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Fog/Mist High school musicians learn from the pros
World renowned band Dallas Brass entertained a few hundred people in Central High School’s Keller Auditorium last Friday night, the first time the brass ensemble has performed in Valley Stream.
But before the evening concert, performers from Dallas Brass spent a few hours with high school student musicians. Members from the district band, consisting of about 80 students in grades 9-12 from the four schools, learned music skills from about a half-dozen professional musicians.
Todd Holly, the district’s director of fine and performing arts, said he first saw Dallas Brass play at the All-State music conference in Rochester in late 2010. Holly learned about the band’s educational program, and booked Dallas Brass for a public concert and workshop with students.
While it’s fairly easy to attend an orchestra concert, Holly said that band students have few options to hear a live performance that relates to them. “It’s not in the era,” he said.
In the three hours with student musicians, members of Dallas Brass performed a series of numbers, then invited a handful of students on stage to take part in a sight-reading exercise. Sight-reading is when a musician has to perform a piece of music that they have never seen before.
To conclude their time together, members of Dallas Brass and the entire district band rehearsed together for a joint piece they would play later on at the evening concert.
“Most of these kids will never have the opportunity again to play with professional musicians,” Holly said. He added that he wanted students to understand what it takes to be a professional musician, enjoy seeing others perform and learn that music can cross all boundaries.
Dallas Brass plays a variety of selections, including jazz, folk and pop music. Its repertoire is American music from “beginning to end,” Holly explained.
The students seemed to enjoy their time spent with the professional brass ensemble. “I think that they’re really great,” said Breanne Casucci, a sophomore at Central High School who plays the oboe. “I’ve never seen a brass band before. It’s so amazing what a few instruments can put together.”
Fellow 10th grader Ryan Milano, who plays the baritone horn, said he learned about possible careers in the musical world. He also gained an understanding of how playing in a small group, instead of with a large band, can quickly improve one’s musical skills.
Milano said he has been playing in the band since his elementary school days at Wheeler Avenue, and also plays the trombone. He was looking forward to the evening performance with Dallas Brass.
Michael Levine, the founder and director of Dallas Brass who plays the trombone, said his band does these educational workshops all over the country. “We want to share our love of music,” he said.
Levine, noting that the Valley Stream students chosen to participate in last week’s workshop are already the “cream of the crop” in the district, hopes they learned the hard work, determination and discipline it takes to be a musician. Students in the district band are picked based on an audition.
Even if a student doesn’t end up pursuing a career in music, Levine wants them to understand that they can still play throughout their life, if even just for fun. And playing music regularly, he said, leads to a greater appreciation of music.
Casucci, while she enjoyed hearing and learning from Dallas Brass, was just as excited for the district band’s chance to the join them on stage last Friday evening. “I want to show the audience what we can do,” she said, “because we’re a good band, too.”
