Student bands bring the most school spirit, and are there to encourage our students to heighten their performance, allowing themselves to display their discipline, all while performing in their own unique way. Band could be more than just an extracurricular, it potentially becomes a way to express yourself and help with lack of confidence or to find who you really are on the inside. It can be anything you aspire it to be as long as you make it that way.
Many people, including students, are generally uneasy at the thought of not being adequate enough to pick up an instrument and play confidently but sometimes, you need to welcome the unknown to be comfortable with it. Teacher Benjamin Gooch builds on to this idea with his own take on the topic with his own personal experience, “It gave me a way to see success in my growth. When I can see the progress of not being good at something and have myself to compare against as I get better.” He conveys the proposal of playing an instrument to be helpful for other people to recognize their own success while learning something new.
Not only does playing in a band enforce the versatility of communication but it also can improve memory and physical fitness. Despite there being multiple different positive outcomes of involving yourself in any category of ensemble or choir there can also be many drawbacks like motivation or commitment.
Dr. Gooch joined a student band as a 10-year-old boy and played trumpet while he was in elementary school claiming it as enjoyable but later on he switched to the french horn and took off with it for the entirety of his high school years. He explains, “It’d be good for kids to see something in themselves and improve, and then demonstrate that improvement without having to really take a win or a loss. It depends on how you decide the progress.” He achieved the Doctor of Musical Arts with years of hard work playing the french horn, previously teaching private classes for kids and working as a professional musician.
Fourteen-year-old Jayden Diaz suggests, “Being in a student band will make you want to commit to something new.” He plays trumpet for the Pahrump Valley High School student band and strives to perfect his capabilities with his instrument. Diaz desires to devise what he has accomplished at the present time into a possible career choice, diligently making an effort to execute this ambition of his. “When I first started I wasn’t the best at all. Every time I played it sounded like something was dying, but over time I got better with practice.”
Everything considered, being in a student band leaves lots of possibilities for growth and new areas to learn in a subject you might’ve not tried before. Many say that playing an instrument has an abundance of positive effects but only when you’re willing enough to endure having to consistently work hard enough and dedicate yourself to one thing for a lasting period of time. When you’re in the mood for trying something long-lasting you should give playing an instrument a go!
