Why Should I Be In Band?
Imagine you’re a rising freshman heading to Tallwood in the fall. You have no idea where to go, who to talk to, or what to do! The transition from middle school to high school is far easier for band students because you will have over 100 friends before you set foot into a classroom. Incoming band freshmen are welcomed with open arms into the band family, and have immediate contact with upperclassmen, in a big brother/big sister kind of way. No other organization allows freshman to make the transition to high school easier than being in band.
The Facts:
Test Scores
It is often said that band students mark among the highest test scores of all high school students, but just how much higher do they score?. Students involved in Fine Arts have shown to score 62 points higher on SAT tests, which would indicate that they are stronger in verbal and math scores than other members of the student body. We also know band students are students who enjoy a successful high school career, go on to college and become the leaders in our society.
Improving Skills
In The Arts: An Essential Ingredient in Education, J. Buchen Milley states that “research shows that when arts are included in the student’s curriculum, reading, writing and math scores improve. Like all arts, music has a profound effect on the academic success of the student. Band is a group effort. Members are required to shift from an I/Me reasoning to a We/Us concept. This means extending oneself beyond the normal considerations of much of our day-to-day living. Instead of the logic being, what’s in it for me, it becomes, what’s in it for us. The values of cooperation, communication, concentration, correlation and completion come into play each rehearsal and performance.”
Positive Impact on Life
Music is one of the few academic disciplines that require the student to master skills and apply them in performance. In other words, music involves multiple forms of learning. Students in band learn responsibility, cooperation, leadership, and organizational skills that make a profound positive impact on each student’s life.
Positive Self-Worth
Band builds positive self-worth. Although we share many similarities with our athletic counterparts, band is a place for everyone. Rarely is a person serving as an alternate or substitute. Everyone in the band plays a starting role.
College Entrance
Studies by the College Entrance Examination Board show that:
“New research on intelligence and brain function point in exciting future directions that tie directly to music, while the continuing use of music as part of the curriculum is clearly associated with both academic skills and personal characteristics that are highly desirable for school progress and for developing the kind of well-educated young people we need for the nation’s well-being.”
Students (1999) with experience in music performance scored measurably higher in both verbal and math sections of the Standardized Achievement Test.
Cognitive Learning and Music
There continues to be a significant, and growing, spread between the scores obtained by musicians and those of their non-musical counterparts. The correlation between cognitive learning and musical understanding continues to prove they are linked, and improving one will develop the other. In fact, music is suspected to be the key for unlocking the scientific mind. The theory of “multiple intelligences” tags music as one of the separate minds, and being exposed to music strengthens all other learning forms.
Scores rise proportionately higher with the length of time spent studying music in school.
Why Join?
Why should you consider joining the Tallwood band? Because high school band is unlike anything you have done before. It can greatly enhance your high school career, provide you with unforgettable experiences, introduce you to a greatly diverse group of individuals, and it is, very simply, an amazing experience.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will Band fit in an aggressive academic schedule?
Yes! We have students who are planning to enter all fields in college. The class schedule at Tallwood High School is made to allow these students to take a full schedule of classes (including A.P.) and play in band during all four years.
How good do I have to be?
All students with Middle School music experience are admitted to the band program, pending an audition and/or recommendation from a previous director.
Will band and time commitment adversely affect my grades?
Whether you are in activities, or not, at Tallwood High School, good grades are dependent upon being a hard worker. If you are conscientious and organized, band, or any other activity, will not adversely affect your grades. If you are not conscientious and organized, grades will be a problem at Tallwood HS, even with no additional activities! The band schedule have been carefully developed to work with the school’s academic demands, but band is a large time commitment. However large, all policies, procedures, and schedules are laid out far enough in advance to allow for students to plan accordingly.