Bandworld Magazine

A special award of The John Philip Sousa Foundation Tracy Wright has been the Director of Bands at Ringgold High School in Ringgold, Georgia since 2016. Starting in 1993,  he had been the Director of Bands at Ringgold Middle School.   Since 1994, his bands at the middle school and high school have consistently earned superior ratings at festival. He has served...

On August 7, 2017, the Wind Band World lost a monumental composer and voice, David Maslanka. My first exposure to David Maslanka’s music was in 1991 at the CBDNA convention in Colorado, where David was presenting a session on A Child’s Garden of Dreams. Needless to say, at the same convention, I was too afraid to introduce myself to...

What is SUCCESS?  How do we define/determine SUCCESS in our music education world?  Moreover, how do we ATTAIN-and-SUSTAIN SUCCESS?  What is the pathway one must traverse to achieve the elusive destination we know as SUCCESS? To borrow an equation from Angela Duckworth’s wonderful book GRIT: TALENT + EFFORT = SKILLS SKILLS + EFFORT = ACHIEVEMENT As we quickly ascertain, the common denominator...

by Boris Kozhevnikov arranged by John Bourgeois Album Title:  SAN FRANCISCO WIND ENSEMBLE Recording:  San Francisco Wind Ensemble Conductor:  Martin H. Seggelke Available Through:  www.sfwindensemble.org This is a very fine recording I discovered and want to share it with band music enthusiasts. The opening work is Symphony No. 3 “Slavyanskaya” (Boris Kozhevnikov/John R. Bourgeois); a magnificent Russian band symphony that is a frequent concert item. Prevailing Winds by...

A special award of The John Philip Sousa Foundation Mr. Sever is sought after as a guest clinician for All Counties throughout the State of Florida, including high school, middle school and Jazz bands. He has also been honored with conducting at Florida State University’s Summer Jazz and High School camps. Mr. Sever is a long-standing staff member of Penny’s Band Camp...

by George Gershwin arranged by Nicholas William Album Title: EXPLORATIONS & DISCOVERIES Recording:  University of Texas El Paso Wind Symphony Conductors:  Bradley Genevro Publisher:  Klavier K-11220        Purchase Anytime the UTEP Wind Symphony releases a CD you can expect true professionalism and excellence in band music. The more familiar compositions in this collection are El Camino Real (Alfred Reed), Sinfonia No. 4 (Hartley), Prelude in...

A special award of The John Philip Sousa Foundation Dennis Kaneshiro is the Director of Bands at Kalani High School in Honolulu, Hawaii. He was the 1999 Hawaii Music Awards Teacher of the year. In 2008, he conducted the Maui District Massed Bands for the Maui High School Music Festival. From 2008-2011, he was also the Kalani High School Orchestra director. Kaneshiro...

What was your background before ABC? I began my career in the mid 70’s and then took some time away from teaching in the 80’s to stay home with my child in her early years. During that time away from the public schools, I opened a music studio and purchased a piano lab.  I provided instrumental lessons and group piano...

by Alan Hovaness Album Title: HOVHANESS, A.: Suite for Band / October Mountain / Ruins of Ani  Recording:  Central Washington University Wind Ensemble Conductors:  Larry Gookin, Keith Brion, Mark Goodenberger Publisher:  NAXOS 8.559837         Purchase This is a most fascinating collection of chamber and band compositions by Alan Hovhaness. While the band/wind ensemble symphonies have already been featured previous Naxos recordings the four shorter works...

Jingle Bells Duet Bass Clef Clarinet Flute Sax or Oboe Trumpet Audio The Jingle Bells duets are excerpted from 5 Christmas Duets by Kenneth Baird and have been arranged specifically for the instrument noted. No effort has been made by the arranger to make the duets compatible with the duets he has arranged for other instruments (however, the trumpet and bass clef duets do work together. 12...