Harry McAfee, President
Alabama Bandmasters Association Hello All,
I hope you had a restful holidays and your second term is progressing well. It was great to be with so many of you this year at the AMEA Conference. We had a record overall at- tendance and more band directors attended than any other group. I would like to offer a special thanks to those that presented concerts and clinics. Thompson Middle School, Minor, Oak Grove, and Shades Valley bands all represented us very well and the clinics were all very informative and well received. We also greatly appreciate the hospitality of the University of Alabama and the wonderful concert by their Wind Ensemble. Thank you for your attendance and supporting these events. It was unfortunate that the weather prevented the performance by the Jacksonville Wind En- semble but we hope they will reschedule for next year. We will also be looking for other ensembles to perform for next year so contact me if you are interested. You will find the process of preparing and presenting a program will greatly benefit the growth of your program.
As I reach this point in my career, I find myself more and more becoming an advocate and a mentor along with the everyday teaching responsibilities we all have. I am really enjoying those roles in my own area and I hope that I can be of assistance to any of you that need me. It is extremely important that we encourage and support each other in these difficult times. I think our students now need what we have to offer more than any other time in the past. It’s nice to now have scientific evidence of some of the ad- vantages of studying music and being in band. We always suspected and knew that …didn’t we? But we must remember that along with the multitude of non-musical ad- vantages to being in band, the real and most important reason for it lies in the music. Music belongs in all our schools primarily for its cultural, educational, and aesthetic purposes. Those reasons alone justify what we do.
As I work with you, I am also reminded of the tremendous obstacles that many of you
16 ALA BREVE
have to overcome in order to help your students reach their full potential. Yes, I have been there and I do understand! But my years of experience has also taught me that if you work hard every day and persevere, if you make wise choices and seek help when you need it, and if you keep in mind who we serve, good things will eventually happen for you. For instance, let’s tackle the problem of inadequate in- strumentation. This problem can severely limit your effec- tiveness. Working along with your administrators and band parents, you should be able to implement a long range plan that will help to ensure your success. Be prepared to make adjustments and do temporary fix-its but refer back to and stick with your long range plan. You will have to be the one that makes it happen! If you feel overwhelmed by the mul- titude of other problems we can face you will need to prior- itize, choose your battles, and chip away at them one at a time. Just stand your ground and be encouraged that you will prevail. And here’s another idea…send your students out everyday with a melody in their heart. We all need that…don’t we?
Best Wishes, Harry
From the ABA
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