Posted by Chris R on May 20, 2003 at 20:55:17:
In Reply to: are Band Directors Musicians? posted by Tuba Ply/BandDir on May 20, 2003 at 16:30:37:
I think both director's bring up valid points but I think it's a matter of personal opinion. Sure, scales are important, I work on them everytime I have a practice session. Scales are one of the fundamentals of learning music. Without them, making any music at all would be hard. But, would I drill scales into my future students while neglecting other aspects of performing and musicianship? Of course not. Scales are important but not as much as, say, phrasing, dynamics etc. Scales themselves won't make you a musician, they are only a means of gaining technique so making music becomes easier. Once you have the fundamentals down, you can then concentrate on the music, not just the notes on the page. Music is the highest priority in playing, especially at an audition. Sure, everyone misses a note or two here and there but as long as the musical concept is being portrayed, everything's fine. I've missed many a note while performing or auditioning but I don't think that makes me any less of a musician. I was still confident about my musical message so missing a few notes didn't bother me.
As for band directors being musicians...of course they are. I think that they need to be masters of their own instruments first before turning to teaching someone else an instrument. I know from experience that band directors are great musicians. I go to college in central NY and surprisingly there are a number of symphony orchestras that perform quite regularly and are quite good as well. There are community bands but they are your typical community band, where anyone can show up and play. This past year, I'm only a freshman, I had the honor to play with a semi-professional wind ensemble. I say 'semi-professional' because it is a select group so if you're not invited to play, you can't play. The great thing about this band is that more than 2/3 of the band is made of current and retired band directors. It's a legitimate wind ensemble. It's the best group I've ever played with including various honor bands, all-county etc. When more than half the band is conductors who have directed most of the pieces we play, it gives a special atmosphere within the group. They play the music as they would interpret it as a conductor. I'm one of about 4 college students in the group, which has about 40 or so members. The group doesn't even tap into the 'professional' musicians. Many of those musicians believe they should be paid to play but that's not what this group is about. We don't get paid anything, any money the group makes from gigs goes towards advertising and recording concerts. We play because we love to make music. It's too bad we haven't been able to get some of the orchestral musicians to play. But the group is still great anyway. It's a young group, this past year was it's second year in existance. I do have a CD of one of our last concerts which I listen to frequently. Our sound is good but some things need to be worked on some more, like dynamics and balance. The dynamics and balance are good, don't get me wrong, but they're not quite what they could be. I guess my point is that band directors are good musicians and are good instrumentalists. Granted, some don't hardly play anymore, but the ones I play with are extremely happy they have a quality group to play with. If anyone is interested, I can send an mp3 of one of the pieces we played. Just email of the board if you wish to take a listen.
Chris