You are seated in a rehearsal with your students. Suddenly without warning an alto clarinet spontaneously combusts into flames. It spreads quickly to your gradebook, old wool band uniforms, and begins creeping towards the music library. You have but seconds to get you and your students out of the room (okay so there are a few percussionists that you conveniently […]
So this week is a pretty big week. There is no concert. No recital. There is a playoff game which yours truly and his marching band must attend, perform, and cheer – but that is a mere formality (if we don’t know it by now, we never will). The big week actually comes to a head on Tuesday evening as […]
In December of 2003 I sat listening to the PMEA District 5 Honors Band. Esteemed composer Mark Camphouse was the guest conductor. As I sat and listened to “Toccata” by Frescobaldi I was completely entranced. I asked other directors about the piece – and I was dumb-founded by the fact it was such an old piece. I didn’t know it, […]
If you get a chance, please bump over to myspace.com/travisjweller and check out several new recordings that I have posted. I am interested in gaining some feedback on the pieces. “Journey to the Prairie” was recorded by Dr. Edwin P. Arnold and the Grove City College Wind Ensemble. The programmatic piece depicts the Westward Expansion in our country. It is […]
I had a fantastic experience on Friday, October 26th at Westminster College with the Wind Ensemble. It was an honor to have Pirates! performed by such an outstanding group of young musicians. It was also very rewarding to hear the seriousness with which they took the privilege of making music. In their pre-concert meeting in the band room, each of the […]
