Notes from the Cougar Band Room

So...what did students think of our Student-Led Rehearsals? Wind Ensemble (1st hour; Audition-Only Group) Generally speaking, Student-Led Rehearsals well-received in this ensemble. Many students expressed appreciation at building teamwork, and felt the topics they rehearsed "stuck" more quickly when they were able to direct their own learning. They also expressed a heightened accountability to self and one another, deeper engagement, and enjoyed giving/receiving constructive feedback to one another in respectful ways. Frustrations included lack of organization/unclear goals, time management concerns, starting/establishing procedures, and wanting more rehearsal time. Question: Where did you hear our efforts pay off? Question: Was there a difference between Student-Led and Director-Led Rehearsals? If so, what? Question: Was there anything challenging about Student-Led Rehearsals? Question: What are some of the ways we can improve rehearsals, no matter who is leadin...

Below are the resulting performances after our 6 weeks of Student-Led Rehearsals. Each ensemble selected their pieces from a short list of appropriate level music literature. Once selected, students needed to navigate how rehearsals would be run and make collective musical decisions in order to be ready to perform each piece for our Winter Band Concert on December 12, 2018.  Although the list of challenges has been great, my band director heart is so full from hearing the musical progress these students made on these pieces. A full write-up based on our experiences both from the student and director perspectives are forthcoming.  SCHS Concert Band- Beyond the Highlands, Benjamin Yeo SCHS Symphony Band- Albanian Dance, Shelley Hanson SCHS Wind Ensemble- Queen City March, W. H. Boorn/arr. Lafferty

See that big gray cloud? The one that feels like falling into a pit of question marks? You don’t need to know what’s in there. All you need is the vision you’re holding, the clarity it takes to find the next spot to step in, & the willingness to keep walking. #emilyonlife pic.twitter.com/H39LBNM3AW — Emily McDowell (@emilymcdowell_) November 16, 2018 Although our student-led rehearsal experiment started out feeling a bit like that, I must admit, it is exciting watching and listening to these students as we head into the final stretch! Working hard in our final rehearsals before Wednesday’s big concert! 7pm, right here in the SCHS auditorium- join us for an evening filled with festive music and great aural feats! #RCSArts #RCSPride #WeAreSC pic.twitter.com/NDaRFOCC8Y — SCHS Bands (@SCHSBands) December 10, 2018 Our Winter Concert is tomorrow and all three ensembles have not only some great music to perform, but have made some really remarkable progress.  Musi...

One of my favorite band director sayings is "Excuses are like dirty gym socks... everyone has them and they all stink." Well today, not only were we able to debunk the "I'm not in choir, I'm in band" excuse regarding singing during rehearsals, but did so with an enthusiastic (!!) response.  Here's how it happened... In honor of the 200th anniversary of the classic holiday tune Silent Night , all three concert ensembles are currently working on Mannheim Steamroller's Stille Nacht for our upcoming Winter Concert. It's a beautiful arrangement by Chip Davis of this timeless melody; I've enjoyed both playing it and directing it with many ensembles. The last time I directed it was during my first year at SCHS as our very first "megaband" piece (meaning all three concert ensembles learn the piece and then we perform it together for our concert grand finale). It was during that performance that our headlining picture for our website was s...

It all started when this happened... George Couros came to Rochester Community Schools yesterday, inspiring hundreds of teachers in his wake. If you are not familiar with George Couros (@gcouros), he is the author of the widely recognized, highly regarded educational manifesto entitled "The Innovator's Mindset" as well regularly writing on his blog, The Principle of Change . There are many aspects of the "Innovator's Mindset" that I find appealing. We agree on many, many points: the power of positive connections, cultivating passion, and the need for teachers to give students space and voice to take charge of their learning. This tweet though, sums it up for me: When you have a compelling reason, you can learn ANYTHING. #RCSInnovate — Kristine Balinski (@MathTeacherMrsB) November 5, 2018 If students have a compelling reason to connect, they will put in the work. Teachers are the resource, students direct their own learning. As educators, espec...