Final Holiday Music Posting - The Kwanzaa Playlist!

Today is the third day of Kwanzaa. This seven-day celebration of African culture is a chance for people of African descent throughout the diaspora to reaffirm their communal ties and to celebrate their culture. Although I am white, I have spent years studying African-American music, so I humbly offer this list to anyone who would like to know more about the contributions made by blacks to our national quilt. Happy listening!

Scott Joplin, "Maple Leaf Rag"
One of the first African-American composers and the King of Ragtime

Muddy Waters, "I Be's Troubled"
America's greatest bluesman (in my opinion), as recorded when he was a sharecropper in Mississippi, before he became a Chicago legend

"Lift Every Voice and Sing"
This is the African-American National Anthem, written by James Weldon Johnson and J. Rosamond Johnson. Read more here.

Duke Ellington, "Ko-Ko"
One of America's greatest composers and songwriters, this is an example of his wonderful band at the height of its residence in Harlem at the Cotton Club.

William Grant Still, "Afro-American Symphony"
Known as the "Dean of African American Composers," he combined 20th century classical techniques with the folksongs and blues of his heritage.

Billie Holiday, "Strange Fruit"
A controversial song about the practice of lynching by one of the great vocalists in jazz history.

John Coltrane, "A Love Supreme"
Jazz tenor saxophonist makes his most personal spiritual statement with his quartet.

Little Richard, "Good Golly Miss Molly"
Over-the-top-performer at his most rambunctious--a classic of early rock.

Stevie Wonder, "Fingertips, Pt. II"
The first of many #1 hits for "Little" Stevie Wonder which made him the most famous 12-year old in the country.

Ray Charles, "Hit the Road Jack"
Bluesy, soulful, and gritty--a true American original

James Brown, "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag"
The Godfather of Soul whose band was always killing--he defined what a live performance could be.

George Clinton, "P Funk (Wants to Get Funked Up)"
Another unique performer who, along with Sly and the Family Stone, set the standard for funk music.

Prince, "When Doves Cry"
A combination of Little Richard, Jimi Hendrix, and Sly Stone who was all over the airwaves in the 1980s.

Public Enemy, "Fight the Power"
When other rappers were advocating random acts of violence, PE was calling for blacks to work for positive change.

And this barely scratches the surface--I haven't mentioned Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Michael Jackson, the Fisk Jubilee Singers, Gil Scott Heron, Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers, Chuck Berry, Buddy Guy...It's a start anyway. So to all of our African-American students and their families, have a blessed Kwanzaa!

More Holiday Music - Top Sacred Songs

In the penultimate installment of my romp through holiday music, here are my favorite sacred Christmas songs. In other words, these actually reference the religious basis of the holiday, the birth of Christ. My reasons for choosing them, however, are usually musical rather than textual. I don't often focus on lyrics, even when I'm singing these songs in church. I'm usually listening to the harmonies and the bass line. Anyway, here are my top 13:

13. O Come, O Come Emmanuel - The lyrics actually date back to the 9th century!

12. God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen - One of the first carols I ever arranged in a jazz version, when I wrote it for my wife's jazz combo at Lake Forest Country Day School

11. O Little Town of Bethlehem - A gentle carol with a sinuous melody--perfect for a late night Christmas Eve service

10. The First Nowell - One of the great old English carols, complete with the old-fashioned, non-French spelling of "Nowell"

9. In the Bleak Midwinter - This one was written by English composer Gustav Holst--we played it in SB and WE as part of our Holst unit--really cool modal harmonies

8. We Three Kings - Sounds great as a modal jazz waltz a la John Coltrane and My Favorite Things

7. Ding Dong Merrily on High - In high school, I sang in a choir that did a bunch of old English carols like this one every December - my favorite line: "and e-o-e-o-e-o!"

6. Do You Hear What I Hear - My parents had a version by Bing Crosby on one of their Christmas records, and I always thought this one sounded so haunting. It must be the mixolydian mode they used in the arrangement.

5. The Little Drummer Boy - Pa-rum-pa-pum-pum, indeed! There was a stop-motion animation version of this that was done by the same people who did the Rudolph TV show. It's a shame it was never as popular.

4. Coventry Carol - Another one of those spooky songs from high school choir. It starts with the lyrics "Lully, lullay..." I never did figure out what that meant...

3. Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming - This dates back to the 1500s, by Michael Praetorius. I love the Renaissance sound to this one.

2. Angels We Have Heard on High - The polyphonic "gloria" section makes as spirited refrain as any.

1. Joy to the World - This one, by Handel, sounds like a vocal fanfare, complete with antiphonal call and response between treble and bass at the end.

So there you have it, my top Christmas songs for the season. Merry Christmas to all who celebrate, and to everyone, enjoy the time with family and friends!

NEXT UP: My killer Kwanzaa playlist!

Dissertation Defense

This morning, I got up, went for a run at the club, came home, had breakfast, put on my nicest red, gray, and black outfit for good luck, and logged on to my computer to defend my dissertation. My professors were online for the video chat, two in Boston and one in Minneapolis. I began by reading a review of all of my research with accompanying PowerPoint slideshow. This took about 30 minutes, after which each professor asked me questions about what I had discussed and what was written in the actual dissertation. Then they told me to go offline while they discussed my presentation and answers. After about twenty minutes, I received a phone call to log back on, at which time my primary professor congratulated me on a successful defense and told me that I am now officially Dr. Brame. Then he gave me the final revisions I need to make before submitting my document for binding and graduating on January 31. So while my work is not quite done, my degree is.

Thanks to all of my students, friends, colleagues, and family for all of your support and encouragement. It has been quite a journey, and I am grateful that you all accompanied me on it.

Happy Holidays!

Dr. B

More Holiday Music - Top Secular Christmas Songs

In choral music, we often discuss the text as either "sacred" or "secular." Sacred texts are religious in nature, whether chanting the Qu'ran, singing a Hebrew Psalm, or performing a Christian Gloria. Secular lyrics are everything else--songs about love, cars, pizza, you name it. So it sounds somewhat contradictory to refer to "secular Christmas songs." However, Christmas is, for better or worse, as much a cultural holiday as it is a religious one. Thus, there are many songs about Christmas that never mention Mary, Joseph, and Jesus. Here are my top ten, in reverse order:

10. White Christmas - a dreamy, chromatic melody, written by a Jewish songwriter named Irving Berlin that was at one time the single most recorded song in history

9. It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas - just a fun tune about how our environment changes as the wreaths and lights go up

8. I'll Be Home for Christmas - a sad song about being away from loved ones during the holidays (the punchline is "if only in my dreams")

7. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Judy Garland staring longingly out a window--beautifully poignant

6. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town - you better watch out!

5. We Wish You a Merry Christmas - a great old English song that is about as cheerful as they come, but does anybody really like "figgy pudding"?

4. The Christmas Song - you probably know it as "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire..." - one of the jazziest Christmas songs of all, with great chord changes to boot!

3. Silver Bells - the city dresses up for Christmas

2. The Twelve Days of Christmas - every year the newscasts tell us that the cost of the twelve days has gone up yet again (I guess it has to do with the price of gold and poultry)

1. Christmas Time Is Here - from the Charlie Brown special--such a lovely melody and hip chords--this one is my all-time favorite!

NEXT TIME - Top Sacred Christmas Songs

More Holiday Music - Top Winter Songs

Here are my top nine favorite non-denominational winter songs:

9. Happy Holidays - kind of a generic old song that Bing Crosby sang in "Holiday Inn"

8. Auld Lang Syne - an old Scottish song that has become synonymous with New Year's Eve, and a funky favorite of the DHS Jazz Band

7. Jingle Bell Rock - one of the first rock songs to celebrate the season

6. Frosty the Snowman - turned into a fun cartoon special hosted by Jimmy Durante (I always thought Karen was very cute!)

5. Jingle Bells - the chorus is a bit plain, but the verses tell a fun story about flirting during an out-of-control sleigh ride

4. Baby It's Cold Outside - another great song about flirting, this time over hot chocolate during a blizzard--very appropriate for today's weather!

3. Let It Snow - what a great melody--all those wide leaps and descending scales--great lyrics again about staying in on a snow day

2. Winter Wonderland - more snow, snow, snow, over a jazz progression

1. Sleigh Ride - the Leroy Anderson classic that was the highlight of many a DHS holiday band concert

COMING SOON: my top lists of Christmas carols, both sacred and secular, and my Kwanzaa playlist

Jazz Band at the School Chest Benefit

Here we are at the Deerfield Hyatt, performing for the silent auction portion of tonight's School Chest Benefit Dinner. This year, DHS is raising funds for Bear Necessities, a foundation that works to make life a little better for kids with cancer and their families. You can get more information about this year's drive here.

Citrus Time Is Here!

Photo courtesy Katie Conroy.

Today we have a lovely, snowy backdrop to our citrus unloading. All of the band, choir, and orchestra students are in long, human conveyor belts to empty the truck and fill R-Hall with the happy smells of oranges, grapefruit, and cardboard boxes. Mmm--nothing says "happy holidays" like cardboard boxes! As always, everybody is having a good time, making new friends, and getting a great workout.

Happy Hanukkah!

We're now just about halfway through the annual Festival of Lights, and I wanted to share an interesting NPR story with you about holiday music. It features a new Hanukkah song by Matisyahu, who just might be the only Hasidic reggae rapper/singersongwriter around. You can listen to the story, which includes an acoustic version of "Miracle," and you can watch the rather confusing but amusing video.

This time of year, you can hear Christmas music everywhere, with some radio stations going to a 24/7 Christmas format (too much of a good thing!). So, to offer a little balance, here are my favorite Hanukkah songs:

5. Maoz Tzur (Rock of Ages) - This is a very old song that was set to a German folk song.
4. The Dreydl Song - A classic kids song that sounds like a nursery rhyme. A Jewish equivalent of "Up on the Housetop."
3. Hanukkah, Hanukkah - Another kids tune with a fairly unimaginative name.
2. Hanukkah, Oh Hanukkah - Not to be confused with the above song. This one is a DHS jazz band favorite--we do it in a revved up klezmer styles.
1. S'Vivon - A much more interesting song about dreydls. I arranged this for the Wind Ensemble to play a few years back, and Mr. V added string parts so the orchestra could play it last year. My all-time favorite!

I'd add in Adam Sandler's clever and humorous Hanukkah song, but I had to ban him from the list for the gratuitous drug reference near the end. Tsk, tsk.

Over the next couple of weeks, I'll be back with my favorite non-specific winter songs, secular Christmas songs, sacred Christmas songs, and a killer Kwanza playlist. Until then, enjoy the coming snow storm!

UPDATE: I did some research and came across this NPR segment where a rabbi tries to explain how to spell this holiday in English with the Roman alphabet. Since "Hanukkah" seems to be the most common spelling and is favored by the New York Times and Chicago Tribune, I've fixed it in the headline and text above. An extra bonus is some clips from another cool Hanukkah song by The LeeVees, who have a whole album called "Hannukah Rocks." (Note the alternate spelling, and also note that the rabbi in the story preferred "Chanukkah.")

Happy Thanksgiving!

I want to wish all the the friends of family of the DHS Bands a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving! It's been very busy down here in R-Hall, and I think we are all looking forward to some rest and relaxation. Two weeks ago we put on a fine fall concert, and our future band members from Shepard, Caruso, Holy Cross, and Bannockburn joined us for one number as a foretaste of what I hope will be four great years to come. We had two straight Saturdays at the IMEA festivals. The band/choir/orchestra fest was at Glenbrook South (my alma mater), and Emma Martin (bassoon), Will Barkalow (clarinet), and Logan Bloom (trombone) represented DHS quite well. The jazz fest was at Lake Zurich, and we had five band members involved: Logan Bloom (trombone), Carter Griffin (trombone), and Kenny Thompson (guitar) all played in the bands, and Nathan Fertig and Rahm Silverglade sang in the choir. All five students were featured soloists during the concert. Way to go!

This morning, being the last day before break, meant another traditional front hall performance for the jazz band. We played three world premieres: "Rush Hour" by Tom Bonadies, "An Idea" by Aaron Gundersheimer, and "Hindsight" by Kenny Thompson. It was great to play for people as they came in to school. This afternoon will be the Grandparents Day Concert, so the Warrior Marching Band will serenade the crowd with the fight song, "Warrior Spirit," and music from our 50s Sock Hop show.

We've also been busy with chamber music, including the Symphonic Band's first ever chance to split into small groups. We've already heard the saxophone section performing a movement from a concerto grosso by Corelli, a percussion ensemble, and a brass choir playing a piece by Michael Haydn. The Wind Ensemble is in the process of choosing their chamber repertoire, and the freshmen did a body percussion composition project to study how meter is used in music. In addition, SB and WE have been studying klezmer music as part of a year-long exploration of Jewish music and musicians.

Like I said, we've been busy...

So in closing, I leave you with a fine song of Thanksgiving. No, it's not the Dutch hymn "We Gather Together." It's Sly and the Family Stone singing "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)." Enjoy!

Dissertation Update

My supervisor sent me an email today with the second reader's comments on Chapters 1-4. I knew I was in trouble when I read the first line: "You've got lots of work to do." My second reader really went through my paper with a fine-toothed comb; most pages have multiple comments and corrections. Some are easy enough, like changes in wording, but others require me to go back to sources I haven't looked at since the summer of 2008 to get more information. Still others challenge my methods and conclusions. It's pretty daunting, but she is trying to make sure I plug up any holes in my study so that it can stand up to the grilling of the defense committee. I do appreciate how hard she is making me work--really, I do! (Does it sound like I'm trying to convince myself?)

And so, the saga continues!

Penny Wars!

Kudos to the DHS Concert Band for raising over $300 in the Freshman Advisory drive to restock the Deerfield Township Food Pantry! This annual challenge began by dividing the band into three teams, each led by a senior advisor. Then the students brought in all of their loose change to fill their team jugs and earn points. They were also able to sabotage the other teams by adding paper money to their opponents' jugs, which counted as negative points. In the end, Team Logan (the trumpets and low brass) emerged victorious over Team Tracey and Team Maura. The real winners, however, are the needy people in our community who will benefit from the food pantry. Way to go freshmen!

Alas...

Well, we didn't make it to the finals of the 87.7 Smooth Jazz Battle of the High School Jazz Bands. Considering ours was a very last minute decision and entry, I'm not surprised, but congratulations to the four fine bands who will get to battle it out for the championship on November 17: the Wheeling High School Jazz Band 1, the Oak Park and River Forest High School Jazz Ensemble, the Chicago Academy for the Arts Jazz Combo and the Warren Township High School Jazz Ensemble. Best of luck to them all!

In any event, we will be performing our entry, "Contemplation," at the fall band concert this coming Monday night at 7:00PM. Come out and hear it in its final form!

DHS Jazz Band Enters 87.7FM Battle of the High School Jazz Bands!

So I got a bunch of emails and phone calls from Chicago's Smooth 87.7FM, the new smooth jazz station in town, about a competition they are having for local jazz bands. It's co-sponsored by Roosevelt University and U.S. Cellular, and the top four bands get to perform live at Roosevelt in November for the grand prize. As a last minute decision, we decided to make a hasty entry on a piece that we've been arranging for the concert on the 8th. It's a great McCoy Tyner piece called "Contemplation," and we brainstormed a number of ideas about how to do it. Based on student input, I wrote up some voicings, passed them out this morning, and we got it into shape as quickly as possible. The recording is rough, but I'm hoping the judges hear that we are doing some sophisticated work. Who knows, maybe we'll get to go downtown and compete?

The entry process taxed my technical skills! I had to record the group on my Yamaha Pocketrak 2G, download it to my computer, and edit the soundfile. Next, I had to create a YouTube account, something which I had never done. Then I had to find a service that help me create a video from the mp3 audio file and a single screenshot with the band name and title of the piece. Once it was posted on YouTube, I completed our entry by sending in the url of our video. An hour and a half later, we were up and running.

Wish us luck!

Dissertation Update

My advisor approved all of my edits, so now it's on to the second reader. I'll hear back from her in a few weeks, so I have a bit of time off. That will come in handy, since DHS grades are due next week, and the papers and projects are beginning to pile up a bit! Assuming that all goes well, I'll have a practice defense during the first week of December and the real thing before break. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter and brighter!

Google Celebrates Dizzy Gillespie

From time to time, the search engine Google replaces its standard logo with a creative "doodle" that transforms the design into a picture that commemorates a special event, such as a holiday or the Olympics. Recently, they had a John Lennon doodle to celebrate his 70th birthday. Today, they feature Dizzy Gillespie, one of the greatest jazz trumpeters of all time. He is known as a pioneer of both bebop and Afro-Cuban jazz, as well as his wit and humor on the band stand. His bent trumpet became his signature trademark, and the Warrior Marching Band played his tune "Manteca" this fall. So, a tip of the beret to Diz on what would have been his 93rd birthday!

Dissertation Update

I just sent the first truly complete draft of my dissertation to my advisor. This is the result of literally hundreds of edits based on his previous suggestions and those of my second reader, who will get one more crack at it after him. Then it's on to the defense, which I believe I might still be able to fit in before winter break. (fingers crossed!)

Thanks to everyone who has continued to support me throughout the dissertation. I'll keep you informed of the progress. Until there's more news, I'll leave you with this brief excerpt:

This ultimate goal [of comprehensive musicianship] is too important to ignore in an era in which music educators once again find themselves required to justify their curricula in the midst of budget cuts and high stakes testing. CM proponents approach music as a multi-faceted and rigorous academic discipline that teaches critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity, the “4 Cs” of learning and innovation as espoused by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (2004). The traditional band curriculum, which emphasizes performance training, does not provide students the same depth of experience in these skills. For music education to stay relevant, music educators need to incorporate models like comprehensive musicianship to remain on the leading edge of educational reform and to prepare students for a future of lifelong music-making.

Former DHS Band Mom and White Sox Organist Retires

Nancy Faust just finished her 41st and final season as ballpark organist for the Chicago White Sox. She is the most famous stadium organist in the world, carrying on a disappearing tradition of live music at baseball games. Her clever song choices that comment on the players' names and the action on the field are well known throughout the major leagues, but my favorite thing about Nancy is that her son, Eric, was in the DHS band program. Eric was a fine percussionist for us back in the late 1990s. When Eric was a senior, we asked Nancy to join the marching band for a performance of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." She brought a Hammond organ to the auditorium and played along with the marching band at our Bandorama. Later that year, the band returned the favor and performed the national anthem at Comiskey Park before a White Sox game.

As a Cub fan, I have fond memories of Harry Caray's traditional singing of the song, which has now become a rather embarrassing tradition at Wrigley Field, as total non-singers come in to the booth to butcher the tune. As great a Cub tradition as this is, however, Harry Caray started it when he was an announcer on the south side. And who accompanied him every night? Nancy Faust, of course!

So, Nancy, our hats are off to you!

The media pays tribute:
N.Y. Times article
ESPN

Happy Homecoming!

Homecoming 2010 is now in the books. It was a great week, full of excitement and wonderful performances. You can see to the right that the freshmen got right into the spirit of things with their banner celebrating the theme of "Game Time." Led by senior advisors Logan, Maura, and Tracey, they created a clever reworking of the Monopoly board with a musical theme.

The Warrior Marching Band started Homecoming Friday with an early bird practice on the back 40, where we were under a fairly constant drizzle. With our dress rehearsal cut short, we went inside to wipe down the instruments and head off to class. By 8th period, though, we were ready to start the festivities. Continuing a tradition that dates back to the 1960s, we marched through the halls performing the fight song, our halftime numbers, and several cheers. My favorite stop is always by the DeerPark Daycare, where our little friends helped us cheer on the Warriors with "Go Big Red!"

Then it was on to the pep rally where we joined forces with the cheerleaders, Warriorettes, and drill team for a rousing rendition of the fight song. In our featured numbers, drum major Logan Bloom showed off his advanced mace spinning techniques for the crowd as we performed the video game theme song, "The Legend of Zelda." His final toss narrowly missed the ceiling of the exhibition gym, and the audience cheered his triumphant catch. Then, the homecoming court was announced, with band members Alex Schopa and Danny Dubin representing the sophomore and junior classes, and Laurie Polisky as homecoming queen.

The football game went very well for both the team and the band. Pregame was well executed, starting everything off with a spirit of patriotism. At halftime, we performed our tribute to video game music, with a complicated drill on "Super Mario Bros." and a giant game of Tetris, in which each squad became a Tetris block and marched towards the sideline, rotating and sliding into place. Since I couldn't figure out how to make the squads disappear, we didn't manage to clear any lines. The cheerleaders helped out by forming the sides of the game board. They were so excited to be part of the show that they baked us cookies! After the 3rd quarter, we reprised Logan's mace routine from the pep rally, and when all was said and done, we were tired, happy, and basking in a 35-7 victory over Maine West. Go Big Red, indeed!



This is the 100th post on Mr. B's Blog! Thanks for reading!

The Modern US Military Band

Special thanks to a band parent who sent this link to me...

Here is a great NY Times article about American military bands in the 21st century. Just like our modern fighting forces, these groups need to be able to move in, perform quickly, and get out. Therefore, each of the traditional large ensembles can be broken down into small chamber units and rock bands.

A couple things to note from the article. Col. Thomas Palmatier was quoted several times, and he is no stranger to the DHS bands. The colonel has been the guest conductor of the North Shore Honor Band twice, most recently in 2009. He conducts the US Army Field Band, from which one of my college friends retired just this past summer. My friend joined the clarinet section of the band after a stint in Germany right out of college, and most recently he worked administratively for the Field Band, coordinating their extensive American tours.

I'd also like to share that a military band career is a fine way to be a professional musician. There's no hunting for gigs, playing drunken weddings and drab society affairs. You get to perform for important ceremonies like boot camp graduations and inaugurations. The military provides you with top-of-the-line instruments, excellent facilities, and money to pay off student loans. Auditions for positions in the top groups like "Pershing's Own" (Army) or "The President's Own" (Marines) attract master players from all over the country. If you think you'd be interested in a military music career, talk to me, and I can get you more information. It's obviously not for everyone, but it's a great life for many.

Chicago Jazz Festival

One of the better jazz festivals in North America is the Chicago Jazz Festival. Although not as famous as its counterparts in Newport, Monterey, or Montreal, it has undergone a bit of a renaissance over the past few years, and it is still one of the few free fests around. Two years ago I caught living legend Ornette Coleman, one of the elder statesmen of jazz and a pioneer free jazz musician. His set on alto sax, trumpet, and violin was a flurry of creativity and passion--quite impressive given that he was 80 years old at the time. I also saw a band called 8 Bold Souls play a collection of swinging avant garde tunes that inspired me to seek out their recordings and learn more about them.

This year's jazz fest starts this week and will be featuring a DHS JB favorite, Nicole Mitchell, as artist-in-residence. She is a leader on the Chicago jazz scene, known as an outstanding flutist, composer, and bandleader. We played her tune "Cause and Effect" last year, and two of our members participated in a master class she presented. She will be appearing four times throughout the festival, in a duo and with larger groups like her Black Earth Ensemble. Other highlights of the festival include:

• Brad Mehldau, an internationally acclaimed pianist known for dense, polyphonic music and his interpretations of Radiohead and Beatles tunes
  
  
• The Either/Orchestra, an eclectic band out of Boston (DHS alum Danny Kaufman toured and recorded with them several years back)
  
  
• Kurt Elling, one of the top jazz vocalists in the world, and another local Chicagoan

I highly recommend that you check out the schedule and get downtown to see some of the shows. You won't be disappointed! I'm hoping to get down there on Sunday--see you there!

Band Camp 2010!

Here is a batch of pictures from Band Camp today. We are off to a great start, with pregame learned (although there's plenty of polishing to do), halftime started, and a good amount of pep music under our belts. I am especially proud of an extra large group of freshmen who have joined us and are already becoming an important part of the band family. The seniors are doing a great job in their leadership roles, and I can tell it's going to be a great season.

Here are the results from the section march-by:

1. Sousaphones
2. Saxophones
3. Mellophones

Tomorrow we do the individual march off. Place your wagers now! (Just kidding. Gambling on marching band rehearsals is illegal, immoral, and against the activities code. Don't gamble!)

From the Archives

Here's a picture of the Deerfield HS Band playing the most presitigious performance of our 50-year history. In 1972, Deerfield resident Dan Walker won the Illinois gubernatorial election to become our state's 36th governor. He asked the DHS Band to perform at his inauguration, and on Monday, January 8, 1973, Mr. Spriester brought the students to Springfield to play the pre-ceremony prelude . Musical selections included "Battle Hymn of the Republic," "There'll Be a Change in the Weather," "Anchors Aweigh," and "America the Beautiful." The University of Illinois Marching Band played the national anthem, our state song, and a recessional. Today, if you visit our band room, you'll see a framed collage commemorating the event with a picture of Gov. Walker, two photos of the band at the capitol, and a handwritten thank-you note from the governor.

Fortunately for us, the legacy of the DHS Band did not follow Gov. Walker's career. In 1987, he was convicted of improper financial dealings with a savings and loan and sentenced to seven years in jail. He served 18 months in a prison in Duluth, Minnesota, and now lives in California.

The DHS Band actually played for President Reagan in 1985. His helicopter touched down in our parking lot before he was whisked away to a speaking engagement at the kitchens of Sara Lee, which at the time had its headquarters in Deerfield at Waukegan and Kates Roads. The band and Choraliers performed for him there, but it wasn't a high profile gig like the governor's inauguration.

Bela Fleck, Edgar Meyer, and Zakir Hussein in a Mini-Concert

Every time I go to the NPR Music website, I find something new and amazing. One ongoing series they produce is called the "Tiny Desk Concerts," in which major league musicians from all genres are invited to squeeze into the cubicle of music host Bob Boilen and perform a short set for the cameras. In this installment, banjo player Bela Fleck, bassist Edgar Meyer, and tabla master Zakir Hussein perform two pieces that are part jazz, part Americana, and part worldbeat. The instruments represent four different continents (banjo from North America via Africa, bass from Europe, and tablas from India), but the players couldn't be more "in tune" with each other. The interaction is tight and the musicians obviously love playing together. The close-range camera shots give us great views of all three players' technique, especially exciting when they zoom in on Hussein's hands as they become a blur of motion on the drum heads. Check out the video here. They even have an mp3 that you can download of the concert!

Summer Mailing Now Available

The summer letter that you've come to know and love will not be mailed home this year. Instead, it is posted on the band website. Click here to find out everything that's going on this coming year! Included is a calendar of all band performances, information on SB/WE/JB curriculum, and everything you need to know about the Warrior Marching Band. Check it out today!

Subscribe to Mr. B's Blog via email!

If you would like to receive an email whenever there is a new blog post, scroll down the left side of the window to where it says "Subscribe via email" and enter your email address. There will be a short process to follow, but when you are done, you will receive new posts in your in box. Pretty cool, eh?

Websites for Great Music Listening

If you know me, you know that I hold a pretty dim view of illegal downloads. Being in the music business from the education side of things, I believe it's important to teach my students that artists and songwriters should get paid for what they do. That being said, there are a number of websites that give you the opportunity to listen to great music via streaming. In other words, it's like listening to a radio instead of owning a CD--you can listen to the music, but you can't download it. Here are some of my favorites:

Palmetto Records is a great jazz record company. They have a jukebox-type player on their front page that has full length tunes from their catalog.

NextBop is a blog about contemporary jazz by artists like Ben Allison, Christian Scott, and Medeski Martin and Wood. Click on the "radio" tab to hear a stream of today's jazz with a decidedly rock influence. You can also click on individual artists to just hear their tracks. I recommend Darcy James Argue and his hip big band, Secret Society.

My favorite rock music station is WXRT 93.1FM Chicago. I've been listening to them since the 1980s when I was discovering Elvis Costello, Prince, and the Talking Heads. One of the bands that they helped to put on the map was REM. You can hear a live stream of their incredible album, Fables of the Reconstruction, here. It's one of the only albums I love enough to own on both vinyl and CD.

National Public Radio (NPR) has a ridiculous amount of web content for music lovers. They have blogs, archived concerts, new music samplers, interviews, and get-to-know-the-music pages for every style imaginable from classical to rock to jazz to world music. I'm currently listening to Bassekou Kouyate, a performer from the African country of Mali.

So check these out. Let me know if you have other sites you enjoy, and I'll post them here.

Hey, have you practiced lately?

(BTW--I was on this ill-fated boat cruise in Boston while on a mission trip with the high schoolers from our church. Ask me about it sometime.)

Dissertation Update

Today is a landmark day for me--I sent my first draft of the last chapter of my dissertation to my advisor. I realize that I will have pages and pages of rewrites to do over the next few months as he dissects it and then a second reader has a shot at it. It still feels good, though, to get to this stage. I am hoping that this will keep me on track for a late fall defense and a completion of the degree by winter break. I'm crossing my fingers...

Last Day of School

Well, it's all over for the year. My grades are in, instruments are off to the repair shop, and the uniforms are being drycleaned. I've filed all the music and straightened up the band room, so it's time to join my students and go on summer vacation. I'm looking forward to finishing my dissertation on comprehensive musicianship, doing summer curriculum revision, and going to Maine with my daughter and our church's senior high mission trip.

I'll be updating the blog from time to time when something interesting hits me, so stop by every few weeks or so. And of course, don't forget to practice! We don't want to start the year with the dreaded summer chops!

See you in August!

Memorial Day, 2010

This year's commemoration of Memorial Day started off like any other. The Warrior Marching Band gathered at school to get instruments and run through our patriotic medley and the national anthem. We drove down to Jewett Park where the Big Band Sound of Deerfield was entertaining the crowd that was gathering around our town's war memorial. The American Legion members were on the stage, looking proud in their Legion hats and ties, and scouts of every age were in small clumps, holding flags and buzzing with excitement.

As in the past, there were a few short speeches about why we pause to reflect on this day, about how men and women throughout the ages made the ultimate sacrifice to preserve our freedom. All was going well until a couple of raindrops started to fall. As we lined up in parade formation next to the First Presbyterian Church of Deerfield, it started to rain more steadily. By the time we stepped off, we were getting drenched. When we arrived at the cemetery for the reading of Deerfield's war dead (a list that goes back to the War of 1812), it was coming down in buckets, and there were ominous rumbles of thunder off to the west. Undeterred, senior buglers Ryan Kaplan and Harrison Middaugh played "Taps" after the rifle volleys were sounded. It was a poignant moment as always.

As we lined up ready to head north on Waukegan Road, a Deerfield police officer wisely cancelled the rest of the parade and put everyone up on the sidewalk to walk back into town. We sloshed back through deep puddles, hopped on the now steamy buses, and went back to school. Everyone was excited to see Logan's convertible, which of course had the top down. Instead of putting the uniforms into piles to send to the dry cleaners, we hung everything out to dry. It will delay the process, but I don't think any of the marchers will every forget this parade.

I was very glad to see that nobody complained about getting drenched. As I reminded them afterwards, our veterans have suffered through days of rain in the jungle, bitter cold in the mountains, and sandstorms in the desert, all while under constant threat of enemy fire. It was certainly no problem for us to get a little wet as we remembered the brave men and women who served and died that we might be free.

Pomp and Circumstance, Jazz Style

This time of year, the Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble are busy prepping for commencement, so we've been playing a lot of "Pomp and Circumstance." It's an interesting march--Edward Elgar never intended it to be specifically for graduations, but at some point during the last century, it became synonomous with caps and gowns and long speeches. Just in case you think you can't have a little fun with it, here is a big band jazz version by Woody Herman and his Thundering Herd.

Jazz Band Free Listening

Over the last two weeks, the students in the Jazz Band have each brought in a track to share with the class. We heard an incredible variety of music from classic hard bop, modal, and bossa nova to modern electronica and South Asian hybrids. Here's a list of what we've been listening to:

“MacArthur Park,” M.F. Horn, Vols. 4-5: Live at Jimmy's – Maynard Ferguson
“Girl from Ipanema,” Getz/Gilberto – Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto

“Portrait of Tracy,” Jaco Pastorius – Jaco Pastorius

“Pursuance,” A Love Supreme – John Coltrane

“Looking Out, Looking In,” Apti – Rudresh Mahanthappa

“Memai” – S&PS

“Squib Cakes,” Back to Oakland – Tower of Power

“Global Citizen,” Not for Nothin’ – Dave Holland

“Claire de Lune,” Beyond Standard – Hiromi

“My Favorite Things,” My Favorite Things – John Coltrane

“El Cojo,” Secret Dream – Chévere

“The Suspension Bridge at Iguazu Falls,” TNT – Tortoise

“Seven Steps to Heaven,” Seven Steps to Heaven – Miles Davis

From the Archives

Here is one of my all-time favorite DHS band pictures. It's labeled on the back: "Jazz Rock 1974, Mr. Panzer, Chuck Black, Andy Van Ells." There are a couple of cool things about the shot. First, the large poster on the wall above the bassist says "Home of DHS Concert Band, The Governor's Own." This is a reference to the band's being selected to play for Gov. Dan Walker's inauguration in January 1973. Walker was from Deerfield, thus the connection.

Next, the old silver drum set you see was in use until a new kit was purchased by my predecessor in 1987. You can see a student in a plaid shirt holding the matching set of bongos. In the background on the right is the percussion cabinet that we still use. I assume it was built by Al Spriester, the band director at the time, who was quite a carpenter. The really ugly folding chairs lasted until I came in 1988, when we purchased all those nice, black Wenger chairs.

What I like most about the picture, however, is the designation of the group as a "jazz rock band," which really shows the era. I imagine them playing Herbie Hancock's "Chameleon" and music by Chicago and Blood, Sweat, and Tears. I wish I knew more about the group, but they don't appear on any concert programs from the era. Perhaps they played at STUNTS or basketball games. The first mention of any jazz group playing on a concert at DHS was a "stage band" in 1976 on a pops concert. Quite a contrast from our jazz program today!

Welcome to Our Future Band Students!

If you are one of our future DHS Band students, welcome to our blog! It was great to meet many of you at Student Activities Night tonight. In addition, I'm very much looking forward to working with the Shepard and Caruso bands over the next week. Four years of wonderful music and friendships await you at Deerfield High School, and I hope you will make the most of them. You can play in the freshman Concert Band which meets as a daily class, not a before school activity. You can join the Warrior Marching Band, our school's most spirited group, and enjoy playing lots of exciting rock music. There's the Jazz Lab Band for all of you jazzers, and you don't even have to play a traditional jazz instrument. We've had flutes, clarinets, euphoniums, violas, and even an Arabic oud!

In the meantime, I wish you best of luck in your middle school bands. Have a great spring concert! If you want to learn more about the DHS band program, click on the black box in the upper left corner.

Podcasts and Other Road Trip Diversions

Last week I drove several hours north into Wisconsin to observe a band rehearsal for my dissertation research. It was the last of four site visits to see directors who scored highly on my survey on comprehensive musicianship. This means that the director I saw goes way beyond teaching just notes, rhythms, and performance skills. His students truly learn about the emotional content and historical background of every piece they play. It was a great experience, seeing CM in action in a very small, rural high school that has about the same number of students as we do in our band program alone.

What I really want to write about, however, is the audio accompaniment to my travels. I have been downloading podcasts of a great radio show produced by Chicago Public Radio called Sound Opinions. Greg Kot and Jim DeRogatis, the rock music critics from the Chicago Tribune and Sun-Times, respectively, have a one-hour show every Friday night at 8:00 on WBEZ 91.5FM. It's a mixture of news, reviews, interviews, and... (rats, nothing else rhymes) music history and criticism. Now I'm rarely in my car when the show is live, but you can download every show from their website or subscribe to their show through iTunes. The episode I was listening to had an extended examination of a classic album by The Clash, London Calling. They shared wonderful insight into what makes it such a great album, along with stories about how it came to be, including a crazy producer who chased the band around the studio and threw chairs at them. Other episodes included a Best Albums of the 2000s show and an introduction to synth-pop. All very informative, entertaining, and full of great music clips. I highly recommend it to anybody who wants to know about rock history and what's going on in the world of rock today.

In addition to this podcast, I enjoyed two episodes of NPR's This American Life, and some fine CDs. The first was Ornette Coleman's 2006 Pulitzer Prize winning album, Sound Grammar. Why this won a Pulitzer, I'm not sure, but it is very approachable, ear-friendly free jazz from the man who coined the term in 1959. I also listened to a CD of Vaughan Williams' orchestral works (can't get enough of RVW) and Rambling Boy by Charlie Haden. The latter is a curious recording. Haden is an important jazz bassist, but he got his musical start at the age of two on his family's country music radio show. While he went on to other musical pursuits, he never gave up his love of old-time American folk music, and a couple of years ago he recorded this awesome album of classic tunes with his wife, son, triplet daughters, and Jack Black. That sounds odd, but Black is his son-in-law, and thus part of the family band. In addition, he brought in top-shelf country musicians like Ricky Skaggs and Roseanne Cash as well as his good friend, jazz guitarist Pat Metheny. If you like good acoustic music, traditional folk stylings, and above all, a huge, warm acoustic bass sound, I recommend you check out Rambling Boy.

More on Independent Musicianship

In the April 2010 issue of Teaching Music, legendary jazz educator Jamey Aebersold talked about teaching students to improvise so that they can become independent musicians beyond high school:

But if you teach people how to improvise, they can play music the rest of their lives. When all you teach them is how to play the second tenor part in a big band, they're not going to directly use that once they leave school unless they're able to play in a community jazz band--and there aren't very many community big bands. Imagine if the only time you could use math is if there's 20 people in the room with you, or if they only time you could write is if you could find 20 other people to write with. This is what's happening in many of our school music programs. Once you leave school, what do you take with you? You take a valuable experience, but you can't directly use that experience unless you have some kind of musical outlet. So my emphasis has always been on getting people to improvise, so that when they're 15, 20, or 50 years old, they can go wherever they want and play music.

As an aside, the Big Band Sound of Deerfield is one of those rare community jazz bands, and we are fortunate to have them in our town. But the point still remains: as educators, we need to teach students to be able to make their own music outside of the traditional, formalized school setting. It is my goal to continue to provide the kind of experiences for my students that will foster this independence.

Brazilian Music Links for Concert Band

Here are the audio and video tracks from the Brazilian music unit in Concert Band. Enjoy!

batucada - Abacaxi

Toque De Timbaleiro - Timbalad...

A Latinha - Timbalada

Creating Independent Musicians

One of my goals as a music educator is to foster musical independence. In other words, when my students graduate and no longer have the benefit of a music teacher to guide them, I want them to still be able to make music and enjoy it as part of their adult lives. To that end, I try to incoporate student projects from time to time that develop the skills necessary to become independent musicians who can perform, arrange, and compose their own music. These past two weeks have been full of such actitivities.

Last week, the Wind Ensemble students performed in the District 113 Solo and Ensemble Festival, along with our friends from Highland Park High School. Back in December, each band member was assigned to a chamber group of 2-7 musicians. They chose a piece of music to rehearse, and then once a week during class, they worked together to rehearse and perfect their performances. Instead of just being performers, they also had to critique themselves, manage their time, and solve musical problems on their own. The unit culminated last Friday with ten wonderful performances that were adjudicated by local music educators who also provided input and suggestions.

This week, the music theory students are presenting their latest compositions. Their assignment was to write any kind of music they like, provided they used four different seventh chords, which he had been studying in class. Their work has run the gamut from jazz vocals to classical piano to rock music and many other genres in between.

The DHS Jazz Band has been meeting as two smaller combos to arrange and perform "standards." In the early years of jazz, musicians would often take songs from Tin Pan Alley or Broadway like "I Got Rhythm" or "All of Me" and play them in a jazzy style with improvised solos. Over the past 20 years, musicians have begun to mine other sources to define new "standards." In February, the band played a Beatles tune, "She's Leaving Home," as interpreted by pianist Brad Mehldau in the 2000s. Now the students chose their own "new standards" and performed them in the front hallway before school. One group did their own version of Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy," while the other combo did Sufjan Stevens' "Casimir Pulaski Day." Both ensembles were very creative with their renditions.

The Symphonic Band has been playing Ralph Vaughan Williams' English Folk Song Suite and discussing the original songs that he used as his melodic material. We learned the melodies and read the lyrics and talked about how these timeless tunes were the basis for his work. Then, the students worked on four Anglo-American folk songs, "Clementine," "Barbara Allen," "Skip to My Lou," and "Billy Boy." They gathered in groups of about ten and created their own arrangements, just like Vaughan Williams did. As you can see from the pictures below, we spread out all over the fine arts wing, and the students did a great job of staying focused and coming up with very creative ways to play them. Here are the finished products, after only two and a half periods of work.


Woodwinds and horns playing "Clementine"




A mixed ensemble playing "Skip to My Lou" in a quasi-reggae beat




Another mixed ensemble playing "Billy Boy" in a canon




Sophomore boys playing a medley




The percussion section playing "Skip to My Lou"

Solo and Ensemble Festival

I sent an email to all students involved in the festival on Friday, March 19, listing all of your assigned times. Please check your school account for this message, make sure the time works, and then notify your accompanist, if necessary.

On Monday, I will send out a second email with some important details. For now, make sure you have an original copy of the music for the judge (WE ensembles, I will take care of this unless you supplied your own piece). You need to number each measure neatly in pencil. Place the numbers under each bar. As far as apparel, this isn't concert dress, but you should be in better-than-school clothes, no jeans or sneakers.

Email me with any questions, and keep practicing!

From the Archives...

This is the first in an occasional series of pictures from the DHS Band archives. Next fall, we at Deerfield High School will be celebrating our 50th anniversary as a school, so I thought it would be fun to look at some of our past history. Our first picture, from April 1971, is a great one for many reasons (besides all of the Marcia Brady hairdos):

(click on the image to see full size)

First, the conductor is Al Spriester, who was the Director of Bands (and orchestras for a time) from the early 1960s until his retirement in 1986. He built this program and nurtured it through its early years, initiating series of guest artist performances and even taking the band to Springfield to play for the inauguration of the governor in 1974.

Second, the picture shows the first band room, M106, our home from 1960 to 2002. The walls here are a dark color, brown I would guess, but by the time I arrived in 1988, they were an institutional beige. Those open shelved storage areas were a problem because not only did they look sloppy, but they encouraged theft. We lost more than a few mouthpieces and small instruments before the school had them gutted in favor of individual lockers. By the time we moved out, they were starting to fall apart.

You can also see that the room was tiered. The percussion area on the top was famously crowded, and it was difficult moving instruments on and off the risers. When we had just two bands, the Symphonic Band got to be about 75-strong, and it was so packed that we split the band into two separate groups in 1998, creating the Wind Ensemble. Once we got the new room in 2002, it was no longer an issue, but all three bands were averaging 40-55 players, so there was no reason to go back to two ensembles.

I'm pretty sure the floor was still tile. The room had a low ceiling, and it must have been dangerously loud in there, especially for marching band rehearsals. It was carpeted in 1987, and since the students used to eat lunch during band class, there were a number of spectacular drink spills that created enough stains that I banned colored drinks from the room. When we learned the carpet was going to be removed for asbestos abatement over the summer, I lifted the ban on the first day of fourth quarter. I very ceremoniously opened a can of Pepsi in front of the band, took a long sip, and then carefully poured a healthy amount on the carpet. It was a joyous day for all.

M106 and the choir room just opposite are now a study hall/detention rooms. The office suite and K116 (the old music theory/jazz band room) were made into part of the bookstore, and our beloved tuba room and uniform room became theatre storage. I love our current spaces in R-hall, but it's fun to reminisce about the funky areas that housed DHS music for 40 years!

Interesting Things to Check Out

Here's something you've got to see to believe. If you've ever watched any of the Animusic DVDs, you've seen futuristic music machines that seemingly play themselves. They are so lifelike that there's an internet hoax that claims one of the videos is of a real instrument set up at some college. But in the real world, jazz guitarist Pat Metheny has built an entire orchestral ensemble that he triggers in real time with his guitar. Check out the video below to see how he can accompany himself on keyboards, marimbas, drums, hand percussion, and a giant set of bottles. They are all controlled by various solenoids and pneumatics, right from his guitar.

If you'd like to see this live, Metheny is going to be playing a concert at Symphony Center in Chicago, one set with just solo guitar and a second with the Orchestrion.

Do you love Disney movies? Do you love string basses? Of course you do! Check this out:

I recently ran across a page that has a recording of a piece I've been trying to find for a long time. It's an example of electo-acoustic music, one of the interesting new ideas in classical music in the mid-1900s. Composers of this school combined recorded natural sounds with electronically generated effects, and one of the most famous and successful of these was Karleinz Stockhausen's Gesang der Jünglingen, or Song of the Youths. It's a bit spooky, but very effective, and you can hear it here.

DHS JB at IMEA All-State Convention in Peoria

Last week, the Jazz Band went to the Illinois Music Educators Association All-State Convention in Peoria to perform "Cholic Clown," Aaron Zemach's award-winning piece in the jazz instrumental category of the Secondary General Music Composition Contest. Eight musicians traveled south for the gig, which began with a full, professional sound check on the Peoria Civic Center auditorium stage. After lunch at Bennigan's (and after I went back to the restaurant where I left my bag with all of the music and the drum brushes), we went to the showcase concert.

The show began with a keynote by motivational speaker Tim Lautzenheiser. He was followed by an interview with Michael Salvatori, co-composer of the music for the very popular Halo video game series. As soon as he was done talking about his music and sharing examples of his work, we went backstage to our dressing room to get our instruments. Unfortunately, the room was locked, and we had several anxious minutes waiting for security to let us back in. With seconds to spare, we were warmed up, tuned, and waiting for our cue. Then the band went on stage and played Aaron's piece for about 2000 students and teachers. Afterwards, Aaron was invited to share some of his background and thoughts about his work with the panel, which included Brayer Teague, IMEA Vice-President for Secondary General Music, Tim Lautzenheiser, and Michael Salvatori. Aaron and the band were very well received, and it was an excellent way to spend a long Thursday away from Deerfield.

Music in Haiti

Since the tragic earthquake and heartbreaking aftermath in Haiti, the news media has been providing almost non-stop coverage of the situation on this Caribbean island. I thought it would be appropriate to honor and memorialize the Haitian people with a post about their music.

First, here is a link to an NPR story in which we hear how music helps people in grave circumstances to survive, heal, and pull through:

NPR

Second, here is a Canadian jazz saxophonist and composer, Jane Bunnett, who has been incorporating Caribbean sounds and musicians into her music for years. She and her band were to play the 4th Annual Haitian Jazz Festival this week, spending time in the country performing, giving clinics, and distributing donated instruments. Instead, she stayed in Toronto and put together a fundraiser for the relief efforts. Here is the full story along with some video clips of Bunnett playing with the Haitian choir, Grupo Vocal Desandann:

Jane Bunnett and Grupo Vocal Desandann

Finally, when world music aficionados speak of Haiti, the first band that comes to mind is the legendary Boukman Eksperyans. Their exotic name comes from an 18th-century vodou priest and the Kreole word for Experience, a tribute to Jimi Hendrix. They are known for their exciting party music with strongly worded political messages, creating enough controversy that they went into exile during the 1990s. Listen below to their revolutionary single, "Ke M Pa Sote," which became an anti-government rallying cry in 1991.

Ke M Pa Sote - Boukman Ekspery...

Music Theory Free Listening Day

Today in class, we ended the semester by sharing favorite pieces from our iPods. Here is a summary of what we heard, along with my brief impressions of each:

"Desire Be Desire Go" by Tame Impala from the album Tame Impala
...Beatlesque pop with a thick veneer of late 60s psychedlic grunge...

"Your Hand in Mine" by Explosions in the Sky from the album Friday Night Lights
...instrumental rock with lonesome, Big Sky guitars over a military snare drum...

"Wooden Ships" by Crosby, Stills & Nash from the album Crosby, Stills & Nash
...exquisite vocal harmonies over laid back classic rock organ and a bubbling bass groove...

"All Bodies" by Between the Buried and Me from the album Alaksa
...mid-tempo metal with gravel-pit vocals and constantly shifting meters that segue in and out of thrash like a 10-year-old with attention issues...

"Another Believer" by Rufus Wainwright from the album Meet the Robinsons
...over-the-top poppy carnival music with sunshiney vocals and suprisingly chromatic harmonies...

"Africa" by Alyce Mtwalo et al from the album Impressions of Africa
...a pastiche of traditional African vocals, balofon, and percussion woven into a dance track...

"Lost in the Supermarket" by The Clash from the album London Calling
...legendary punk band makes depressing but unabashedly mainstream music about commercialism...

"Bicycle Race" by Between the Buried and Me from the album The Anatomy Of
...a lovingly crafted cover by a progressive metal band of a typically outrageous Queen song...

Hey, kids, it's DHSBMWPCC!

That's right, it's the Deerfield High School Band Mid-Winter Practice Commitment Challenge!

We have only three weeks until our concert, and final exams are looming, so in order to make sure that our performance is the very best it can be, I am challenging every one of our band students to make this commitment to practicing, and thus to excellence! It would be too easy to pack up our instruments and music for nine straight days during finals, so I want avoid that at all costs!

I have broken our remaining time into six shorter intervals, and I expect everyone to practice at least twice during each one. Here are the guidelines for practicing:

• Practice must be done outside of class.
• Each session should be at least 20 minutes long.
• Each should include some warm-up, including long tones/rolls, and some technique, including scales/rudiments.
• The bulk of the session should be on the two concert pieces.

At the end of each interval, the section leaders will report to me how many students did the two practice sessions (the honor system prevails here). After the concert, the section out of all three bands that has the highest percentage of commitments kept will win some tasty treats. Of course, I expect that every section will have 100% every time, but this might add that extra incentive you need to stick to it!

Good luck! Let's make our commitment to excellence!

Jazz Band Videos to View

For our upcoming performance at the ETHS Jazz Festival, we will be doing "Cause and Effect" by Nicole Mitchell. You can listen to the original recording here:

Cause and Effect - Nicole Mitc...

Here is a video of her Black Earth Ensemble live from 2005:



We are also playing our own version of Brad Mehldau's cover of the Beatles' "She's Leaving Home." His recording is on Day is Done, and the original is on Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. Here is a video of Mehldau and his trio performing it live:



Soak it all in!

Welcome to 2010!

Although our concert is a month away, we are really in the home stretch! We school starts again, we'll have two weeks before finals, then a week off (during which you should be practicing diligently!), and then a week and two days to the concert for CB, SB, and WE. For those of you in MAJ and TAJ, that's three rehearsals to go! For JB, we have four weeks of rehearsals to get ready for the ETHS Jazz Festival.

In addition, all of you honor-level WE and JB students have your recital on January 13. North Shore Honor Band students have rehearsal on January 13 at DHS and the festival on the 14th and 15th at LFHS. As is all of this wasn't enough, we'll be taking a small jazz combo to Peoria on January 28 to perform Aaron Zemach's first-place jazz composition, Cholic Clown, at the IMEA All-State Convention.

This is, of course, in addition to Pep Band games, musical pit orchestra, a major orchestra concert on 2/4, and preparation for solo and ensemble festival in March. Let's get ready to hit the ground running!