I am very excited to announce (through the blog at least) that I will be attending and presenting at the 2015 Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic in Chicago. This will be my first time attending and I can’t wait! I have heard about this convention for man many years and work has always kept me at home, but this year the stars have aligned and I will be able to make it.

Through some encouragement from some key people (Garwood Whaley and Dr. Mallory Thompson specifically) I have applied and been accepted to give a clinic at this year’s convention. I have wanted to present some of my ideas to our nation’s music educators and I cant wait to in a few weeks. I have some much respect for the teachers and directors who teach beginners the fundamentals of music and plant that seed of the love of music. I thought long and hard about my topic and I settled on “Sound Production on Percussion Instruments”. There are soooo many difficult things we have to do on percussion instruments that we often lose focus on how the instrument actually sounds! Some of the solutions I have to creating a good sound are relatively easy to implement and some are a little more difficult. In the class we will discuss sound on 5 instruments: Xylophone, Glockenspiel, Tambourine, Snare Drum, and Cymbals. With each instrument I will discuss:

The Physical ways you can make a better sound. (drum tuning, mallet choice)

The ways in which you can Listen. (learning self-correcting and exercises to improve the ear)

Directions and Questions directors can ask their students. (to get better results)

As a preview I have included my handout that I will be distributing at the clinic. I have designed it to be useful for those who are not able to attend, so hopefully all band and orchestra directors can find it helpful.

Midwest Clinic 2015 – Sound Production on Percussion Instruments

My clinic is on Thursday, December 17th, at 10:30 am in room W179 in the McCormick Place in downtown Chicago. Afterwards I will be signing copies of my book, The Modern Concert Snare Drum Roll at the JW Pepper Music Booth.

I also want to thank Malletech Instruments for supporting this class and making their first visit to the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic!!! Be sure to check out their booth!

I can’t wait to drive up to Chicago and check out the other clinics, the exhibition hall, and meeting lots of new people. Hope to see you there!

WJ