Klarinet Archive - Posting 000691.txt from 1998/07

From: "Robin Black" <BLACKR@-----.com>
Subj: [kl] the responsibilities of a band director
Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1998 23:41:26 -0400

While I very much appreciate Dr. Lacy's position (I've never been a music =
teacher, but have taught college English, so I know what kind of demands =
are placed on teachers), I must point out that not all band directors are =
as conscientious as Dr. Lacy seems to be.

Here's what I got from my junior high band director: zilch. Nothing. =
Zero. The maximum personal interaction I (or any other woodwind player in =
the band) ever had with that man was when he stuck a chromatic tuning =
meter under my bell from time to time and had me play a middle C. That =
was it. I understand that individual attention is a precious thing to =
come by, but not even to the woodwinds as a whole was anything EVER said =
about reeds (neither choice of brand nor hardness), mouthieces or any =
other technical aspect of playing. No advice of any kind was offered, and =
the ONLY reason I ever came to learn any of the technical refinements of =
the instrument was that a friend of my family's who happened to be a =
clarinet teacher kindly offered out of the blue to give me lessons for =
free. My playing ability grew dramatically with her help, and it was an =
amazing experience for me because I'd never had any idea what I might be =
capable of because my band director had ever suggested or encouraged or =
pushed in any way. =20

Fortunately, my high school band director was much better, and my =
experience in band was much more memorable under his tutelage. My only =
"fond" memory of my junior high band director is when he lost a cutting =
and arrogant bet he'd made with the band. As we all struggled along =
preparing for the winter symphonic competition my 9th grade year, he =
sneered at us at the end of band class one day and said we were going to =
be the worst band there (the band had received no higher than a rating of =
2 during his entire tenure previous to this). When somebody protested, he =
said he was so sure that we couldn't get a one (superior rating) that he'd =
pay for the Six Flags tickets for the entire band himself (we always went =
every June as a group) if we did. Knowing what the man's annual salary =
was, this was NOT a serious challenge. He had no faith in us whatsoever, =
and took as little interest as he could get by with in his job. Imagine =
his surprise (and financial dismay) when we received across-the-board =
superior ratings at the competition. He was a cold, hateful, spiteful =
man, and had no business teaching.

That man was a lousy teacher (I was consistently a VERY good student in =
all my classes, so that's not a charge I make lightly), and if it hadn't =
been for my "free" private teacher and my high school band director, I =
sincerely doubt I'd have continued to play.

So yes, Dr. Lacy, the statement that you protested to so strongly is VERY =
valid where some (hopefully few) band directors are concerned. =20

-------------------------------------------------------------------------