and they usually don't have to.

5) Until you make it big and famous, or get your name on the "A" list for studio work - there is no such thing as a gig that is 'beneath' you. (You'll figure this out real quick when you're trying to make a living off of your instrument/voice). In fact, the more work you do, the more contacts you have - which means possibilities for more work. You also get to put more stuff down on your resume'. You really don't want to develop a reputation as someone who'se gotten picky about their engagements before they've paid their dues.

6) Being a section leader is more of a responsibility than an earned privilege. Being a section leader means that you have to devote time and energy to helping your section. It's called being a leader and it has more to do with your people skills than your playing/singing skills. If all you know how to do is yell insults at your section - then you fail, and you don't deserve the title. This is also true if you don't adhere to the aforementioned principles of professionalism.

7) This one isn't a music thing.... it's a life thing: You can't force people to respect and admire you. There are a lot of people out there who think that success means 'performing' so well that other people will have to recognize their superior abilities and shower them with admiration. The truth is that if you are an insufferable egotistical jerk, they will talk shit about you no matter how many accolades you acquire. You'll end up with this amazing resume' and wonder why more people don't like you. You have to use your gifts in a way that will benefit others. You have to be loyal, caring and compassionate. If all you care about is yourself, then you risk being the only person who really cares about you at all.

The Angry Customer

I got forwarded an e-mail by the manager of the youth orchestra that I work for on the weekends. The parents of one of the lower-orchestra flute players are upset with the program and with me specifically. 1) They feel their daughter was misplaced - that she should have been put in the upper orchestra. 2) They think the music I selected is inferior. 3) They think I am obviously trying to "hold their daughter back" because I moved some string players to the upper orchestra, but not any flutes. 4) The mother accused me of "coldly walking away from her" when she tried to approach me about it. 5) They accuse the organization of caring more about money than about the needs of our players.

In short, they want to withdraw, and they want their money back.

Being that I am a professional, and a caring member of a non-profit organization, I refrained from e-mailing the mother back myself. If any response is made, it will be made by the executive director (James), or the business manager (Karen). I know the parents don't know how we operate, and it sounds like they have a "my kid first" approach in general. I know better than to take the e-mail personally... but it was hard not to feel the burn on that one.

If only I had a blog or something where I could vent.... oh wait....

*Ahem* Dear Pushy Orchestra Parent -

1) You daughter was not misplaced. She was the victim of an unfortunate truth in the orchestra world: Orchestra only use flutes (and all winds for that matter) in pairs. That means there is more competition for fewer spots. Quite frankly, the other flutists out-played her. So while she might have been okay tagging along on 2nd flute parts, we couldn't place her in the upper group because to do so would be to put the string/wind ratio out-of-balance. You need to understand and accept this, because if she is going to play at the upper levels she needs to know that a) she will be rejected a lot and b) she better bring her game - like all of it - if she intends to win an orchestral wind position, because the competition (as you may or may not have noticed) is kind of intense. And please don't ask us to tweak the orchestra instrumentation to accommodate your daughter. The upper levels of music cater to the needs of the composer, rather than the needs of the player. That's the way it has to be. Get used to it.

2) I selected music based on the quality of the composition, not necessarily the technical challenge. yes, I understand that the technical aspect is important, especially to younger players - but you should understand that there is far more to music than conquering difficult fingerings and rhythms. I happen to be a specialist in style and phrasing, which is why I pick the music I do. I know you think the __________ piece in particular is "an insult to her abilities" given how easy the notes and rhythms are - but the truth is that it is a piece regularly done by professional groups simply because it is beautiful. Not only that, it requires the players to sustain well-supported long tones, something your daughter hasn't quite mastered yet. I'm sorry that neither you, she nor her private flute teacher feel that she has anything to learn from slow music. I hope some day that she learns to be something other than a technical robot.

3) Contrary to what you think I do not make these decisions alone. I make no decisions regarding string player placement, and any moving that has to be done must be approved by the upper orchestra conductor. So really, it was a staff-wide decision (I know that doesn't make it any better). Furthermore, no teacher, even a bad one, intentionally holds any student back from reaching their potential. What we have is an all-too-common example of difficulty meeting the needs of the more proficient player in an ensemble. There may be a way to address this, but accusing me of being a villain isn't going in the right direction.

4) Ma'am, I had to walk away from you because it was in the middle of rehearsal and I was busy. (This is where the "my kid first" attitude comes in.) What you're really angry about is the fact that I didn't give you what you wanted on the spot. Again, even if such a thing were possible - I don't make those decisions by myself so I couldn't make you any promises.

5) (This is the one that gets me) Yes, we made some decisions this year based on financial issues - but accusing us of being money-grubbing opportunists is uncalled for. We are not gunning for salary increases, or trying to buy extensions for our summer homes - We need money to operate. In fact we made sacrifices this year - dropping almost all of our support staff members and resorting to borrowed music rather than buying new repertoire - just so that we can keep going. We are NOT a government subsidized program. We operate solely with what we bring in through tuition and donations, and when that runs out the organization ceases to be. The entire staff was ready to take pay cuts this year, and it was only when the sole remaining founding member volunteered to take a leave of absence that we managed to balance the books.

Ma'am the measly stipend I make from this effort is not really worth the weekend time away from my wife and 1-year-old child. I do it because I like making music with kids, and I (we) really try to do our best despite the the money situation. If we are not meeting the needs of your child, then we really will try to make things better, but do not for a second doubt the resolve or the intent of our program or it's staff. These people are among the best music educators that I have ever known, and they deserve better.

In the end, I don't think there is any way to prevent this family from bailing out on us. The simple fact is, the music probably is easy for their daughter- probably for a few others as well and yes that is an issue we have to address. I'm still a little put off by some of the accusations leveled at us (me)... but I understand that I have to let that go by - it's probably more of a concerned parent knee jerk reaction.

*sigh*

To Play or Not To Play - Part III

So now that I've gotten my rant about society's expectations regarding musicians at athletic events out of my system - let me tell you how my particular situation played out:

I spent some time this week running around, talking to Former-Band-Director-Current-Principal Leto, Athletic Director Dan (ADD... heh heh) facebooking and e-mailing band director colleagues, and here's what we all collectively firgured out - CIF is cracking down on bands. Nothing official has been released, but it's apparent that CIF recently got a band bug up it's butt and it's starting to scratch. Someone somewhere had a star chamber discussion regarding band participation at football games, and a decision was made that was shared with the referees. They didn't however, share it with the band world - they just slapped many of my colleagues with warnings and even sanctions for doing what they've been doing for years. It left us all kind of scratching our heads.

I know several directors who intentionally make as much noise as possible in order to disrupt the opposing school's offensive team - sometimes at the request of the football coaches. I guess that kind of tactic is about to be universally eradicated. I mean, I don't particularly care - I always thought it was kind of bad sportsmanship anyway. But the 'cleansing' still means less playing time for the band, and that's going to be a pain.

Whatever, at least it's not just me...

To Play or Not To Play - Part II

So in my continuing thoughts about the band/football issue...

I said before that I am not the only band director who has come across road blocks while engaging in football game duty - everything from extra pay for CIF play-off games, to conflicts over students enrolled in both band and football. I've even heard of people threatening to resign over the amount of half-time playing opportunities. The response from the football / admin crowd? - usually something along the lines of "It's a football game, not a band concert" or "Playing at the football games is a privilege."

Before I go on - I have to offer up this humble disclaimer that I have never heard either of these statements come out of the mouths of any of the principals nor coaches that I have worked with - a fact that makes me very grateful. (Palpatine, didn't actually say it, but it was probably in there somewhere... regardless, I don't consider her someone I "worked with" as much as "suffered under") They are, however, common sentiments in schools around the country, and I am always prepared to meet them head-on should I need to.

Surprisingly enough, I actually agree with the first one... it most certainly is a football game and not a band concert. And as much as I sympathize with my colleagues who bust their asses to perfect their 8-to-5 steps and have their sousaphones polished to a blinding shine before every Friday night appearance, I do not share their enthusiasm and fervor for band equal time. That's because.... (Drum Roll) ...I never cared that much about football games to begin with....

The only reason why I can follow the action is because I spent the last 17 years of my life attending high school football games with my bands. Former Principal Palpatine tried to convince me that it was my professional responsibility to be an enthusiastic part of the football experience... which is funny when you consider that, historically speaking, faked enthusiasm was never a good thing. Of course, had I just mustered up some genuine gusto, it wouldn't be a problem. Likewise, had the kidnapped Africans living in the South willingly and cheerfully gone to work in the cotton fields, they wouldn't have had to call it slavery.

Now, despite this, I do want to be supportive of the home team. I've always tried to appear spirited whilst at the games - I even tried to make it as fun as possible for my kids. I never flat-out resisted or even complained about football duty, and I never plan to. But I never considered the games to be prime performance opportunities for my band. And even though I'll probably get a bigger audience at the game than I ever will at a concert... I just can't get all that inspired by the overblown execution of bad arrangements of out-dated pop songs. besides, I don't have a marching band, which means that I don't have a field show that I've been working on since August that I'm dying to show the crowd for the 5th time.

So yeah, on any given Friday night I'd pick a movie or a nice dinner with the wife any day over warming a cold metal bleacher with my ass while trying to keep the drummers from throwing sticks at each other for three hours. They could pretty much cut band out of the games altogether and I wouldn't take it too hard. That brings me to the next statement - "Playing at the football games is a privilege." - which kind of implies that the opportunity can be taken away if we don't seem appreciative enough (some day I'd love to call a bluff on that one). I'm kind of irked that it hasn't occurred to the idiots who would say something that insulting that it's also a privilege to have the band at the football games. Again, I've been fortunate that I've never had to work with a football coach who flat-out thought that the band was an extension of the football program - or maybe I just put in enough effort to merit faked mutual respect.

The people that really get under my skin are the pushy football parents. Not all of them are pushy - I've actually talked to quite a few level-headed ones. They'll listen to me lay out why the band/football relationship tends to be one-sided, and they say "Wow, I never thought of it that way before - you guys do sacrifice a lot." And you know what? a lot of times that's all I need to hear to make me feel really appreciated... and I don't mind accommodating them so much.

But then a lot of them just feel entitled to our presence - which comes from a culture that evolved out of a century of nation-wide football obsession. Whether or not they are conscious of it , they believe that everyone on campus should support, if not worship their pig-skin touting child - simply because decades ago in small town America everyone rallied around their high school football team. They didn't have televised sports and major league franchises with billion-dollar marketing to invest in - just their own home-grown team whose members were truly the local heroes.

Band was a lot different back then, too. Once upon a time, the band wasn't just heard at the football games, they were everywhere. People went out of their way to go hear the band play, because that was the only music they were exposed to, if they weren't musicians themselves. The same kind of fervor that they had over football was applied to Sousa marches and Waltzes - and so the band provided not just the in-game entertainment, they were the town hall dancing music as well.

We're not that America anymore... but just like the way we cling to outdated, agriculturally based school schedules, we have inherited the expectations of musical representation at athletic events, which pretty much equates to servitude. But the athletic parents don't see it that way because they don't have kids in band. They've never been asked to take time out of their schedule to show up to an event in support of someone else's kid. Band and cheer families do that all the time, sometimes on short notice and requiring the alteration or cancellation of personal plans.

So, pushy athletic parent, when you tell me that "you'd really appreciate more band appearances"... you better damn well understand what it is you're asking for, because I can put money on the fact that you won't be showing up to any of our concerts.

(To be continued)