A Christmas Interlude

On the off chance that someone, in addition to the tuba player, could use this, here is a version of this piece, arranged by John Edmondson, presented without any of the usual messy context.

http://youtu.be/dc6JckKczek for our email readers (Hi Guys!).

Christmas at the Movies

This piece is a medley of three movie themes, arranged by John Moss. Moss is a composer for films, as well as a writer and arranger of band and orchestra music for publisher Hal Leonard. Not surprisingly, he has also worked as a public school music teacher.

Here is a speedy version of the piece, from a high school band.

http://youtu.be/eqFhjAXWp8Y



And this is a slightly slower version, possibly from the publisher, by way of Japan.

http://youtu.be/m_Ufilu6pc4

It Came upon a Coventry Carol

This medley was created by Bill Calhoun. It was published this year, which might explain why there are no versions yet on YouTube. Here's a link to the publisher's audio file of the piece.

This piece combines two Christmas carols. It Came upon a Midnight Clear started out as a poem written in 1849 by Edmund Sears. The poem has been set to two different melodies. In North America, we are most familiar with the melody written by Richard Storrs Willis in 1850. This was a piece called Carol,and that is the melody used in this medley.

The second carol used in the medley is The Coventry Carol.  This carol is much older, originating in England in the 16th century. This haunting song is a mother's lament, as she fears for the life of her child, based on the biblical story of the Massacre of the Innocents.

Do you find it helpful when you're practising to know how the words fit the melodies? If so, here are a couple of videos that might help.

This is It Came upon a Midnight Clear by Kutless http://youtu.be/GaxB0xEbO0c.


And here's The Coventry Carol performed by Annie Lennox http://youtu.be/ltVWs4jDYsw


Now a question for you. What do you think of the combination of these two pieces in the medley we're playing. One is hopeful, the other is mournful. Do they work together?

New and Exciting Paperwork!

Can paperwork be exciting? Judge for yourself by downloading these pdf's for two upcoming events.

Trip to Chicago
The band goes on tour to the Windy City from April 24-27, 2013. Here is a pdf of the preliminary information. If you'd like to be part of this trip, please give Mr. McIlwain a deposit cheque for $200 by Nov. 15 (make your cheque out to ODSS Music Department).

Bandathon
Friday Nov. 30 is the day we play around the clock. Part fundraiser, part longest rehearsal ever. Lots of fun. A letter explaining the event, and the Consent Form can be downloaded here.

Timber Ridge Overture

Greetings, Radical Musicians!

This week, we feature another useful musical tool, gathered in a familiar formation.


The composer of the stirring Timber Ridge Overture is Gary Fagan. According to his bio, he was a music teacher and band instructor in middle and high schools for more than 35 years. He won several awards for his teaching. He is a percussionist, and composer with over 50 pieces published.

Here is a performance of Timber Ridge Overture by a high school band, with a full complement of percussionists.



Email readers, you can find the video here, or click through to the blog to see this post in its full glory.

Commemoration

Commemoration by Robert W. Smith was published in 1993.

Here's a link to the audio file, played by professional musicians:  http://listeninglab.stantons.com/title/commemoration/142729/?s=1

And here's a school band performing the piece.


 This is a link to the video for email readers: http://youtu.be/-3PMlIdr8Mw

The Incredibles

Is it just me, or is this piece hard to work on at home? It's like a paragraph that's all punctuation and no words.

Google to the rescue! There's not a lot out there, but we found a couple of examples.

Here's a link to the publisher's audio file, played by professional musicians.

Here's a high school band performing The Incredibles.


This is a link to the video, if you're reading this in your email.

Phew, now it makes more sense!

Celebration and Song

If you were trying to explain the meaning of Commencement to an alien from another planet, you could do a pretty good job of it just by showing him or her the titles of the pieces we're working on this month. From Pomp and Circumstance, Tribute and Triumph, Commemoration, Celebration and Song, and The Incredibles, we get the impression of a formal ritual to honour effort and accomplishment. (Of course, you'd want to explain to the alien that along with celebratory music, the best formal rituals always involve delicious food.)

Over the next few posts, we'll look at some of these rousing pieces we're working on for Commencement. Many thanks to Heather in the flute section for scouting out some videos!

Celebration and Song was composed by Robert Sheldon. A former public school music teacher and university music instructor, he is Concert Band Editor for Alfred Music Publishing. Celebration and Song was commissioned for the Hillsdale High School Wind Ensemble in Ohio.

Here's a high school band performing the piece.



Here's the link to the video, for email readers.

After hearing the version of Celebration and Song in this next video, I did some research on the group of performers. They have a webpage, which is written in Slovenian. Google Translate seemed to tell me that they are a long-standing community band, made up of young people and older people. I think they're pretty impressive (if you like this one, check out their version of Pirates of the Caribbean). What do you think?

Words to the Wise

Hello out there!
Here are your notes from last week's practice:

1. Remember to bring a pencil to rehearsals. Keeping one in your instrument case is a sure fire way to success. An eraser is also handy.
2. Journalling students keep journalling.
3. Practice next week is Thursday October 11 at usual time (staff meeting on Tuesday due to holiday Monday).
4. Commencement is in one month so get your chops ready for the processional. Remember last year we had to play a long time while the graduates filed in.
5. Stay tuned for Band-a-thon details. 

To think that so much success could come from such a small tool!

Rehearsal notes from September 18

Mrs. Wood in the trumpet section passes on two notes from this week's practice.

First, you are invited to consider joining the Orangeville Community Band, which meets weekly on Thursday evenings. This week (Sept. 20), the rehearsal is at The Maples School, at 7 pm. Here's a link to a pdf of a letter from Community Band Director John Wervers, inviting all interested and keen musicians to give Community Band a try.

Secondly, the band had some fun this week playing an arrangement of Nimrod from the Enigma Variations by Edward Elgar. Julie suggests a couple of versions of the piece for your enjoyment and edification.




Email readers, please click through to the blog to view these two videos.

If you are curious about the enigma(s) associated with the Enigma Variations, check out this article from Wikipedia.

Cheerio for now!

Happy New Year!

Hi Everyone,

Welcome back to a new school year! Band starts up next Tuesday, Sept. 11 at 3:15. Here's a pdf of a letter from Mr. McIlwain, outlining the expectations for the year, and listing the practice and performance dates.

Have a great first week of school, and see you next week!

Congratulations!

image by IITA Image Library, from Flickr

When we were at the Dufferin Youth Festival of the Arts earlier this month, the winners of this year's Award of Excellence in the Arts were announced.  This award celebrates exceptional commitment to the arts in our education community, which includes elementary and secondary schools from public, separate, and French boards; private schools; as well as homeschoolers.

Four awards will be presented this year:  two to teachers, and two to DYFA volunteers.  Mr. Doug McIlwain will be the recipient of one of this year's teacher awards.  Here's a quote from one of the people who nominated him for the award:

The job of music teacher at the secondary school level is a very busy, challenging and time consuming one requiring much patience and dedication. Doug McIlwain has shown these qualities time and time again and he exudes such continuing passion for music and for his role in the lives of the young people with whom he works ... My daughter and I share the utmost respect for Doug McIlwain as a music teacher and a person who demonstrates his love of music on a daily basis. I think he would be an excellent choice for the Award of Excellence in the Arts. (from the DYFA webpage)

Congratulations, Mr. McIlwain!!! On behalf of your vocal and instrumental music students, past and present; their parents; and your many admirers; I'd like to say thank you for your hard work and support for music at ODSS, in Dufferin, and at the DYFA!

The awards ceremony will take place on Wed., May 23, at 4pm, at Princess Margaret School. The other three nominees are: Joyce Turek who teaches at East Garafraxa Public School, and DYFA volunteers Kathy Ayliffe and Pam Claridge.  Congratulations to all award recipients!  We are all richer because of your dedication to the arts.

Happy Tuba Day!

Image by zoonabar, from Flickr

Yes, today is International Tuba Day, celebrated on the first Friday in May.  I like to think of it as Take a Tuba Player Out for Lunch Day, but you can adapt this to fit the tuba players in your life.  If your household does not have a resident tuba player, you can always appreciate good tuba playing live or online.


Here's the musician I am appreciating today.  His name is Alfredo Herrejon. His tuba playing on this recording by the Mexican group Banda Los Tierra Blanca in 1997 has been very influential for Mexican banda players.  I don't know if flames shoot from his tuba when he plays, but I bet his lips feel pretty fiery.  I hope you enjoy it.





Email readers, please click through to the blog, or try this link to the video on YouTube http://youtu.be/EO55LtuZCcU

Aren't they beautiful?
Image by tango.mceffrie, from Flickr

Rehearsal Notes from May 1

photo by Peter E. Lee, from Flickr

DYFA Tuesday, May 8

• bus leaves at 8:30
• black and white dress
• bring a lunch as the caf. may not be open by the time we return to school

Spring Concert Wednesday, May 9

• please sell tickets
• 6:15 call time, playing at 7:00
• black and white dress, pick up vest and bow ties at school that evening
• clean up works like this:  
• 
• after the clean up:  Dairy Queen!!!

Repertoire for a Busy Week

Creed

Redlands March

Tales of Sea and Sail

Toy Story

Wicked

Pirates

Danza

Sneak Attack

Fidelity

Fidelity March

What with the snow day and the cancellation of rehearsal last week, we are still in the dark about what pieces we'll need to have ready for DYFA and the spring concert.  This works out well for me, because I can fit in a post about this march, one of my favourites of the pieces we're playing this semester.

Old Mapleton Circus Band, by Beige Alert, from Flickr

Mr. McIlwain has told us that this piece has a circus feel.  Composer Karl L. King was working as a circus musician in 1912, when he wrote this march, as his page on Wikipedia tells us.  King is most famous for composing the march Barnum & Bailey's Favorite (here's a link to a frighteningly fast version) and he spent some time as bandmaster of the Barnum & Bailey Circus band.  He was a prolific composer, and one of the first to write specifically for school bands.

This arrangement of Fidelity, by Andrew Glover, is new (2011). There are no performances available yet on YouTube, except for this one created for the publisher by professional musicians.

 
Email readers, please click through to the blog, or click on this link to the video.

When I hear this piece, I imagine a sunny afternoon and a band playing in a town square during a municipal gathering, such as a ribbon-cutting or an apple-pie-eating contest. The mood is festive.  Meanwhile, the sneaky guys from Sneak Attack! are tiptoeing around town, up to some sort of mischief involving the creation of street art or the placing of smart cars in public fountains.  And the band plays on...

Rehearsal notes from April 17

photo by Harald Groven, from Flickr

Here are links to pdf's of the permission forms given out this week.  Please return these forms by May 1.

DYFA permission form

West Side Story permission form

On Tuesday, May 15, we will have a final meet-up for the year, from 7-8pm 3:15-4:15.  Here, we will return and sort our music, talk about plans for next year, and eat food, glorious food.

YouTube gets personal

What is the sound of 185 musicians playing together?

These are the four mass band pieces, some of the titles are mixed up.  Email readers, please click through to the blog to see the videos.

Pirates of the Caribbean (Soundtrack Highlights)

Is there such a thing as total originality?  Or is every creation built on the work of others?  The movie  Pirates of the Caribbean seems to owe a great debt of inspiration to the work of others.  It is also an example of the collaborative nature of pop culture product.  This is certainly true of the creation of the soundtrack.

Our copy of the piece credits the composition to Klaus Badelt.  But composition of the soundtrack appears to have been a hasty collaborative effort among Badelt, his employer Hans Zimmer, and several other colleagues, according to Wikipedia, with much of the credit for the main themes claimed later by Zimmer.  One critic suggested that the soundtrack's themes were recycled from earlier Zimmer projects, and bemoaned the departure from traditional pirate movie music of the swashbuckling variety.

Despite its cloudy origins, medleys of the soundtrack appear to be very popular for bands and symphonies.  The version we're playing this year is arranged by Ted Ricketts, who for 24 years was Music Director and Producer at Walt Disney World, and has composed or arranged over 80 pieces for music publisher Hal Leonard.

Here are a couple of performances of the Rickett's arrangement.  This one is by a middle school band.



This version is by high school band from Osaka, Japan (I think they have a gong - check me on this).

Practice These

Here's the list from this week's rehearsal, with links to blog posts that offer audio/video:

Fidelity
Creed
Redlands March
Music from Wicked
Danza del Fuego
Tales of Sea and Sail
Toy Story
Sneak Attack
Pirates of the Caribbean

Image by mag3737, from Flickr

Youth Concert Info Nuggets

 

• Thursday, April 5, 7:00pm call time
• Meet in the music room
• White shirt, black pants, shoes and socks

If you were at the mass band practice last week, or you've been part of this concert before, you'll know that it is somewhat of an overwhelming experience to play together with so many other musicians.  Even finding a seat and a stand in that large group is a challenge, let alone hearing what's going on and adapting to different conductors.  When we're in an overwhelming situation, we focus on our own survival first, and think about the big picture later.

Here's a bit of context to help with that bigger picture.  The Community Band (here's their website) is made up of adults and youth from the Dufferin area.  The band provides a forum for adults to pursue the concert band experience.  Many communities have bands such as this; consider seeking one out (or starting one!) after you finish high school.

A major goal of our local Community Band is to "to provide adult mentorship for our youth in their study of music", per their website.  This is done both by including younger players in the Band, and by arranging an annual concert with elementary and high school bands.  Although there is no admission fee for the concert on Thursday, voluntary donations will be matched by the Community Band (up to $500), and will go to support music programs at the participating elementary schools.  And the experience of the rehearsal and concert also supplies opportunities for individual mentoring.

OK, what does this mean for us?  First things first:  make sure you are as comfortable as you can, with a chair and a stand for yourself or to share.  Make sure you can see the conductor, and they can see you.  The usual stuff, magnified in significance by the size of the mass band.

I took a little survey last Tuesday of the students sitting near me at rehearsal, asking them for advice on how to survive the strangeness of the mass band experience.  Here are some of their suggestions:

• the audience doesn't know the piece by heart, so they won't know if you make a mistake
• if you do make one, stop if you have to, don't panic and come back in when you can
• if you get lost, listen to what the more experienced players are doing
• don't worry if you have to drop out for a moment

Now that you have a bigger picture of the Youth Concert and some advice on surviving and thriving there, I have one final suggestion, which is that you embrace this concert as a singular event.  There won't be too many times in your life when you get to play in such a large group.  And singular events create opportunities.  

If I were to draw a Venn diagram of the Youth Concert, it would be a bunch of little circles representing the various individual bands, all surrounded by a larger circle representing concert band musicians in the Dufferin area.  Kind of a boring visual, and possibly an illegal use of a Venn diagram, but you get the picture:  we all have concert band musicianship in common.  So, if you sit down next to a stranger, reach out across that commonality, and strike up a conversation. Could be the start of making beautiful music together.

Youth Concert Pieces

Hello Everyone,

Here's a post looking at the three high school pieces we're preparing for the Community Band/Youth Concert on Thursday, April 5.  These three pieces are quite complementary perhaps partly because they have some factors in common.  Two of them are written by the same composer/arranger, and two of them are based on maritime work songs, known as sea shanties.  But what do the other two have in common?

Tales of Sea and Sail
You'll remember composer Larry Neeck, who also wrote Saxes Will Rock!, which we played last semester.

This piece is a medley of several sea shanties (or chanties).  These were songs sung by ships' crews in the 1800's.  They sang while working together to load/unload, haul on ropes, and pump out bilges, etc.  Singing together helped maintain a rhythm while working.  Wikipedia explains:  "Shanty repertoire borrowed from the contemporary popular music enjoyed by sailors, including minstrel music, popular marches, and land-based folk songs, which were adapted to suit musical forms matching the various labor tasks required to operate a sailing ship. Such tasks, which usually required a coordinated group effort in either a pulling or pushing action, included weighing anchor and setting sail."  Seems like a fitting metaphor for the group effort of the Youth Concert!


Tales of Sea and Sail contains excerpts from the following sea shanties:  "A Roving", "Blow The Man Down", "Rio Grande", "Shenandoah", "Drunken Sailor", and "Santy Anna."


I couldn't find any examples of this piece on YouTube.  Here is a partial version (up to bar 157), from the publisher's webpage.

Ravensgate
Here's a link to the bio of composer Carl Strommen.  This is a link to the professional version of Ravensgate, on the publishers webpage.

And here are some versions by school bands:





Ahhhhhh.  Smell that sea air!!!

Under an Irish Sky
This medley, arranged by Larry Neeck, contains two Irish traditional folk tunes:  Slane (also the name of a village in County Meath, Ireland which is the site of a large annual rock festival) and Brian Boru's March.

Here's the publisher's partial version of the piece (up to bar 97).

And here's a version by a middle school band.

West Side Story Payment is due this week

A quick and gentle reminder for those who have committed to the field trip to see West Side Story and dine at the Mandarin in Toronto.  Final payment  of $60 is due on Tuesday March 20.  Please make out cheques to Orangeville District Secondary School.

Some tickets may still be available, if you haven't already signed up.  Talk to Mr McIlwain if you'd like to attend.

image by djwudi, from Flickr

Wicked

image by WxMom, from Flickr

Once upon a time, there was a man named L. Frank Baum.  He was an American journalist, actor, salesman and chicken fancier, but most significantly for us, he was an author of children's stories.  His best known work is the series of novels set in the land of Oz, beginning with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, published in 1900.

image from LibraryThing

This book has had a profound effect on popular culture, spawning sequels, plays and films, influencing fashion, language and the American psyche.  Am I over-reaching to state that we all have experience of some aspect of Baum's creation?

image from LibraryThing

The writer Gregory Maguire was also inspired by the world that Baum created, and by the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, starring Judy Garland.  Maguire has written four novels set in Oz.  These stories provide an alternate viewpoint of the incidents described in Baum's books, focussing on the witches.

The Broadway musical, Wicked, was based on the first of Maguire's novels, Wicked:  the Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West.  Music and lyrics are by Stephen Schwartz (who also wrote the lyrics for the movies Pochahontas, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and both music and lyrics for The Prince of Egypt).  The musical tells the life story of the Wicked Witch of the West, whose name, Elphaba, is an amalgam of the initials of L. Frank Baum.

The Wikipedia entry for Wicked (musical), contains some interesting factoids.  For example, as an homage to Harold Arlen, the composer of the movie The Wizard of Oz, Schwartz used the first seven notes of "Over the Rainbow" as part of a recurring theme throughout the score, including in the song "Defying Gravity".  As well, you may already know that two songs from Wicked have been covered on the tv show Glee:  "Defying Gravity" and "For Good."

And now, let's turn to the arrangement of Wicked songs that we're playing.  According to his entry in Wikipedia, the arranger, Michael Sweeney, is a full time employee of music publisher Hal Leonard, where he is Director of Band Publications.  Like many of the composers and arrangers whose works we are playing, Sweeney is a former public school music teacher.  He's composed/arranged over 500 publications (including one called "When Drummers Take Over the World", a prospect both delightful and frightening to contemplate*).

Here's a link to the Music from Wicked audio file on the publisher's webpage, played by professional musicians.

Here's a version by a middle school band.

*Edited to clarify that I make this joke as a member of the support group Parents of Percussionists, and also to add in this link to a performance of the awesome "When Drummers Take Over the World."

Reference
Murphy, B. (2000). L. Frank Baum. Dictionary Of World Biography: The 19th Century, 1-3.

Band Social Feb. 21 and Redlands March

This semester's Band Social will take place after the rehearsal next Tuesday, from 5:00 to approx. 8:30 pm.  Organized by the Band Executive, this social time will give us all a chance to welcome new band members and get to know each other better.  Pizza will be served for dinner, and we'll watch the movie August Rush, all for $4.00.

image by rob_rob2001, from Flickr

I couldn't find any videos for the piece Redlands March.  But here is a link to the publisher's page, with an audio version played by pro's.

The composer is Steve Hodges.  He has written more than 100 pieces for concert bands and his music has been used for programming on TBS and ESPN.  He is a public school music director.

The publisher describes Redlands March:

A dynamic introduction leads to a stirring trumpet duet that opens this regal march by Steve Hodges. Everyone is involved in the melodic content throughout the piece and they will enjoy the unique treatment of the standard march trio and 'dogfight' sections.

Dogfight?  Trio?  Time to consult Wikipedia.  The entry for March (music) explains:

Marches frequently have a penultimate dogfight strain in which two groups of instruments (high/low, woodwind/brass, etc.) alternate in a statement/response format. In most traditional American marches, there are three strains. The third strain is referred to as the "trio".

Getting to Carnegie Hall

The semester changeover means that some students have finished up their music classes for the term, and some will be just starting them.   This leads to a different practice routine than you've been having for the first semester.  Maybe this is a good time to freshen up your practicing.  Here are a few tidbits that might inspire you.

• According to one theory, it takes 21 days for a new habit to take hold.  That means, if you decide that you're going to practice every day, it will take 21 days of remembering to practice and doing so, before this habit becomes, well, habitual.  So, the first 21 days of practicing will require the most effort to remember and do, after that, your practice routine will seem natural to you.  Here's an opposing view of this theory.
• Mastery of a skill comes after 10,000 hours of practice.  If you practice for 1 hour a day, that would be 27 years worth of practice.  If you practice for 20 hours a week, you'll achieve 10,000 hours in ten years.  Make of that what you will.  Bottom line, the more practice, the better.  Classroom and band playing time will count toward your 10,000 hours.

10,000 hours starts now!  (Image by sierraromeo, from Flickr)

Two elements of successful development of good habits:  accountability and support.  These are a cornerstone of groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous, and Weight Watchers.  For instance, in Weight Watchers, participants keep a log of how much they eat and exercise and attend a weekly weigh-in to keep track of their progress at losing weight.  They meet as a group to celebrate progress, and support each other during the difficult time of weight loss.  How does that apply to us? 

Some thoughts on accountability and support:

• How will we know when we've reached 10,000 hours of practice (aside from the praise being heaped upon us by our music teacher, and audiences everywhere)?  Practice log, baby.  And not just to keep track of the amount of time you've put in, but also to record what you've been working on; how it's going; any questions you might have for your teacher or section-mates, and maybe even to plan what you'll work on next.  So grab a cool notebook, start a spreadsheet, or download an app (such as Just Practice! for Apple devices) and become accountable to yourself.
• We had a great example of the rewards of practice and group accountability before Christmas when the sax section showed us how well they'd memorized Saxes Will Rock.  Very impressive, guys and girl!
• It's easy to bail on a practice by yourself.  Not so easy if you've made an arrangement to practice with someone else.  Consider arranging an informal sectional, or cross-band practice section (tuba/flute perhaps).  Maybe at lunchtime or by conference call?
• Would it be fun to arrange an hour where we all committed to practicing at home at the same time?  Would that even be possible?

We'd love to know what you think of these ideas.  Do you have any practice tips that could help your fellow band members?  Any creative suggestions to enhance group accountability/support?  No idea is too crazy...

Meanwhile, as I am woefully far from 10,000 hours, and our next rehearsal is less than a week away on Feb. 7, I'd better stop blogging and go act accountable.  I leave you with this thought:

Practicing is an act of faith.  The practicing that you do now is your down payment for next year and years to come.                 

John Perry, professor of piano, from the book Making Music for the Joy of It, by Stephanie Judy