It’s an undeniable fact that overall, community music ensembles give good, but less-than-stellar performances. Most of us community band members do not make a living performing music, even though many of us maintain a professional mindset and can play quite well. We listen to professional musicians perform in venues from famous concert halls and jazz […]
Switching Musical Gears
I just left a concert band I’ve played with for 25 years. Naturally, I have mixed emotions. Stick with any group of people for that long and you’ll eventually get some life-long friends. I’ll miss seeing these friends on a weekly basis, but I’m also excited to (audition and, presumably) start rehearsing with a relatively […]
Sounds of Remembrance
Each musical instrument is known for its distinct tone qualities and/or abilities: the haunting sweetness of the violin, the circus-like slide of the trombone, the patriotic tattoo of the snare drum, the smooth vivacity of the saxophone, and others. All have concertos or other solo pieces written specifically for them, and we recognize their sounds […]
How to Name Your New Ensemble
It’s not as easy as you might think, especially if you’re serious about the future of your group. I formed a new brass quintet earlier this year, and here we are, many months later, still winding our way through the forest of indecision. Don’t get me wrong – we’re dedicated to becoming an excellent group, […]
I Wanna Be Like You – Stories from the Jungle
Now and then throughout your life journey, you will likely come across a person, place, item, or event that reminds you of something from your childhood. These different reminders may happen more than once, but point you to the same memory from your formative years. For me, a few of these reminders harkened back to […]