I thought I would post some things here now that things have settled down after the holidays and the craziness of the concerts.  

I would like to thank all the musicians and the parents for such a wonderful set of concerts.  The bands performed very well both in the afternoon and the evening.  My wife and father were at the evening concert.  Both were extremely impressed with how well the musicians acted while waiting their turn to perform and at how well they all performed.  My wife took one complaint from a person sitting next to her about the behavior of some of the musicians sitting behind them.  My wife has been a teacher in a public high school setting for more than one decade and less than two.  She is still not sure what behavior the person was upset about that night.  She just knows that she saw nothing that would be unacceptable at a Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra performance or here.  The musicians should be very proud of their performance both on and off the "stage."  Thank you.

We are nearing the end of the Second Quarter and the First Semester.  Those practice sheets are still kind of illusive.  Please get those in as soon as possible.  I know that the ones who are putting in the time are enjoying the instrument more, sounding far better than they did weeks ago, and in a few cases, may be moved to the next level, whether it is to the Middle School Band from Fifth Grade or to the Fifth Grade from the Fourth Grade Band.  In the next week, I will be talking to the musicians, their parents, Dr. Moeser, and the musicians teachers to see if this could and should happen.

My current Band Assistant is graduating this fall.  I am currently looking for her replacement.  The decision is solely mine.  Many factors go into determining whom I will pick.  I am looking for some one who has the requisite musicianship, determination, respect, dependability, and pride to help me make this a better band program.  This position is open to any musician currently in Fifth through Seventh Grade.

Again, I thank all of you for a great two quarters and one semester.  The concerts were a huge success.  

I am eagerly looking forward to the next concerts, next quarter, and next semester.

Enjoy.

I have some thoughts on practicing that I would like to share.  Miles Davis, the famed Jazz Trumpeter, once said that if he had a spare five minutes, he had time to practice something and he would.

Practice is important to any athlete, actor, artist, and musician.  This is the time when these people figure out their craft.  Everyone of these people spends much more time practicing than actually doing that particular craft in front of people.

I once made $500.00 on an hour long gig.  People say, "Wow, $500.00 an hour!  I would love to make the kind of money."  So would I.  When I factored in the 1,000 hours of practicing that I did on my own, the six-five hour rehearsals, the six hour round trip bus ride to and from the gig, and the hours I spent on the phone discussing the gig with the band leader and other musicians, I figured I made about $0.25 and hour on that $500.00 gig.  I would never have gotten that gig, though without that practice that I did prior to the call arranging the gig nor would I have kept the gig if I had not done the necessary practicing.

So.  What should students practice?  The short answer is anything and everything.  The long answer is the assigned material in the book and any music for band.  If that is not filling up the practice session, then they can work ahead in the book.  Another thing that every musician should do is spend some time just playing anything.  To put it another way, there should be a little bit of goofing around.  The students should play anything they want with or without music using good sound, correct fingerings and holding the instrument properly. This counts as practice.

I will be sending a letter home about in the coming weeks.  I will include suggestions and tips.  

Practice is important.  Musicians are building the muscles that it takes to play an instrument.  These muscles are the actual physical muscles that are needed to hold and play the instrument as well as the mental muscles that are needed to create and perform the music at hand.

If any one has any questions, comments or ideas, please get in touch with me. I enjoy and welcome the feed back.

Until next time . . . 

Now that I am getting a better handle on the web site operation, I thought I would add another post.

About the bands:

The musicians of the Fourth Grade are starting off nicely.  There are some very pleasant sounds coming from this group.  All the musicians are about where they should be on their chosen instruments.  Full Band Rehearsals will be starting soon.

Practice Records should be going home and should be filled out.  They are due in the box in the Band Room on Monday of each week.  

The Fifth Grade Musicians are continuing very nicely.  Like the Fourth Grade these musicians have some "chops!"  I am looking for appropriate material for the upcoming concert for these wonderful musicians.  If any one has any suggestions or requests, please email me.  I am always looking for GOOD arrangements of songs.  

The only problem with both the Fourth and Fifth Grade Musicians is when it comes time for Group Lessons.  There seems to be some difficulty in getting instruments and materials to school on Lesson Days.  This is not a problem with a few of the musicians, but seems to rotate from one to another musician.  Please make sure, musicians, that you have your instrument and book.

The Middle School Band is sounding better and better all the time.  Dynamic contrasts are starting to come through to the listener.  A better understanding of rhythmic togetherness and rhythmic ideas are happening.  These two areas are a never ending battle for musicians.  These musicians are starting to hear the ideas. This is good.  

I will be sending a letter home about Band Shirts in the next few days.  I think the Bands need to have a Band Shirt.  This will take the reality of the bands to the community and give the musicians a greater sense of involvement.  

Please come the Open House.  I look forward to meeting all of the Band Parents.

Enjoy the week.

Until Next Time . . . . 

James F. Matheson, Jr.  -  Band Director

As the new Band Director here, I thought I would start a Blog about the bands and band students that I have encountered so far at Richfield.  This may get a bit rambling so I will apologize in advance for that.

I would like to start off by thanking all the musicians who have helped out with the parade.  These musicians did a great job at learning a new piece of music in such a short amount of time.  We went for loud and I believe the parade goers got loud.  I would like to get more involvement from the other band members for the next Richfield Days Parade and from maybe some of the community members who play an instrument. 

I would also like to mention some things about how the group lessons are going in general.  

There have been some issues come up with some instruments.  I have called some parents about the instruments their son or daughter has brought into the band room.  I will continue to do so.  An instrument that does not work properly will only frustrate the musician who is trying to play it.  If repairs are needed and money is an issue, please let me know.  I have some high level friends in very low level places.  Most of them work in the instrument repair field, oddly enough.

Group lessons have been going very well so far.  There has not been any problems with sound production or discipline.  So far, the only problem has been with materials.  Not all the musicians are bringing their books to lessons.  An Alto Saxophonist, for example, cannot use the Clarinetist's book.  They are not the same.  A Trumpeter likewise will not be able to read off the Trombonist's book either.  I want to make it clear that I used these instrument groupings as an example.  I am not sending any subliminal messages.

So far in the school year things have been going well.  The musicians are either starting to sound like musicians in the case of the beginners or are sounding more like musicians in the case of the non-beginners.  There is some really good players cropping up.  I hope this continues.

If any of you readers have any questions, please  contact me.  I like talking to people about music and band.     

Until next time . . .