Posted by Brian on August 29, 2002 at 23:38:41:
In Reply to: H.S. Brass Bands posted by Shane on August 29, 2002 at 06:27:33:
I love brass band, but I'm telling you as a band director don't do this.
1. In my experience, forcing a kid to play an instrument that they don't want to play is a waste of time. Those little girls that want to play flute or clarinet won't stick around to play cornet for you.
2. To my knowledge, there is practically NO literature for beginning brass band readily available.
3. If you work in a state with a festival music list, there probably isn't anything on it for you to play.
4. Some students have a physical make up which would make them more sucessful on a woodwind instrument.
Trust me, I have been in a similar situation. Recruit like crazy, play good music, and take a sincere interest in your students. Be patient, it will happen if you give it time. For now, play music which makes your band sound good. Even if you have march a cheesy halftime show, concentrate on fundementals (pitch, tone, balance, tuning, etc.) Sometimes doing material geared toward the young crowd will attract students to your beginning band later on. best wishes, hang in there.