And you know what the best part was? It felt "normal" under the current circumstances. Sure, we had all of the students and staff do a Wellness Check before starting each day of the camp, but it was as if the pandemic never happened. We rehearsed together, we had sessions and played outside together, we laughed together, and performed together and were just...together. As it should be. And we were fine. No one got sick. We were a testament to the strength and the endeavor of musicians.
Well, let's talk about the camp more in detail, shall we? We had 18 attendees total, most of whom were repeat offenders of previous camps, but some new students also. The vast majority of the camp were high schoolers, about half of whom were going into their senior year. So it was a very strong group, the best we had. Because of this, I decided to program some really challenging music, such as a couple movements of the 1st Holst Suite and the Vienna Philharmonic Fanfare, and an arrangement of Bohemian Rhapsody, to name a few. They handled the music really well, some better than others. But all of the music had heart, because the loved the music so much and loved playing together so much.
This was also the first year we added percussion players to the camp. I hired in a couple local pros who owned their own equipment. Man, how lucky we were to have those two! We had a couple local music teachers help cover some percussion parts. It was pretty incredible, and it excited the students even more.
Our complement of coaches was great, too. I had Alec and Allison, who are two former horn students of mine. My mom also helped coach and play. I brought in Mr. Dyel from the Anacortes band program to conduct and his wife to help play trombone and percussion. I had Andy Abel help conduct and play, who is one of the finest musicians I've ever known. I even had another music teacher offer to come help, and she ended up coaching some younger student and played percussion. And I even brought in the father of a new student I picked up this summer...he plays the trombone quite well. These guys added so much to the experience for the students, not only with their suggestions, but just by playing well next to them.
I've just about finished editing the performance videos (from a raw master track) and will share some of them on here soon. Definitely stay tuned to hear them.
Aside from the camp, I have been teaching in person since the end of June, and have started the brass ensembles again. It's been just like before all of this...and I am so thankful for that. The students are, too, because they are inspired once again and are working hard. I only hope that it stays this way...with the way this world is right now, I'm expecting the worst. I've definitely learned not to take anything for granted, and to enjoy every moment of this.
Take care and value music.