As a private piano instructor, Tammy Miller has found a unique way for her students to feel like they are part of a larger musical community. “Each year, I do a studio challenge that each of my students participate in,” Miller says. “I teach an average of 40 students who range in age from 4-78! The yearly studio challenge is an extra special aspect of their experience in my studio, and it increases their excitement toward learning and provides added engagement in their music lessons!”

For this year’s challenge, “Piano Olympics,” students participate in a different Piano Olympic event each month. September was a practice challenge where students were given an individual 30-day practice chart. “If they practiced 30 days, they earned a gold medal that they write their name on and post on my studio wall; 20 to 29 days of practice earned silver, and 10 to 19 days was bronze,” Miller explains.

October was music history where students listened to four different episodes that Miller pre-selected on the Classics for Kids website and completed the activity/quiz. During November, or “Note-vember,” students came up with a new mnemonic device for the lines and spaces on the treble and bass clef. Piano Olympics will continue through May with upcoming events on sight-reading, rhythm, improvisation, technique, etc. “To date, everyone in the studio has participated in every Piano Olympics challenge and earned at least a bronze medal,” Miller proudly proclaims  

In addition to her private piano lessons, Miller serves as the artist faculty representative to the Omaha Conservatory of Music board of directors for the next two academic years. “This role allows me to be a voice for the faculty and give feedback to the board to assist with their strategic planning efforts and improvements or new programs/offerings within the organization,” Miller says. As an artist faculty representative, Miller participates on the Educational Programming and Community Outreach Committees, which allows her to work a little closer with the directors of both committees on how the organization can have a greater impact on students at the conservatory and throughout the Omaha Metro area.

Miller is also the founder and president of the National Composers Orchestra (NCO), the first professional musical ensemble and chamber music series in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and the artistic director and founder of the NCO Chamber Music Series that operates in partnership with St. Paul’s Conservatory of Music. “The goal of the Chamber Music Series is to promote the music of living composers and provide immediate access to high-quality musical performances for the Council Bluffs community and the students at St. Paul’s Conservatory of Music,” Miller says. “In addition to high-quality live performances, students and audience members have the opportunity to meet and talk with guest artists and composers in a post-concert meet and greet.”

Project Music is so much more than just an after-school music program. “We are cultivating change makers through music,” says Executive Director Gabrielle Molina. The program is open to young music students in the Stamford, Connecticut, area and includes free instruments, music instructions, mentorship and opportunities to perform.

“I’m most excited about our newest initiative that we are calling our ‘Learn & Earn Program’ where we train and pay our student leaders to help around Project Music,” Molina says. “These jobs include music librarian, equipment manager, speaker and tour guide for guests, a performance track and so many more. The students have to interview, present a resume, work on a budget for how they will use their money, and learn skills that will be directly translatable to college or a job.”

Prior to being named executive director, Molina was program director and focused on embedding Project Music even further into the community and working alongside other community partners that care about the kids, community development, education and the arts. “Now as executive director, I have to think about our sustainability and future positioning of the organization as we continue to grow and evolve to meet the needs of our community,” she says.

Currently, Project Music serves more than 100 students, but Molina’s goal is to more than double enrollment to 250+ through growing partnerships in the community. “I really believe that you have to meet students where they are, but with that being said, you have to also show them where they can go, all the possibilities that are open to them if they work and are ready to tackle challenges,” she says.

The approach Molina takes at Project Music is: If you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together. “We — and I say we because I don’t do this alone, this truly is a together effort — have engaged more community partners and asked ‘how can we get involved, how can we enroll more students?’ There’s so much great work being done in our community, so it’s really just about finding a way to work together because we all ultimately want to see a better, brighter community and future,” she says.

Molina also founded Teaching Artists International (TAI), a nonprofit whose mission is to “develop global citizen musicians that support music education around the world,” according to its website. TAI partners with music institutions worldwide to provide teaching artists residency opportunities to travel, perform and teach.

Taking a class taught by Justin John Moniz is an experience you won’t soon forget. “I work to create a classroom environment that in many ways parallels that of a theater. I rehearse my lectures, tech my visual aids and spend considerable time working through my pacing and transitions,” he says. “I venture to create interactive, thoughtful and immersive pedagogical experiences, which enable students to take an ‘intermission’ from the outside world in order to discover their truest potential.” 

The vocal pedagogy program at New York University (NYU) — The Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development is unique because it explores the “intersection of psychological health, the arts and communication,” Moniz says. “Our work enables us to build bridges and connect people around the globe by way of vocal music and individual expression.”

Moniz started the NYU Steinhardt Vocal Pedagogy Outreach Program to provide a platform for his graduate students to put their theoretical work into practice by working and engaging with disadvantaged communities across the state.

“The mission of the program parallels that of NYU Steinhardt: To advance the education, health and well-being of people and communities around the world. We achieve this by fostering knowledge, creativity and innovation at the crossroads of culture, education and human development,” he explains. “The graduate students in the vocal pedagogy program devised five unique workshops surrounding the themes of vocal efficiency and sustainability, technique versus style and vocal health. Each of the workshops engaged students in various virtual modalities.”

Moniz plans to continue to develop the vocal pedagogy program, and “I hope to broaden our reach by facilitating workshops with a growing number of geographically, culturally and economically disadvantaged communities across New York State,” he says.

Observing the impact of his teaching and mentorship when his students find success in their own teaching, research or performance pursuits “inspires me to be a bigger, bolder and braver lifelong learner myself,” Moniz says. 

Bryant Montalvo was teaching abroad when the COVID-19 pandemic started, and he knew it was time to come home. When the opportunity to begin a new choral program at Central Falls High School presented itself, he couldn’t pass it up — even though his classes would be taught 100% remotely. “Most students who were on my class roster didn’t even know that music was being offered! Because of distance learning, creating traditional music ensembles was not feasible, so I created and developed the current curricula for Music Composition and Music Production classes solely around music technology to give my students an immediate, hands-on learning experience with music,” Montalvo explains.

In Music Composition 1 and 2, students utilize music notation software to build the necessary foundational skills of music literacy. Students create their own melodies and compositions and with the software’s playback capabilities, they can immediately hear what their work sounds like on various instruments.

In Music Production, students learn how to use a digital audio workstation to create their own beats, loops, remixes and original work through solo and collaborative tasks. The class also listens to and analyzes pop, hip-hop and current top-chart songs. “By utilizing the music that is currently streamed into the headphones of my students, the music room becomes a student-led learning environment,” Montalvo says. “I designed this course to be project based, so each student has useful, lifelong skills as well as a digital portfolio of work to share.”

Watch this fun YouTube video that Montalvo made at the end of the last school year where he raps about the new music courses! 

Central Falls is a Title I school where the majority of students are immigrants. Montalvo tells his classes that “in music, it takes everybody. You cannot leave a single person out when creating music, and everyone has to work together,” he says. He builds community among his students by ensuring that everyone learns and uses others’ names in the classroom to ensure that all students feel valued and respected. Montalvo’s students also drive their own learning and select repertoire they want to work on.

Montalvo also uses movement activities and games (which, Montalvo says, aren’t reserved for elementary students). “My high school students love a challenge when they have to work together, such as games that require beat making, keeping time and collaboration,” he says. 

The music program at Central Falls was started thanks to a portion of ESSER funds granted to the school. Montalvo also applied for five grants in the last year — and received all of them. “One of the grants we received was from the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) and National Association for Music Education (NAfME) to start a new Tri-M Music Honor Society Chapter,” Montalvo says. “I am excited to be the first music teacher at Central Falls High School to induct students into this honor society this year at honors night.” 

Cody Newman says his daily calling is empowering students to be in the band program. “It is so important to give away the reins to our young leaders as they will soon be given the reins to determine the direction of their lives and the lives of their future families,” the director of band says. “What more important job do I have than to empower young people to rise to overcome the challenges they will encounter?”

The goal of the band leadership team at Forney High School is to create “a culture of unity through selflessness, positivity and encouragement,” Newman says. “When our students strive to accomplish these things, our music and performance goals are simply byproducts of their true success.”

In 2021, Forney High was in the news because Micah Diffee, a student in a wheelchair, wanted to join the band. “Micah is exceptionally capable and any issues he came across were solved by him and his friend around him,” Newman says. “There is, of course, the feel-good story about Micah, but what was much more important were the day-to-day operations that the rest of the students took part in with him. My hope is that the students who were Micah’s bandmates see people differently in the future. I hope that they won’t focus on perceived disabilities, but rather on the opportunities. It was a daily inspiration watching the students all working together.”

Inspiration and spreading positivity are reverberating themes in Newman’s program. After a great performance, instead of listing off all the accomplishments that the band has had, Newman decided this year to use that time to continue to spread the message that the Forney band directors teach daily. They recite Longfellow’s poem, “The Arrow and the Song,” which is about “the importance of words,” Newman explains. “Some words stick with you and hurt you like the arrow, while other words build you up and are carried in your heart like a song. This message is so important and helpful to the daily operations and culture within our program that I thought, why not continue to spread that message like wildflower seeds at each venue we participate in throughout the fall season.”

Newman knows that he lives a charmed life. “I have been so blessed to have been a part of several incredible teams of directors that molded and shaped me into the teacher I am today. I look at directors I get to work with daily and recognize that I get to do this with them. I look at these students and recognize that I get to do this with them. I look at my young family and beautiful wife and realize that I get to do this with them. The ‘them’ is very important to me.”

If you’re a student at the University of California, Riverside (UCR) and have an interest in taiko drumming, just talk to Terry Nguyen! “Even though the UCR Taiko Ensemble is listed as a music ensemble in the Department of Music, anyone can join regardless of their major,” Nguyen says. “There are no audition requirements. Students are not required to have any prior musical experience. If they come to me with an open mind and a willingness to learn, then I will teach them!”

Nguyen is an alumnus of UCR, its Taiko Ensemble and Senryu Taiko (a student taiko drumming group). “I am not too far removed from the time that taiko started in Riverside,” she explains. “I am still in contact with the folks who laid the groundwork for taiko at UCR. It’s crucial to know this history, to have the first-hand experiences and to transmit the knowledge.”

Currently, Nguyen’s main focus is the UCR Taiko Ensemble, which is academic, and TaikoMix, a community-based performing ensemble that educates the public about the history and performance of taiko. “The majority of TaikoMix members are UCR and Senryu Taiko alumni, so it’s fun to have this living history that keeps growing each year,” Nguyen says. “The organizations support one another through sharing resources like taiko equipment and repertoire.”

Nguyen’s taiko class met off campus for nearly three years as she waited for the on-campus facility, The Barn Theater, to be renovated. Then came the pandemic. During the 2020-2021 fall quarter, some instructors were presented with an option of submitting worksite plans to offer in-person classes. The Barn’s renovation and expansion had just been completed that summer, so Nguyen formulated a plan that allowed her taiko class to convene in-person while also livestreaming for a synchronous class. Students who opted to come to class at the Barn complied with the strict sanitization protocols, including wearing masks and distancing themselves from one another. “As one of the first taiko/music ensembles to resume in-person rehearsals, I have shared the worksite plan with a couple of my fellow ensemble directors, as well as other taiko organizations, as they ramped back up to their in-person activities,” Nguyen says.

In addition to promoting taiko drumming, Nguyen finds ways to share Asian and Asian American cultural and traditional arts. “Aside from taiko, which I have been playing for nearly 20 years, I am one of few Tsugaru shamisen (Japanese three-stringed percussive lute) players in Southern California,” she says. “I am the principal shamisen player and artistic director of The Wagaku Collective, an all-traditional instrument ensemble that performs on shakuhachi/shinobue flutes, Tsugaru shamisen, Okinawan sanshin and, of course, taiko.”

See Nguyen’s shamisen (@tsugaruterry) Facebook and Instagram pages. Nguyen also appears as a guest artist with various taiko ensembles and musicians. She studies and researches the history of Japanese traditional instruments (wagakki) and folk music (minyo), which is reflected in her lessons and presentations.  

Tanner Otto admits to being a thief. “Most of my ideas have been ‘borrowed’ from other orchestra teachers,” he says. The idea for the marching orchestra came from his teacher, Brian Cole, whose middle school orchestra played and walked in the fall homecoming parade for years. “As a student I always enjoyed the experience of being in a parade and throwing out candy to those who came to watch. The homecoming parade at Sycamore Community Schools is one of my favorite events of the year. Most people expect to see the marching band in the parade, but seeing the orchestra is a fun surprise! The parade is a great way for us to be visible in the community and for our students to show their school spirit.”

The orchestra director adds that violins and violas walk the parade while cellos and basses sit on a flatbed trailer or in the back of a pickup — see the video of the marching orchestra in action.

Another “borrowed” idea was a concert that featured a glow-in-the-dark rendition of “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.” Otto says, “We started by putting glow-in-the-dark stars on the instruments, then we took it to the next level by buying glow bracelets for each student in our school colors. In the moments before we played ‘Twinkle Twinkle,’ students cracked their bracelets and put them on their bow hands. Once the lights were off, it created a super cool look. I even used a giant glow stick as a baton!”

These out-of-the-box ideas make orchestra fun and engaging for his students. He supplements the method book for his second-year students with pop songs or music from movies or TV shows. “Students love to play music they recognize, and many of them have pedagogical merit,” Otto explains. “For example, ‘Havana’ by Camila Cabello is great for refining the C major finger pattern and off-beat 8th notes. ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ is perfect for forward extensions. Many of these songs can be arranged into different keys, depending on what students are working on.”

Otto adds improvisation, composition and digital music creation into the curriculum. He says, “While improv is something we work on all year, composing and music creation are great units to do after concerts or before breaks. Students really enjoy these projects and I love seeing how creative their final products are.”

Another unique teaching method Otto uses is to have students work with partners to refine their technique. “Working with a peer is less intimidating and makes orchestra more social,” he says. “I find it especially useful when we begin working with the bow. In no time, students begin acting as the teacher, recognizing mistakes and helping their partner.”

Even his classroom setup is forward thinking. “Even before COVID, we sat in a grid with a few feet between each chair,” Otto explains. “Having space between each student really helps with classroom management and gives me the ability to walk around the room and get to every student. I also don’t have a podium or stand at the front of the room and that keeps me from being tied to one spot. I often walk around with my instrument so that I can play along or demonstrate.”

Kenneth Perkins started the Joseph Keels Elementary (JKE) chorus in 2012 — his first year as a music teacher. That year, he had about 12 kids in the choir, and for the winter concert, they performed “a whopping five songs accompanied by me on the piano,” he says. After that first year, Perkins’ music program grew each year until 2020 when COVID hit.

An offshoot of his large chorus was the recorder ensemble that he assembled to play with the singers. Perkins says, “We played fun songs around the neighborhood, traveled to nursing homes, participated in festivals and even went to Carowinds [an amusement park in North Carolina]!”

Fun is a constant element in Perkins’ classroom. “I try to create a fun learning environment that is filled with plenty of movement,” he says. “Children learn by doing and because of that, I believe in having my students do and perform as much as physically possible. Music-making is at its peak level when all children can participate and feel like they are contributing to the process.” 

Even at the elementary level, Perkins actively seeks new and culturally relevant information that he can merge into his lessons. “This allows my lessons to be more fresh and unique,” he says. “In many ways, I give students a choice in the direction that our music lessons can go. They have shown me that they relish these opportunities — which may be as simple as allowing my kindergarten students to choose between playing instruments or playing a game — which encourages me to do even more.”

Outside the classroom, Perkins is just as enthusiastic. “Throughout the school, I try to do as much as I can to spread the joy and beauty of music to both adults and children,” he says. “For adults, I formed a faculty and staff choir and sought voices that were trained and untrained to join. It was a smashing success — the faculty choir performs for several programs throughout the school year.”

He continues, “For the younger grade levels, I am constantly seeking field trips to the ballet or to the local orchestra at the Koger Center. For the older students, I’ve showcased their talents on our acclaimed morning news shows. Students have played the recorder, violin and even sung on air!”

JKE is also involved in the University of South Carolina Strings Project that selects 25 students by lottery and offers them string lessons. Perkins has contributed to selected students for that program as well.

Being a band director is the Pohland family profession. Joel Pohland’s father, Glenn, and his brother, John, are both band directors, and Joel learned from both of them that the key to building a great band program is building relationships beyond the band room. And that is exactly what he has done at Pierz Healy High School.

Pohland has an open-door policy for his students and shows them that they can trust him to be more than their band director. “I am not afraid to share personal stories, trials and exciting adventures in my life, and the students appreciate this so much,” he says. “They want to know that their teachers are human and go through problems just like they do. I hope that by providing them room to express themselves outside of the band room and ask for help outside of music, that students will engage more completely in the band room and have trust in me to guide them to be the best versions of themselves — as musicians and human beings.”

In addition to providing support to his students, Pohland also challenges them musically. He searches for and discovers new music from new composers that push the boundaries of what has normally been done in the band world. “New composers are writing fun techniques such as using paper (as in “Paper Cut” by Alex Shapiro) and so much more that engages students to a new level, which in turn engages our audience,” Pohland says. “I always try to find a central theme to our music, and I think that the students and audiences have really appreciated this because it adds to the overall concert experience.”

One memorable concert was the first performance after the COVID hiatus in the spring of 2021. “The Comeback Concert was incredible,” Pohland says. “There was so much passion and energy from the students — I’ve never seen so much excitement in the band room prior to a performance. It had been over a year since our last live performance, and the students were overjoyed.” 

Pohland appreciates the support his program receives from the administration and community. “Pierz is a really special place to work,” he says. “We have an incredible music team … and together we have created an incredible music program in our community, and the students have a place where they feel like they belong. So many students comment on how the band room is like a second home or an unexpected home — this is the greatest compliment I can receive as a music educator.”

Alec Powell considers himself to be a perfectionist, but he realizes that that can be a problem when teaching middle school students at Mountain Ridge Junior High. But his students are hard workers who constantly push themselves to be better. “They rarely want an easy day, and always surprise me with their tenacity,” he says.

Powell recalls that after a recent concert, he was out sick. He left his students to work in sectionals on some new music. “When I came back, not only had they learned their new music, but they memorized it. They wanted to surprise me with how hard they worked.” 

How does the director of choirs instill this work ethic in his students? “I tell my students that the most important part of my class is becoming better people. I don’t care if they are musicians after they leave my room, but I do want them to leave better,” he says.

Powell understands that the middle school years can be difficult, so he connects with his students through honesty. “I strive to be as authentic as possible and model that same behavior in my classroom,” he says. “I talk about the losses as often as I do the wins. I speak openly about therapy, and how it and music have greatly affected my mental health. I give my students the space to say what and how they are feeling, and I act as a listener, not a fixer.”

During the pandemic, Powell saw the immediate need for a feel-good moment since the winter concert was canceled. “Normally I arrange our final number for the top three ensembles, but there was no way for this to happen. Seeing how other amazing educators were working with their virtual choirs, I decided to give it a go. After arranging/orchestrating the piece, we spent the beginning of November rehearsing and recording outside.” 

Enrollment in his choir classes have increased dramatically. “I wish I had the magic formula for this,” Powell admits. “I think it has to do with class culture. I remember latching on to teachers I connected with, so I share stores about my life and experiences to humanize myself in the eyes of my students.”

Empowering students to lead, embrace new ideas with a positive attitude and actively support one another are the foundations of Benjamin Rogers’ vocal program at Liberty Middle School. “We recently added a ‘Choir Shout-Out Wall’ in our classroom where students can give their peers compliments, and the focus on building community helps rehearsal attitude and retention,” he explains.

Rogers established a Choir Leadership Council for each choir, which has four main roles to help classes run successfully: 1) Directors Assistants typically lead the class through kinesthetic and vocal warmups and literacy activities; they also run choral rehearsals when Rogers is absent. 2) Secretaries take attendance and oversee any organizational aspects of the choral classroom, from numbering scores to collecting them after a concert cycle. 3) Marketing Chairs are the go-tos for fundraising efforts and the group’s social media. 4) Wardens encourage singers to meet classroom expectations and handle any emergencies.

But the biggest change Rogers implemented was creating and getting approval for four voice-based choir tracks — beginning, intermediate and advanced treble, and advanced bass — instead of grade-level choirs. During the prior academic year, the school piloted an advanced mixed choir with a beginning treble and beginning bass choir. “With a strong recruitment initiative, our numbers grew in size to accommodate the four voice-based choirs,” Rogers explains. “Our school has a fantastic counseling team that supports our music program wholeheartedly and forms our master schedule around our ensembles.”

This shift from grade-level to voice-based choirs was done not only at Liberty, but throughout the district, which “means that our community is empowering our arts programs and paving the way for higher achieving music ensembles,” Rogers says. “We are able to differentiate our instruction for the different levels and types of voices in each choir in a more efficient way than when all students are clumped together as part of a grade-level choir.” 

With such innovative changes, it’s no wonder that choir numbers have more than doubled — even in the midst of a pandemic. Rogers has strong, year-round recruitment. “Our choirs record and send ‘virtual letters’ to our feeder schools with our choirs singing, we’ve done choral pen pals, we share our concerts with our feeder schools, and I join our counseling team on visits to the elementary schools,” he says. “After initial registration, I call every incoming 6th-grade family to encourage them to join one of our music programs at Liberty. We also recruit from our current student population with bring-a-friend-to-choir events, and I recruit from teaching a 6th-grade general music class to students who aren’t in a music ensemble.”

In this fast-moving world, it’s rare to encounter someone who thinks things through before acting. But that’s exactly what Mark Stanford does. “I make a conscious effort to take a step back and think about my response, answers and decisions,” he explains. “One way I have done this is by asking for the opinions of others, including students! And I seriously consider everyone’s opinions and suggestions — in fact, this year’s marching band show was entirely selected by the students.”

He took this same approach when he took over the band program at Springfield High School. “Not implementing too many rapid changes was important because each program has its own unique culture and expectations that must be learned and considered before making changes,” he says. “Upon my arrival, the Springfield band program already was headed in a positive direction. Keeping in touch with the former director and talking to colleagues helps me make decisions and changes that improve the program while honoring its legacy and traditions.” 

Recruitment has been a primary focus for Stanford as he grows the band’s enrollment. “We have a district tradition of doing a side-by-side concert with the 8th-grade and high school bands,” he says. “We also have an 8th-grade band night, where 8th graders rehearse and have fun with the high school marching band. I also host several recruitment meetings led by current band members who share their experiences, and we emphasize that students can be involved in band and athletics by working with the district media team to have our athlete/musicians featured on social media.”

With his training on Pro Tools software and music technology instruction during his master’s degree program, Stanford was asked to help set up the new music lab and develop the curriculum for the digital music production class. Along with his colleague, Mike Zubert, Stanford worked with the district to purchase Pro Tools along with desk-mounted microphones and MIDI controllers, which maximized desk space. “The new curriculum gives students the opportunity to learn about concepts of music by creating and producing on industry-standard software,” he says.

On top of band and digital music courses, Stanford teaches a guitar and ukulele elective for which he developed curriculum and content with Zubert.

Amanda Schoolland embraces the traditions of Metlakatla where she teaches. S’malgyak, the native language of the Tsimshian people who live in Metlakatla, is a dying language. “I work with members of the community and school to revive the language by using phrases in class,” Schoolland says. “In addition, we often sing songs in S’malgyak, and a local dance leader has gifted some of his original compositions to the high school band. We perform at least one of his pieces every year and use locally made hand drums decorated with Tsimshian Northwest Formline Art.” 

Music is a big part of Metlakatla culture, “creating a unique history on our isolated Alaskan island,” Schoolland says. “Because of this rich background, families encourage students in any and all musical avenues. When I proposed marching in the Fourth of July and Founder’s Day parades, students were eager to give it a shot. We rehearsed through the month of June and marched in our town celebrations. This was the first marching band in decades!”

The year before Schoolland joined the faculty of Metlakatla High School as the music director, the music department was all but gone. “It has been a wonderful experience to rebuild the program and see it flourish,” she says. “Even after school hours, the band room is often filled with students excited to share their accomplishments and gain more confidence in their musical abilities. My students are gifted artists and interesting, creative individuals that make our music ensembles unique, tightly bonded and uplifting.”  

Schoolland also helped revive the community choir, which used to sing Christmas carols for the holiday celebration in town. “Years prior to my move to Metlakatla saw the group perform sporadically,” she explains. “A piano player who began accompanying the school choir mentioned the community choir, and together we contacted former members and invited new singers. The first year was a small group, but consistency proved to be the key, and the next year was much larger, filled with incredible voices and camaraderie.”  

In her quest to grow the music program, Schoolland lobbied school and district administrations to introduce a strings program when she saw the lack of string ensembles at the elementary and middle school levels. She then sought out grants to secure instruments through the Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation and Colorado Public Radio, as well as through local community donations. “The first year, students participated in beginning orchestra,” she says. “By the second year, we were expanding to two and three ensembles to accommodate the number of students and various skill levels.”

In addition to music, Schoolland also teaches computer science. She keeps organized by using checklists and reminders. “For instance, I choose music selections early so I can study scores and compile sheet music for students well ahead of deadlines,” she explains. “In computer science, students are required to ask others for assistance before referring questions to me, so they are learning and teaching constantly. That leaves me more time to work with individual students on complex coding concepts. I thoroughly enjoy all the different hats I wear, which makes it easy to stay motivated.”  

You’ll experience more than just playing the piano when you take private lessons from Jennifer Stadler. “I work hard to keep lessons interesting for my students (and myself!),” she says. “I maintain a massive library of resources including physical and digital games, educational apps and practice incentives to keep my students motivated throughout the school year.”

Stadler also provides a variety of performance opportunities in her piano studio, and she makes sure to include fun elements. “Students attend regular studio classes where they perform solo and ensemble pieces for a small group of peers,” she says. “They also engage in cup rhythm ensembles, sight-reading relays, digital escape rooms and other fun group activities.”

Her students also participate in two formal recitals ­— one in the winter and one in the spring. “The winter recital always includes a group sing-a-long, which everyone enjoys. During the quarantine, we continued this tradition over Zoom (with extended family, thanks to the online format) and also played holiday trivia,” she says.

The spring recital is different each year, according to Stadler. “One year, students created a storyboard of images that was projected on an overhead screen while they performed,” she says. “Another year, students created green-screen performance videos, where they appeared to be playing in another time or place (e.g., playing ‘Hedwig’s Theme’ inside Hogwarts) using chroma key technology. This multimedia project fostered creativity and musical connection — and the students had a ton of fun doing it.”

Students also participate in events outside of Stadler’s studio like the Central Oklahoma Music Teachers Association (COMTA) Clavinova Ensemble Adventures, a collaborative event where they perform in an orchestra of digital pianos, and the Oklahoma Music Teachers Association (OMTA) Achievement Auditions, a non-competitive adjudicated event where they can earn ribbons, medals and trophies.

With her tech skills, it’s not surprising that Stadler is a member of the National Conference for Keyboard Pedagogy (NCKP) Technology Committee, which is responsible for planning all aspects of the preconference technology track. She has presented sessions on  a variety of tech topics, including multimedia and long-distance recital ideas, the role of virtual reality in music performance and education, and green-screen technology.

Brandon Tambellini knows that high school can be a difficult time for students. He tells his students at Blackhawk High School that instead of focusing on “what I can do,” they must focus on “what we can do.” He says, “In every group, every private lesson, at every level, we put our energy into creating music together, and students have found that they have grown together, which has changed the culture of ‘me’ to the culture of ‘we.’ At its core, students join band because they want to make music, but they also create lifelong friendships, establish a positive work ethic and inspire each other to strive for success.”

When the pandemic forced the closure of the school, the band director continued to have his students focus on their ability to make music despite the inability to play together. “Although the world was shifting and changing around us, it did not eliminate our love for the craft,” he says. “My job was to teach music in whatever format possible. When we returned to school, we found that our love for music as a group was deeper, and we were able to give more to the process of learning and performing because of the independent growth of each student during our time apart.”  

The return to school after the shutdown made Tambellini analyze what the district needed from music education, which led him to make a controversial decision — he removed the Blackhawk marching band from the competitive season. “As much as I wanted to put together an impressive competition show, our students and community needed something else,” he explains. “Instead, we focused on a football-style show. At the same time, I still scheduled, rehearsed and treated the group the same as if they were competing. Good music is still good music.”

Another recent change to the music program was adding Jazz Band to the curricular school day. A unique aspect of Blackhawk High School’s schedule is that there are classes during the 30-minute homeroom period. “I decided that a jazz/homeroom class would be an easy way to have rehearsal every day without interfering with after-school activities,” Tambellini says. “My students were excited and felt that making music together would be a great way to start the day. Regardless of the 7:30 a.m. start time, the Jazz Band has doubled in size in one year and continues to grow.”

The Jazz Band recently attended the Winter Lights Festival in Beaver Falls. Even though it was a bone-chilling 20 degrees, the students performed extremely well and “the members of the community complimented them for weeks following the performance,” Tambellini says. “Music educators must teach our students to give back to our community by giving the gift of music. Businesses, nursing homes, charities and other community-sponsored events are continuously looking for ensembles to perform, and the students need to know that their music means something to the community.”

The secret behind the success of Vandergrift High School’s marching band — including being crowned the 2019 Bands of America Grand National Champion — is teamwork. “We have been very fortunate to have an incredible team of educators working side by side at Vandegrift HS over the past eight years,” says Katie VanDoren, the associate director of bands. “Mike Howard [the director of bands] and I have worked together the whole time, and we complement each other well. We haven’t reached our limit yet!”

Not only has the band garnered awards at national competitions, the program has grown in numbers and quality. VanDoren believes that this growth is due to “the incredible work happening at our middle schools, and the profound support we experience from our school and district administration, and our community.”

This support was vital during the pandemic. “This year, after our students finished their last performance, I experienced one of my proudest moments as an educator,” VanDoren says. “For the  seniors and juniors who made it through the COVID years and the sophomores and freshmen who made it through a real year of marching band, it was a feeling of immense pride to watch them finish and be proud of themselves and their journey.”

VanDoren is involved in several other organizations that advocate for music education. She is the assistant brass caption head for Santa Clara Vanguard, a clinician for Music for All and a member of SASI Leadership (a student leadership organization where she works as a facilitator at site-based camps and on the education team for drum major camps). “Managing the different roles I play during the year comes down to having a great support system in my husband and those I work with in each arena,” she explains. “There is definitely a lot of time spent working, but I am fortunate that everyone I surround myself with is also passionate about establishing boundaries for free time and family time.”

VanDoren is a true believer of continuous improvement. “There is always something personally or within any given system that can be better, whether you are looking at efficiency or efficacy,” she says. “Gradual, small improvement over time is what makes the big things happen!”

Instrumental Music Director Armond Walter weaves some of the valuable lessons he learned from his mother — for example, “you define what success looks like” and “it’s not always about winning, rather what you learn or how you grow in the process” — into his classrooms at Meadville Area Middle School and Meadville Area Senior High School. “I tell my students to ‘do your best,’” he says. “While this mostly pertains to auditions and performances, it is something they can use in all other aspects of life. We discuss that there’s always room for growth, and we should be constantly evaluating ourselves to not only be better musicians, but better individuals.”

Walter knows that activities, teachers and peer relationships are some of the strongest incentives for students to come to school and do well. “Music is my avenue to connect with a broad range of students who can feel at home in my classroom because they are comfortable to be themselves without fear of judgment,” he explains.

However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, going to school was not an option. At that time, Walter was the president of the District 2 chapter of the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association (PMEA), and he worked with other directors in his area to brainstorm and share ideas following the release of a national performing arts aerosol study and how to minimize the risk of COVID  transmission.

“There was a basic plan created that each director could customize to best fit their program and school district,” Walter says. “While the results of our efforts varied across the area, many schools were able to continue with in-person rehearsals for jazz band, concert band, orchestras and other ensembles. For those who were not able to return to performing right away, we facilitated Zoom meetings to ask questions and discuss what directors could do to keep students engaged.”

While Walter was earning his master’s degree, he was told to advocate for his students because “someone was once an advocate for you or else you wouldn’t be here.” This pay-it-forward approach is something Walter takes to heart. “The achievements we see in our department are not influenced by one person, but many,” he says. “Through band, chorus, orchestra and drama, we work to offer our students a variety of opportunities that they enjoy and take ownership of.”

The Westfield High School band has a hashtag — #BandFamily — that resonates with students, staff and families. According to Director of Bands Chris Vitale, “The key ingredients of #BandFamily at Westfield are kindness, acceptance, respect and support. We are proud that we have students from every walk of life within our school community in the band. Each year, I am amazed and inspired by how accepting our students are of each other no matter what the circumstances.” 

Vitale considers himself lucky not only because of his students and their families, but because he works in a supportive district filled with talented and dedicated music educators, including his co-director, Trevor Sindorf.

To motivate and inspire his students, Vitale maintains a good balance between high standards and positive support for his students. “And I have always tried to be bluntly honest with my students,” he says. “When they do well, I tell them … and when they don’t, I don’t shy away from making that known. They appreciate the honest approach and the sense of accomplishment that they feel when they reach their goals is far greater as a result.”

Every other year, Vitale runs a leadership book club that is open to any student. The club reads Stephen Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” over the course of several months and meets before school every few weeks to discuss various topics covered in the book. “I keep things very casual and try to let the students drive the discussions,” Vitale says. “The agenda of the book club is for everyone involved to learn more about themselves, myself included. Each time we run the club I learn from my students, which I find very fulfilling!”

Vitale views high school band as a vehicle to build good humans. “Through music we can teach acceptance, empathy, communication, accountability, time management and teamwork, among other things,” he says. “I tell students that you don’t have to be best friends with everyone in our band, but you do have to learn how to work together and help each other be successful. By helping others, you create a better experience for yourself — a win-win. If I can teach that and foster a love and appreciation for music along the way, then I think I’m doing everything I set out to do as an educator.”

Vitale is also a leader throughout the state and helped start the New Jersey Marching Band Directors Association (NJMBDA). “After the 2019 marching season, directors throughout New Jersey began conversations regarding a need for an organization solely focused on providing an educationally sound marching experience for the bands of our state,” he explains.

The nonprofit NJMBDA had over 70 high school bands join in its first year. “We look forward to growing in 2022 as an organization run by directors focused on providing world-class adjudication at a low price,” Vitale says. “We have a fantastic team of dedicated educators working together to drive the organization forward, including my co-president Erik Lynch [from Verona High School].”