Recruitment & Retention
A Beginning-of-Year Welcome Letter to New Music Parents
Dear Parents:It is with great excitement that I welcome your family to our instrumental music program!Learning to play a musical instrument and acquiring the unique habits of...
7 Easy Things Parents Can Do Right Now to Extend Their Child’s Musical Life
Many parents find small ways to help their children with school homework each day. They also may know the basics of how to help their children with things like...
4 Ways Parents Can Ensure Their Child Sticks with Instrumental Music When They Graduate to Middle School
Graduating from one to school to the next is both an exciting and crazy time, to say the least. The changes that are occurring biologically, socially, and academically in...
An End-of-Year Letter to New Music Parents
Dear Parents:As our school year winds down, I would like to congratulate you on completing the first year of your child’s instrumental music study! It’s amazing...
Retaining Low Brass Students
All musicians love the feeling of improving. That basic motivator and retainer of music students may elude low brass players for lack of challenging repertoire during their...
Why Students Really Quit Their Musical Instrument (and How Parents Can Prevent It)
Every year almost 100% of public school students begin an instrument though their school’s music program (if a program exists). One or two years later, more than 50% of...
3 Things Parents Must Tell Their Children When They Begin a Musical Instrument
Hopefully your child will begin a musical instrument through their school music program. If so, when they bring home their instrument for the first time, it is...
Training Young Low Brass Players… Ear Development
It takes a three-part approach when training low brass players to be contributing members of any ensemble. These activities should be developed simultaneously, as each activity...
Recruiting approaches for low brass players
I remember walking into the band room when I was 11 years old and meeting my great middle school band director, Mr. Charles Foster. His talk that day changed the course of my...
