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The academic year is coming to a close. All seems to be going well with your school’s
band program. Your ensembles’ instrumentation is reasonably well-balanced, and you
feel students made progress during the term. Concerts were well attended, you received
positive adjudication during festival season, and your principal seems happy with the
work you have done. You’re looking forward to working with these same students again
next year or feeding them to your fellow directors.
Then you hear a knock on your office door. Two students come in to tell you that
they’ve decided to drop band. If that weren’t bad enough, they tell you that several others
have decided to drop out next year, too! Your spirit and enthusiasm plummet and you
take it personally. What went wrong? You ask yourself, “what could I have done to
prevent this?”
Of course, some students leave music due to circumstances beyond your control—and
often theirs. But it is also a time to look forward (not backward) and aim higher. As you
do, consider these Three Rs of Retention—sure-fire strategies to help ensure students
remain active in your school’s music program, and beyond.
Retool Rehearsals
Students often recall concerts and festivals as the highlights of their school music
experiences. The problem is, those moments account for only a tiny fraction of your time
with them. Most of it takes place in rehearsal. So, if the rehearsal process is not a place of
magical music-making, chances are you will lose students.
Author and music educator David Newell sums it up best: “What happens during each
and every ensemble rehearsal is the MASTER KEY that unlocks the box labeled ‘Student
Retention’… It is the daily classroom experience that keeps students in the music
program! The beautifully-crafted, aesthetically-driven, well-planned and fast-paced
rehearsal is the key to keeping students in our performance ensembles.”1
Be sure every rehearsal gives ALL students the chance to play their instruments in a
satisfying way, beginning with chorales and unison materials—both technical and
melodic. When rehearsing literature, avoid getting bogged down in details that involve
only a few students…deal with those issues in sectionals or private lessons. Otherwise,
whenever possible, engage students even when they are not playing. (“Woodwinds and
brass, conduct a 4/4 beat pattern as the percussion play measures 17–24.”) Conclude each
rehearsal with music-making that allows every student to feel good about that day’s
experience. (Who wants to hear the bell ring as you are explaining a trill to the clarinets?)
And throughout…less talk, and more playing. When you do verbally “teach,” address
EVERYONE, introducing concepts and skills to the entire band.
Rethink Repertoire Selection
At various times, all of us as directors are guilty of two flaws in our repertoire selection
that sabotage our efforts to grow our programs. First, we choose music based on what we
think will “entertain” our students rather than touch their souls. Second: we choose
repertoire that is just too difficult, rationalizing that a harder piece will create a more
spectacular and thus more positive outcome (and prove to our egos that we have a
superior program). The truth is, however, that all students really want is to sound great.
Creating beautiful sounds is fun and motivating; students know when they don’t sound
good and that’s NOT fun—it’s frustrating and a turn-off.
When choosing repertoire, focus on challenging students musically more than
technically. Select pieces that match their mastery of fundamentals learned during
lessons, sectionals, and the warm-up stage of the rehearsal. When a student looks at
repertoire in the folder, no notes, rhythms, or symbols should be unfamiliar. If this is the
case, the repertoire rehearsal (and performance experience) becomes one of joyous
music-making, not frustrating struggle. Playing in band will become a continually satisfying
musical experience rather than a series of vexing (and drop-out producing)
episodes.
Recommit to a Culture of Excellence
There is no substitute for excellence. Like any other academic subject, band should be
taught with high but realistic expectations, not watering down instruction due to a fear of
scaring kids away. The human creature wants to be a part of a quality group—we want to
progress; we want to succeed. Organizations of every type with a tradition of excellence
attract and retain members. Does your band program offer students intrinsic motivation
by giving them the chance to be a part of a quality ensemble—to make beautiful musical
sounds with others?
Bringing it All Together
Of course, making the Three Rs work for your program isn’t easy. It takes one not-so secret
ingredient: ENTHUSIASM. Think of the music teachers who have most influenced
your career. Wasn’t a common denominator that they were all devoted, passionate, and at
their core, loving—and determined to share those qualities enthusiastically with every
student. Thankfully, these qualities are usually reciprocal, as our students provide us with
the fuel to keep us going, growing, and glowing. Maybe there’s a fourth R of Retention:
RELATIONSHIP.
1. Newell, David. The Rehearsal, Kjos Music Press, 4382 Jutland Drive, San Diego,
2015, p. 4.