“It’s your program; the Director is just here to organize it”. Band kids have heard this from me for years, but it is truly a pleasant surprise when they do exactly what this implies and step up into leadership roles. A previous Band Notes column has already shared the story of how the amazing senior class of BHS Band members worked together to ensure their program’s continued success, during the medical leave of their director. I am happy to share that the JFH Jazz Band kids rose to the occasion and topped off my faith in teenagers this week. While I was off work for a couple of days, they not only finished preparing music for an upcoming performance without a director; they also modified the plans we had for covering solos, and adjusted the number of background people playing, to balance and be sure those solos are heard. One of the kids sent me an email to keep me in the loop of how things went in rehearsal, and another asked if he could run a Thursday morning rehearsal, to share what they had accomplished. It was so cool to see 13 yr old kids take ownership, make intelligent decisions about how to improve the music, make sure everyone involved was satisfied with the outcome, and even fairly credit the ones who came up with the ideas. Band kids are amazing.
Spring is always an exciting time of year in Band, as we reach a point where we can really use and apply the musical and leadership skills, we have been working so hard to master since day one. As we start planning in detail for next year and build new plans for the future of the Band program, we also learn who our next generation of Band family will include. We won’t know who the rising sixth grade Band members are for a while yet, but I am excited to see the majority of current members planning to come back as 7th grade and 8th grade Band members next year, along with many new beginners, who are joining established classes as 7th and 8th graders. This brings to mind my favorite Band quote–” No one sits the bench in Band; In Band, everyone plays.” As it should be.
Musical Mastery
JFHMS just closed the musical Anastasia Youth, and the number of people who worked together to create this performance is significant. The students, parents and teachers who worked with the middle school show are all exhausted and deserve a well-earned rest. BRAVO on a performance that was extremely well done. My “Producer’s Note” from the show program rings true!
“I am so blown away watching Ms. Orfanides pull together a million pieces to create our incredible show. Putting on a production of this scale takes many helping hands, and we are incredibly lucky to have the support of our “Village’, made up of parents and many theatre veterans who have been involved in previous productions; we would be lost without all the help answering questions, coming up with costumes, props and sets, letting the world know we exist with our advertising campaign, and much more. The ability and work ethic of the kids is amazing, especially the 8th graders–they’ve grown in so many ways, but most importantly they have grown together. I am especially grateful for the blueprint format that we have and follow daily, (“the Woofter Method”) for putting together a show! Our previous director Jenny Woofter once said, “When theatre is done right, it really does feel like a big family, and that is what we have worked hard to create here at JFHMS.”
I couldn’t have said that better myself! –MizB
