School’s out, summer’s in full swing, and community bands are already tuning up.

MENC member Jeff Anderson says, “Summer bands are a wonderful opportunity to keep performance interests alive and to share in concert performance across the generations. Summer concerts are a great community builder and terrific PR for the music program.”

People of many ages and levels of ability currently perform in local bands, and MENC member Steve Damon has incorporated a great idea to bring them all together with his “Band Buddy Night.”

How this concert works: Each band member invites a child to rehearse and perform a concert with the band. There are two rehearsals (after the second, all the kids get free ice cream at a local snack bar) and, then, two weeks later, the concert. At the concert, students play the first three songs with the band. After the second piece, each child is called forward to receive a Band Buddy Night sticker to put on his/her instrument case. After the children are done performing, they and their families are invited to stay for the rest of the concert.

The success of this program has led to an expansion. Band Buddy Night now includes college music education majors. A college student comes to conduct a total of three pieces, giving him or her and the band (young and old) yet another multi-generational experience.

Have a safe and restful summer!

–-Becky Spray, June 17, 2009. © MENC: The National Association for Music Education