Band Week Essay

When the question is brought up, “What does band mean to you?” I immediately think of the responsibility, hard work, and dedication and band has given me the chance to learn and strengthen. In addition to these life skills are many others, such as leadership, teamwork, and friendship. The Force has made more than just a difference in my high school career, it has impacted my life and has provided me with skills that will follow me throughout my life. Band means to supporting each other as we work through the hard times and grow closer as a family. Band means working hard and taking on responsibility for yourself. It also means being dependable, that people can count on you and your ability to achieve the unthinkable.

Rock ‘n’ Roll began and evolved around the late 1940’s and 1950’s time frame. There were many groups that participated in the creation and origin of Rock ‘n’ Roll, however the two primary groups were rhythm and blues and country music. “The origins of rock ‘n’ roll are often described in a way that could be represented by an algebraic formula: r&b + c&w = r&r” (Garofalo & Waksman, 2016, p. 56). While the formula is rather simplistic, it ignores the many groups of individuals, social and cultural influences that impacted the formation of Rock ‘n’ Roll. As Rolling Stone’s Robert Palmer (1990) noted:

For this concert report I chose to go to a performance of student composers held at the Kimball Recital Hall. I chose this one because I wanted to see some of the talent that my peers have in the music realm, and also it was one of the only concerts I have been able to attend because I usually work at night. It was impressive to hear pieces composed by students. I cannot imagine creating something as complex as a musical composition, much less actually performing it, so this aspect of the concert was particularly awe-inspiring. There was a large attendance, and I think that much of the audience consisted of friends of the composers and/or performers. I went with three friends, who I convinced by telling it would be interesting to see

Most schools offer a variety of activities, classes, and clubs. I personally was never interested in school or anything to do with it. Then I came across band and was instantly hooked. Band has concerts, marching band, and you get to meet new people. Band is my favorite class and here are some reasons why.

The movie, And the Band Played On, discusses the origin of the AIDS virus and how it spontaneously spread across the world. It used the Ebola disease to foreshadow the forth coming of another serious disease. The world was not prepared to handle such a contagious plague. Doctors around the world assumed that the first cases of the HIV virus to be just an abnormality of a certain disease, their carelessness of this matter was the start to the spread of this disease. Throughout this movie, it illustrates different points, such as the beginning of HIV, the misconceptions it gave, and the panic it aroused amongst doctors and the common people.

It is a season of change as one chapter at Portland State closes and another begins. Spring is an opportunity to renew our body and mind - a REAWAKENING.

When the majority of the population thinks of rock 'n ' roll, most tend to correlate the beginnings of the rock genre with Elvis Presley or The Beatles. However, the greater part of the start of rock 'n ' roll must be attributed to the influence of African American culture and music. The African American culture initiated and impacted so many of the first genres in music that stemmed off into be many of the genres we still listen to today. Due to racism and discrimination many “race” artists were not recognized for their artistic abilities. Most African American musicians have become discredited due to white musicians covering African American songs and making it more popular. Rock ‘n’ roll was a collective effort of white and black culture and musicians but little credit has gone to the African American side of the genre. To truly understand how “race” artists were the people to help mold rock ‘n’ roll, you must go back to the very beginning of the start of the music business.

“Roll those feet! Keep those toes high! Square your shoulders! Keep the tempo moving!” This can be heard by directors, in most marching band rehearsals, as the band is racing around the field while playing mentally demanding music. Competitive marching band, the highlight of some high schoolers’ fall season, is defined by Merriam-Webster as “a group of musicians who play instruments while marching together at a parade or sports event” (“Marching Band”). In comparison a sport is defined as “a contest or game in which people do certain physical activities according to a specific set of rules and compete against each other” (“Sports”). High school competition band is where a band practices from July to November to prepare one show to be

The position of drum major is a vital role in the entire team of a marching band. As the 2017 drum majors we promise that we will have the band in mind when making decisions and when developing the best show possible. As a group we know that we posses the necessary qualities of a drum major.

I have been a part of a band program since I was in fifth grade through junior year, so I know how to work in a team.While in the band program I worked with the community a lot,from marching in parades to fundraising.I also have learned the importance of being on time and the importance to sticking to commitments that have been made from this program and my part time job where I worked in stocking and customer service. I have younger siblings so I have learned to put others before myself since I was always babysitting them because my parents worked a lot.I’ve also had at least one pet ever since I was born so I know how to prioritize my time between school ,time to myself,and time for my pets.I also have developed empathy from these animals

"We have dang near the same bodies that we had in the spring. Young offensive linemen, which we probably aren’t going to count on very much. (Sophomore wide receiver) Jovon’s (Durante) back, he looks good. He is going to dabble in some inside receiver today. The tackles with (Assistant Coach) Coach Wickline, showed a lot of improvement in the spring. The rapport with Skyler and the receivers, it looks a lot better as well. Just continuing what we did in the spring. Just reps and reps and reps. All of those reps should turn out to be beneficial when we need them

Every day millions of Americans turn on their radios, IPods, or some other device which allows them to listen to their favorite musicians and have no idea that there is a union standing guard to ensure the rights of those very musicians. The average American may think their favorite musicians are rolling “dough” and not realize that for the past hundred and fourteen years the American Federation of Musicians, aka AFM, has worked to improve the professional lives of musicians across North America. (American Federation of Musicians, 2010) AFM attracts its members with a mission to unite professional musicians which states, “We can live and work in dignity; Our work will be fulfilling and compensated fairly; We will have a meaningful voice

I have been asked many times by my friends that aren’t in band “why are you in band?” “Get out of band so we can be in the stands together during the game.” “band is lame,” They do not understand what band is really about. Band is not just about playing an instrument and marching.

Sophomore year of marching came. This year was a surprise for everyone. With our show being named ‘Masterminder.’ The band members marching were under control by the color guard soloist; the puppeteer. This show was pretty exciting, too. The judges also thought that. We made it past regionals AND semi-state. What? Yeah, we all thought the same thing. We had made it. We had FINALLY made it after so many years of just trying to get past regionals for once. It was a bitter-sweet feeling waiting for placement awards at Lucas Oil Stadium. The instructors went around to each band student one by one. The congratulated us on an amazing season. I started tearing up, but that isn’t surprising. As we marched our way out of Lucas Oil Stadium that night, I knew that this was only the beginning of a new generation for the Marching Marksmen.

This afternoon, I went to the music concert hall where is located in the music building for the listening hour, a small noon-time concert which is performed by the staff and students from the music majors. Since it is a free noon-time concert, most of the audiences just wear the t-shirts and jeans to the concert. Dresses are not required for the concert. The performance today is given by the Ananda Jazz Ensemble. They have played “Running Away”, composed by Bob Marley; “Madalena”, composed by Ivan Linz; “Conejitos y Ananda”, composed by Abi Romero; “La Bikina”, composed by Ruben Fuentes; and “Chukaro”, also composed by Abi Romero. Because this is a Latin Americdan Journey, all of the music performed is jazz music. All pieces played in the concert are an ensemble of piano, bass, and drums. During the concert, I was trying to be a perceptive listener; I enjoyed the music with concentration and paid attention to the music’s unity and variety, such as the dynamics and tempos. I also tried to associate the music with a picture when I listened to it and understand the emotion in the music.