before, and it had never been like that. I didn’t know it at the time, but when I booked Bill Watrous to perform with our band, my kids were motivated to work for a level of performance that I wasn’t aware we could reach.
Since that night, we have continued to bring in guests every year to perform with the band. And I’ve learned to negotiate better so my budget goes a bit farther than it used to. I would encourage you to try it sometime. There are a lot of great players out there who would love to bring their music to your kids. Some of them are more than you can afford, but some of them aren’t. You won’t know until you ask.
For my money, nothing motivates my students like knowing they are going to perform in front of an audience with a professional player. It raises the stakes unlike any normal concert, jazz festival, or competition can. Not only that, your students will remember the performance for the rest of their lives. You will too, no matter how many times you do it. Who knows, maybe you can even go to the grocery store with a great jazz musician someday.
I want to thank the MMEA membership for giving me the opportunity to be your jazz VP for these past two years. It has been a very rewarding experience. Please contact me at
rbabel@fz.k12.mo.us if you would like to find out more about how to bring in an artist to work with your kids, or just contact me if I can be of help to you and your band program in any way. Have a great remainder of your school year!
SPRING 2014 |
www.mmea.net
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