Welcome Back!!
The 2024-2025 School year is under way and I feel like the THEME of this year will be COLLABORATION. Whether it's within rehearsal between you and your outstanding students, between your ensembles and their guests/clinicians/adjudicators - or at a professional level between you and your colleagues - This is going to be a RICH year of sharing, learning, developing, executing and delivering musical EXCELLENCE - TOGETHER!
50/50 BALANCE IS OVERRATED, LET’S GO FOR 70/30...
I no longer believe in the 50/50 work-life balance. I THINK IT’S A SHAM!
This is my conclusion after 4 years at my newer/current career while maintaining my teaching studio, my in-services/clinician appearances, the music festival stuff, as well as having bizarre fitness and dessert addictions. 50/50 just isn’t going to happen. 70/30 at best – but – it feels OKAY! Work-life balance is a crucial aspect of maintaining overall well-being in this interesting 2024 world. But – WHO SAYS that being an Orangutan on a unicycle, juggling chainsaws ISNT a life of balance? What if you’re the type of person WHO NEEDS the chaos in order to feel normal and balanced?
The notion of keeping work at work, and turning off a switch (magically) as you convert into your home/family life…it’s so much unnecessary pressure. And given the state of the world and the ways in which we communicate…this notion is antiquated. I am happiest when: My clients, teachers and directors ARE my social outlet. We all have our non music friends (who are a definite ingredient in our overall balance but….sometimes you just wanna talk about a SCORE lol)
Do we talk about Band when we’re out at dinner? MAYBE Do we gossip about the veritable WHO’S WHO of the band director community? MAYBE. Do we talk about our daytime trials and tribulations, even though it’s social time? PROBABLY.
Should we all get a life? MAYBE.
These are therapeutic outlets. They are a key part of SANITY, but in a slightly different way than a non teaching/non music hobby. This September and this school year…please don’t fall prey to a 100% worklife, you’ll lose your mind. But don’t lose sight of those parts of work which make you WHOLE and even though they are part of the chaos, they are also part of YOUR balance.
I have produced a repertoire collection for HMS this year as well as some medium-difficult-very difficult choices from some independent composers. Please click on the image to see the mainstream publisher's picks list, and see below for the "Indie's!" The selections here have been chosen based on their level of teachability and performability. Thanks for taking the time to check out our 2024-2025 Honour Roll !
NEW INDEPENDENT COMPOSER TITLES FOR CONSIDERATION – PLEASE CLICK ON THE LINK FOR RECORDING, SCORE AND ORDERING INFO
Blue Nova Fanfare Kevin Day 2 CLICK HERE
Horizons Brian W Jagger 2.5 CLICK HERE
Shattering Stars Joni Greene 2.5 CLICK HERE
Hummingbird – The Angel’s Messenger Peter Meechan 3 CLICK HERE
Burn after Reading Andrew David Perkins 3+ CLICK HERE
Haunted Objects John Mackey 3.5+ CLICK HERE
Voyage of the Northern Lights Isabella Morill 4 CLICK HERE
Syzygy Flow Katahj Copley 5 CLICK HERE
A Short Blast Peter Meechan 5 CLICK HERE
25TH NEW RELEASE BAND MUSIC REVIEW - UH OH. A RANT.
(1).png)
2024 marks the 25th time that I have (in some type of official role) reviewed hundreds of new release band music publications for the purpose of recommending /curating a list for my clients, colleagues and friends. I have seen so many changes over these 25 years and SO much progress and evolution (and REVOLUTION) when it comes to composers, works, publishers, perception, and educational outcomes. I’ve also seen digression, repetition, and a slew of vicious circles. Let’s have a brief chat about the state of the genre, as I see it, in 2024. *As usual, it’s important for me to mention, these are my personal views and DO NOT represent the views of any of my affiliations*
ALWAYS RELIABLE
The long standing prolific composers are all doing their THING. Without getting into specific names, there is a roster of composers from larger publishers who have been at the “band music game” for decades and they have established a set of characteristics in their respective compositional styles which they do VERY WELL. So, those things are all still happening with those people. The train is still on the tracks in that regard.
But at what point do we stop and say “well, I’ve heard HIM do THIS before, and I liked it better the first time – and I already OWN the first time, and I’d programme it this year, but it’s too early in the 2-3-4 year cycle and this NEW one is TOO similar for me to buy it, so…...hmm..,do I buy this new version?”
And...well....some of them are flat-out replicating themselves. They probably don’t intend to be doing it, it just happens. It dosen’t make them any less reliable when it comes to some of the main reasons you are selecting their repertoire: student engagement and “buy-in”, educational or supplementary value, and performability. But it does raise the question of: where do you draw the line, where your library is concerned?
NEW IDEAS
So - 2024 was not a banner year for new ideas or a big change with regards to the sound of these genres for this ensemble category. I do want to make mention of two pieces from bigger publishers which I felt have a fresh/distinctive sound – both in Grade 3 (give them a listen!):
Scenes from Citizen 13660 – Yukiko Nishimura
New Places – D.I.D. Choi
MINOR, MODAL, and ANGRY SOUNDING BAND MUSIC
Whether it’s my list, the L&M list, or any others – you will notice that suddenly, MANY young and even intermediate level band pieces are in the key of C Minor. This year it’s really excessive and it’s difficult to navigate. I usually look for thematic material (a “hook” melody or something that the students are going to engage with), then I look the roadmap to see what is happening contextually (ie, is this actually intended to be ANGRY?). Lastly I look at the composer’s intention, if they’ve listed one (title included if it’s reflective of their intent) to see if everything lines up.
These minor keyed intense pieces are typically LOUD. They seem to have AMAZING percussion writing (like, EVERY TIME) and yes – there is usually some type of imagery attached. It used to be Grade 0.5 (which it still is , as you can hear) but now it has extended into the middle grades.
I think the intention of these pieces WAS for contrast and in many cases, to provide programmatic/story-driven material (and to lighten up people’s programmes) – But now, using the 2024 release as an example – ITS ALL THAT WAS AVAILABLE. So, the repertoire people did our best with this!
TRADITION AND THE PRESSURE
There is a strong influence of tradition in the concert band repertoire. Many composers working in this medium feel a deep connection to the historical repertoire and may be hesitant to deviate significantly from established norms. This can sometimes result in music that feels a bit derivative. Band audiences work on the same tradition – they like the American wind band sound of the eras – and they expect it to an extent so this is a bigger ask than just of the composers and publishers.
There is a lot of pressure on band composers to produce works that are immediately accessible and performable, and there is certainly also a balancing act when it comes to instrumentation and large ensemble orchestration. And lastly – competition. Composers might be less inclined to take the risks that they want to take, if they fear that unconventional works will be less likely to be performed or commissioned.
EDI
This has gotten better I guess? I don't know. There was a small flood of female and diverse band composers around 2021...but now they are all and are churning out regular band music and starting to replicate themselves too! The independent composers/publishers do have a presence but, from a school and especially purchasing perspective, it’s really tricky to get a hold of this music (and much of it is quitte expensive) And, as you can see from my independent picks above – a lot of the music is difficult.
Many of us are no longer clear on what we wanted…Were we looking for new sounds which represented other cultures and communities? Or were we looking for people’s birth certificates/passports and in the case of 2SLGBTQ+, their….what? Instagram posts from pride? A diverse SOUND? Or a diverse PERSON?
I think this has gotten a bit lost and what we have now, partway through this initiative - I am finding MORE regular educational band music and not enough of a (distinctive) sound from these independent composers. So what is the solution here?
* Pratik will be presenting his session which he is preparing on this topic at the OMEA conference in Session 5 (Saturday, November 9 1:00pm – 2:15pm) entitled “How to find Band Repertoire by Composers from Marginalized Groups”. If you are attending the conference, I believe this will be a very helpful session! See you there!
OTHER SOLUTIONS - HERE I GO AGAIN...
Now , more than ever – as your numbers are normal (ish), you have somewhat of a schedule, performance goals, etc – your CORE REPERTOIRE is your most valuable tool. These are YOUR toolkit pieces which are always in your “back pocket” and can be pulled out when the specifications of your ensemble (or curricular needs) align with these pieces characteristics. I won’t duplicate MYSELF here, as many of you know I’ve been moaning about this topic for 20 years…but in case you’re new here – here’s the last known workshop outline: CLICK HERE
Share resources, pieces, ideas, discussions with all of us and above all – yes – purchase ad programme those pieces which speak to you, your students, and to the long term success of your programme – Let’s keep this dialogue as active and hopefully more progressive than my AIRING OF DIRTY LAUNDRY in this article – Sorry for the rant!
THE OBA BEGINNING BAND SYMPOSIUM IS COMING - CLICK ON THE POSTER AND GET THOSE REGISTRATIONS IN!!
.png)
SHAMELESS!
Please reach out any time for assistance with your brass or full band SITUATIONS! I'm happy (and honoured!!) to work with your students in a sectional or rehearsal setting in 2024-2025. And/or - if you have an outstanding trombone or euphonium player who is looking for enrichment, different goals and opportunities - I'm here for them! Fore more info, CLICK HERE