Klarinet Archive - Posting 001175.txt from 1999/01

From: Bill Hausmann <bhausman@-----.com>
Subj: Re: [kl] HELP!
Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 13:12:07 -0500

At 11:35 PM 1/22/99 -0600, Ed Lacy wrote:
>On Fri, 22 Jan 1999, Paulette W. Gulakowski wrote:
>
>> Our district is under court mandate to accept all students ("No Cut"
>> policy) - whether they play an instrument or not.
>
>Wait a minute, let me be sure I understand this. If a student, who has no
>experience in music whatsoever, says they want to be in the band, the band
>director is required by court order to accept them? If I have this right,
>this is pure lunacy, a good example of a judge trying to conduct social
>engineering in an area in which he or she has absolutely no knowledge and
>no understanding whatsoever.
>
>A second question would be why such a student would decide to be in an
>organization for which he has no qualifications and can derive essentially
>none of the benefits of membership?
>
Be careful here. While it would be highly unusual for someone to join a
band with no experience and gain benefit it is not unheard of. I know of
such a case.

This individual, who, I admit, did have some piano and guitar experience,
asked to join the high school band as a senior. The (parochial) school he
attended had no marching band, just a sit-down concert-type band and a pep
band. The director gave him a clarinet to work with, sitting in a practice
room to study alone while the rest of the band rehearsed. He was also
allowed to play cymbals and other percussion items in the pep band, which
worked out because the person did have rhythm. After two months of working
alone, this individual joined the rest of the band as a third clarinet.

Since he had enjoyed his band experience so much, he attempted to join the
marching band when he went to college. He went through a three-day camp
with the other people trying out and, although he did not pass the marching
audition, he had passed the music audition, and thus was able to join the
pep band in the second semester. He made the marching band, and the
concert band, the next year, ultimately majoring in music on the clarinet.
He now plays clarinet and saxophone regularly in semi-professional situations.

Had this individual not been given the opportunity to join the band in high
school, he would surely not be a musician today. He would never have met
the woman he married. His life would be completely different. And I'm
quite sure he would not be a member of this list. Yes, of course, this is
the condensed story of MY musical life.

Just any fool walking in off the streets will not necessarily succeed in
band. But one with the proper level of DESIRE and DEDICATION just might.
I think it is a shame that, in most cases, the fact that the interest
developed a little too late to get into beginning band will prevent someone
with the ability from EVER developing it. I therefore support the idea of
giving these people a CHANCE, but with the provision that the director CAN
cut them if they are not putting the effort in.

Bill Hausmann bhausman@-----.com
451 Old Orchard Drive http://www.concentric.net/~bhausman
Essexville, MI 48732 http://members.wbs.net/homepages/z/o/o/zoot14.html
ICQ UIN 4862265

If you have to mic a saxophone, the rest of the band is too loud.

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