Klarinet Archive - Posting 000889.txt from 1997/04

From: Detlef Kretschmer <detlef@-----.ca>
Subj: Re: marching bands
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 12:24:43 -0400

Hello,
I'm a new, and so far quiet, member of this list.

I would like to add another point of view to this discussion.
I am in charge here of a navy cadet corps which, obviously, has a marching
band. As it happens, music being very much neglected in school, this band
is for most of the kids the only way of getting contact with an instrument.

So far we haven't produced any professionals (as far as I know), but there
are quite a few who went on to take private lessons and are still enjoying
playing an instrument - strictly for pleasure - many years after leaving
the cadets. I think that is worth the effort, even thogh it is sometimes
painful to the ears.

Btw, we don't do stupid things like playing outdoors in the cold or the
rain. Also we put a lot of effort into tuning and, contrarily to many
marching bands, into playing SOFTLY. We also teach instrument care and
minor repair.

Cheers,

Detlef Kretschmer
Dipl. Ing., DSc., Prof.
Dept. Mechanical Engineering
Laval University
Quebec, QC, Canada G1K 7P4

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