Like the best teachers in any subject, Dana Hamant is a consummate student. In his 31 years as a music instructor, he has attended every single annual Music Educators Association conference in his home state of Kansas and missed only two Kansas Bandmasters Association conferences. (He is also a frequent attendee at NAfME and other professional…

This article profiles James Sewrey, founder of the Percussive Arts Society. A passionate percussionist who's spent more than 60 years teaching at all levels from kindergarten through university, Sewrey was called out of retirement in 2007 to serve as adjunct professor of percussive studies at Wisconsin Lutheran College. As a founding member of the…

A growing number of students in Blue Springs, Missouri, are joining the band, drawn by a band director who emphasizes caring and inclusiveness. In the four years since Melissia Goff arrived at Blue Springs High School, the school's extensive band program has swelled. The marching band alone has gone from 100 to 185 participants. Also under Goff's…

Many school bands organize their year around competitions, but Freedom High School in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the only contest is topping the previous season's performances for the student body and surrounding community. That is just how Michael Moran--Freedom's busy band and orchestra director, fine and practical arts department chair, and wind…

After getting her master's degree from UCLA, Nancy Wills dreamed of starting a school-based guitar program so she could teach students to make music on the instrument she'd loved since she was a kid growing up outside of Yosemite, California. She had a strong belief that guitar was perfect for schools, ideal for individualized playing but also…

It may not be the best of times for the school's string and orchestra programs, but things certainly are looking up. This article focuses on a recent report which cites the numerous positives, including an increase in the number of districts offering strings classes, a greater variety in the racial mix of strings students, and a less drastic…