School to host adult community band
November 5, 2008
By Laura Geggel
Melodies and harmonies from practice recitals will soon emanate from Snoqualmie Middle School’s band room, but the musicians won’t be teenage students.
Dean Snavely, director of music at Snoqualmie Middle School, is holding a community adult holiday band for the winter season. Snavely and the Snoqualmie Middle School Music Booster Association are inviting community members to unsnap their trumpet cases and blow the dust from their clarinets. The holiday band, which will hold five rehearsals before the 7 p.m. Dec. 19 concert, will practice at Snoqualmie Middle School from 7-8:30 p.m. Nov. 17 and 24 and Dec. 1, 8 and 15.
To enroll, contact Snavely at 831-8474. Download a registration form at www.mrsnavely.com.
“I’ve had parents and community members who, over the years, have talked to me about doing a community band,” Snavely said.
Community musical outfits already exist in Renton and Seattle.
“This is kind of a lightening rod to see if we can create enough interest to start our own,” Snavely said.
Players who have warm memories of band, but who forget terms like andante, coda or crescendo, will get help from Snavely and a troop of his students. Registration for the band costs $35 for individuals and $50 for couples. The Music Booster Association will invest the profits into instruments, sheet music, trips and master classes.
“We’re going to be doing some Saturday master classes,” Snavely said. “They’ll be free for any kid in the district.”
He hopes the community band will attract about 60 brass, wind or percussion players. String and other music makers are welcome, too, but Snavely said the sheet music would be aimed primarily at band instruments.
Snavely also noted, “the larger the ensemble, the more the bad notes get drowned out.”
The music is still undergoing selection, but listeners should expect to hear Sleigh Ride and other holiday favorites at the concert.
“It’s going to be determined upon the level of playing,” Snavely said.
Musicians lacking an instrument who want to join the community band can get a special deal at Snoqualmie Ridge Music. The store is partnering with Harmony Music in Redmond to offer six-week instrument rentals for the price of four.
Rental prices will range from $23 to $46 per month, depending on the instrument, said owner of Snoqualmie Ridge Music Steve Bell, who said he and Harmony Music were offering the deal to “support music in the community.”
Musicians can also rent from Mills Music in six-month increments.
Harley Brumbaugh, trumpeter, conductor and North Bend resident, encouraged former music players to resume their musical studies.
“Give it a try. You’re going to find that maturity is on your side,” Brumbaugh said. “You may not have all of the coordination you had before, but what you will play you’ll play with more depth and more understanding.”
Jane Ellen Seymour, president of the booster association, also tooted her horn for the program.
“I love the idea of adults being beginners or being really rusty and relearning their instrument for the kids,” Seymour said. “I know that there are a lot of kids whose parents used to play instruments. It isn’t just about their kids. They love music for a reason, too. It’s kind of a thrill for both.”
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