Stories of a Band Geek Learning to Move On With Life: There's a lot in a Name

Well hello there, friend! It's been forever! I'm sorry it's been so long, but here's a long post to make up for it.

My favorite logo

The name of my blog is "Stories of a Band Geek Learning to Move On with Life" and of all the names to pick, why would I pick that one? Well, if you've got a couple minutes to spare, I'll tell you.

Ever since I was little, music has always been a huge part of my life. My mom enrolled me in piano lessons when I was around 3 and I continued for many years. Well, until I started to get lazy and didn't practice. I participated in elementary school choir (and loved it) and when 6th grade came along, I got to play a band instrument for the first time. I started on the flute and I liked it, but I'd always wanted to play the alto saxophone (because I thought it was the coolest instrument ever). In the summer before I started seventh grade, I met Ms. Henderson, the Centennial band teacher, and she taught me how to play the clarinet. I LOVED it. I realized that band was a ton of fun and would probably like to continue playing.

Well at the end of seventh grade, my mom decided to transfer me to a different school because she wanted to see if it was truly better (from what she'd heard), so I started my 8th grade year at Reagan Academy in Springville. They had a band program there, but compared to what I'd had at Centennial, it wasn't completely "up to par." There were about 20 kids in the band and were all required to take a music class at the school, so most of the kids were taking band just because they had to. Not because they actually cared about it. I found out that the band teacher had actually been a student teacher for Ms. Henderson (her name was Mrs. Martin) so she knew that I had experience with what she wanted the band program to be. After some time passed, I realized that I was one of the most advanced players in the band. I was made first chair clarinet and was one of the only members in the band that was asked to sit in with the younger bands and play solos (since most of the students couldn't even play their instruments). I didn't realize that all my teacher was trying to do was help me better my musicianship. One day she was gone for rehearsal and when the substitute was calling the roll, he stopped and said "Who's Betsy?" I slowly raised my hand and he said "Mrs. Martin says that you are in charge of the band and are conductor for the day." I froze in my seat and just thought "WHAT?!" But then got up and rehearsed the band as best I could. It ended up going pretty well (for an 8th grader trying to conduct a band) with minor bumps, but I loved it. A couple weeks later, our teacher had to go on Maternity leave and we got a new band teacher named Ms. Elkins. She was a brand new teacher and had very little experience teaching, so without my knowledge, Mrs. Martin had left a note for her saying "If you need any help, ask Betsy in the clarinet section to help you out." I was surprised that my teacher would leave a note like that for me, but I obliged and did what I could to help her. Since most of the students were taking the class just as a requirement, they didn't practice or show any respect to the teacher as she tried to make the band better. I got frustrated most of the time because it felt like I and a scarce few were the only ones who actually cared about the music. We somehow made it through the year and at the end of the year at our 8th grade "graduation", I was given the music award. It was a great feeling, but I knew that this was just 8th grade and that I had high school ahead of me and that it would be more difficult there.

Reagan Academy

Because I had spent my 8th grade year at Reagan, I had missed all information meetings concerning the Timpview band (like about summer band and fall band) and didn't get the chance to do them, but I'll never forget my first day of school at Timpview. It was the traditional "Freshman Academy" where only the Freshman go to school for the first day so they can get used to the school and I was beyond excited. When I got there, they directed us to the Thunderdome and as soon as I walked in, the marching band started playing "Adelina de Maya" (click here to listen to it) and I fell in love again. It was so loud, sounded amazing and the first thing that came to my mind was "I NEED to be in that band." After the assembly was over and we were dismissed to go to our classes, the only class that I was excited for was concert band. It was then that I met Dr. Fullmer and he told us about the band program and what we would have to do. He introduced Pep band to us and I started getting excited for it. The day was over and I couldn't wait till I would be able to go to band again. When the first pep band game approached us, I was beyond excited. The only orange and blue gear I had at the moment was my Timpview "sixth man" shirt, but after the fun that I had at that game, something ignited in me and I wanted to own everything that was orange or blue (but mostly orange). The football team was doing very well and was going to State that year, so the band would be going with them. The night before, I wasn't able to find any face paint so I went to Walmart, got some Crayola markers, pulled out the orange and blue ones and decorated my face. I didn't realize how ridiculous I looked until now, but I just wanted to have as much school spirit as I could.

I wasn't kidding about the marker

The curtain of love

After football season was over, Symphonic band auditions were the next big thing for the concert band. I was debating whether I should do it or not, but ended up choosing to give it a shot since it wouldn't hurt. The audition piece was Incantation and Dance (click here to listen to it) and the page that the clarinets had to audition on was the 16th note runs up on the high register... I felt like dying. There were notes there I didn't even know how to play and started losing hope. I thought "this piece is insanely hard and there's no way I'm going to be able to make it in", but I kept practicing. The way that the audition process worked (for all you non-bandies) was by a curtain audition
(so you would walk into the directors office and he would be on the other side of a drawn curtain so he doesn't know who is playing). You would have to pass off your 12 major and 12 minor scales prior to your audition and then play one major and one minor scale (selected at random by the director), sight read a piece of music that was placed on the stand and then play parts of the prepared piece (that you usually got a while before the audition). On the day of the audition, I was beyond nervous. I watched as several players went into Dr. Fullmer's office and came out saying "Oh man, that was rough." Or "That was bad." And started getting even more nervous since they were already members of the symphonic band. Well, to make a long story short, my audition was pretty bad. I sounded the worst I could've sounded and just did plain awful.

The next day in concert band, Dr. Fullmer called everyone who had auditioned into their office individually to tell them if they made it or not. I waited in line as flute players walked out crying because only one had made it in. Then the clarinets had their turn and I watched as one made it in, then another, then one came out crying because they didn't make it and then, it was my turn. We talked about my audition and how we though it went. I said "I think it could've gone better." Dr. Fullmer nodded and then said "Me too." I immediately started thinking "yeah, I didn't make it. Oh well, try again next year" but my thoughts were soon interrupted by DF. "But, I talked with the band council and they want me to put you in. I think you are a risk, but, I think you are a risk willing to take. Can you make that change?" I slowly nodded and got a ridiculously huge smile on my face as I realized that this was real life and that I had made it in. I thanked him and walked out of his office where I was greeted by some friends that asked me "So?" I smiled at them and said "I made it in." And so I was one of the few freshman (and third freshman clarinet player) that made it into the symphonic band.

That first year of symphonic band was rough for me. I hardly knew anybody in the band and felt kind of out of place since mostly everyone knew each other already, but I practiced and tried to do my best to fit in. It was a fun year and I couldn't wait till the next one. By my sophomore year, I knew more people and had made more friends in the band and felt much more comfortable, so it made band even more fun. That same year, I got heavily involved with the swim team and was made a team captain (the only sophomore among 5 seniors mind you) and I learned how to be a leader. Even though I was young and it was my second year on the team, my coach was able to spark something inside me and I learned how to keep a team united.

Me, my coach and the two other girl captains with our region trophy

Seeing how swimming and band were like two families I was a part of helped boost my confidence and it helped me in so many ways. That end of the year I participated in the drum major clinic, but didn't audition because I felt like I had no chance at actually making it. That and I felt that having swim team responsibilities the following year would be too much for me. I did try summer band that summer though and I LOVED it (except the running of course.). There was just something special about being with a group of teenagers all wearing hot and sweaty uniforms playing instruments that felt so... Right. I used the excuse of possibly being a swim captain again the coming school year get in the way of me doing fall band. How I regret making that choice. When talking one time with the Colorguard instructor Becca, she asked me if I was going to do fall band and told her about the whole swim team captain situation and she told me "I had a similar experience myself. I had to choose between doing volleyball and Colorguard. I picked Colorguard. That is a choice that I never regret making." I should've listened to Becca. The beginning of my junior year, we got a new swim coach and I wasn't made a team captain, but I still used whatever leadership skills I had to try to keep the team together. It was that fall that Dr. Fullmer announced the Pearl Harbor Project II and I decided in that moment that no matter what I had to do, I would go on that trip. I started fundraising like crazy, memorized music and would miss occasional swim practices in order to go to the early morning history lectures and knew it was going to be worth it in the end. Close to the end of my junior year, I went through some friendship troubles but soon realized that whatever friends I had lost were immediately replaced with plenty of band friends, so it didn't really matter. With that in mind, I dedicated myself to band for my senior year. I turned in a band council application and became a secretary, became a section leader for the clarinet section that summer, but more importantly, a clarinet momma with the greatest kids you could ever imagine :)

My clarinet family :)

I did fall band for the first time that fall too and realized how much I had been missing out on something that I didn't know I loved. Along with fall band, I was constantly going to the early morning rehearsals and history lectures that were mandatory for the Pearl Harbor Project II. Along with all that, you needed to write a research paper on a specific topic about the war in the pacific, take a government and history test and pass it with at least a 70%, memorize the preamble of the Constitution, memorize the Gettysburg Address and submit a veteran to put on our Veteran's memorial wall. And if that wasn't enough, you had to memorize 7 pieces of music and raise $2,500 to pay for your trip. It was NOT easy at all, but it was completely worth it. You can read about the experience I had in Hawaii here.

Even though it's been a year since I graduated and I am no longer a part of the Timpview band, the Timpview Band family is forever. Because of my years in the Timpview Band, I have been able to travel and perform in AMAZING locations.

Cove Fort, Utah

Tuacahn Theatre, Utah

USS Utah Memorial, Hawaii

Laie, Hawaii

USS Missouri, Hawaii

National Cemetery of the Pacific (Punchbowl), Hawaii

Diamond Head, Hawaii

Utah State Capitol

Hoover Dam, Nevada/Arizona

Goosenecks State Park, Utah

Monticello, Utah

Big Rock Candy Mountain, Utah

Bryce Canyon National Park

Arches National Park

and MANY more.

Thanks to the band, I have been able to make amazing friends. Some of which are still super close to me. Like these girls. These girls are my clarinet daughters and they are the best girls you will ever meet.