#311. Fear
Of all the things we have to help students overcome, work through, manage, and conquer, fear has to number high on the list. Fear of the unknown. Fear of trying. Fear of failing. Fear of letting others down. Fear of maintaining success. And the list goes on and on and...
#310. Rehearsals
T. S. Elliot stated that “the journey, not the arrival matters.“ I think we can all agree with that wonderful thought. As teachers, that is our stock-in-trade. It is what we dedicate our professional lives to. It surely describes the big picture of our time with our...
#309. Believe
As you walk into your classroom today, remember these words of Anatole France, “To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.” We can follow the advice of the remarkable sentiment: “To achieve all that is possible,...
McFarland Jr High School
McFarland Jr High School Performing Ensembles School Name: McFarland Jr High School School Location: McFarland, CA School Mascot: Sabercats Platinum Member Since: 2026 KHS Brands Used: Jupiter, Mapex, Majestic “We purchased the melodic instruments from GOLD drum...
#308. Why Make It Vivid?
When rehearsing an ensemble, one of the challenges is to convince our musicians that they must make the piece not only come to life, but do so incredibly vividly. The best way I have found is to ask them how many times we will rehearse a piece before a...
#307. Don’t Say A Word
I have often suggested that you should write a quote of the board at the start of a class or rehearsal, and then simply point to those words or tap on the board. I wouldn’t say a word. I would just stare at the words, and then start teaching. The following quote by...
Level-Up Your Sound: A Quick Guide To Help Improve Your Percussion Section Sound
They say that being a band director might not be the easiest job in the world. I fear they might be right. As a student that played brass and percussion throughout middle school and high school, I was pretty prepared to tackle those areas in college. However,...
Milt’s Mindful Moment #12
April Is the Hinge April is a weird month in the music education world, ain’t it? It sits between identities. Not quite the urgency of contest season, not yet the release of final concerts. It’s a hinge. And hinges don’t get much attention until something stops...
#306. “Change The Ending”
Seemingly every day I teach, I realize something I am doing that I need to improve, correct, or completely reimagine. It might be my choice of words, the tone of my voice, my sounding exasperated, how I sequenced the material, my choice of examples, my rushing the...
About Academic Alliance
Involvement in school music provides experiences that only participants can fully understand. Those experiences help forge a common bond through music. If you have been fortunate enough to share such experiences, you are what we call “banded.”
We also use BANDED to describe the COMMUNITY that includes Music Educators, Students of all Ages, Band Parents, Professional Performers, Hobbyist Musicians, School Music Dealers, and Instrument Manufacturers such as ourselves.
At the very foundations of this community, we recognize the importance of the important symbiotic relationship between School Music Programs, School Music Dealers, and the Instrument Manufacturer. In order to foster this connection, we have developed the KHS America Academic Alliance.
We look forward to the evolution of this exciting program, and welcome feedback on how we can further enhance the work that you do in music education.
We are excited to offer your program the opportunity to join the KHS America Academic Alliance today.
We look forward to the evolution of this exciting program, and welcome feedback on how we can further enhance the work that you do in music education.
We are excited to offer your program the opportunity to join the KHS America Academic Alliance today.