Music can have a lasting impact
As the Hollister School District remains in a staring contest
with the state, the district’s administration is considering
dramatic cuts to a lot of things, most notably the music
department.
The same music department that has graduated students to the
Rancho-Maze marching band that wins numerous awards year after
year. The same music department that has been an institution, a
thing for civic pride, not only the schools but for the city as a
whole. Its loss could be devastating beyond the classrooms.
Music can have a lasting impact
As the Hollister School District remains in a staring contest with the state, the district’s administration is considering dramatic cuts to a lot of things, most notably the music department.
The same music department that has graduated students to the Rancho-Maze marching band that wins numerous awards year after year. The same music department that has been an institution, a thing for civic pride, not only the schools but for the city as a whole. Its loss could be devastating beyond the classrooms.
Now I realize the cuts are aimed at the elementary schools, not necessarily the middle schools where the marching band resides. But at that young age, any child is impressionable, and learning a musical craft gives them the head start on the art.
And that is what music is above all else: art. It’s a place where each student can escape, can learn something new and grow. Music is a thing where kids can learn who they are, and learn what they can do.
Everyone can paint and everyone can write in some capacity, but everyone can’t grab a guitar and play a song. I’ve tried for five years and I’m just starting to get the hang of it.
Music is one of the most creative things in this world. It’s a tool for beauty, vision and life.
I never participated in school music, and that’s one of my bigger regrets. I always loved the sounds of music, whether it was the high pitch of an elementary recorder or the crashing sounds of a snare drum. The blaring of trumpets and other bass horns as always created an elevated feeling.
The sounds swarming together are euphoric and above anything else. In a day where parents sit their kids in front of the television or computer, interaction is lacking.
Playing music is interacting with art. It’s something the initiates the brain in thinking but it’s also enjoyable and fun. With video games, yes you can say they are enjoyable, fun and full of interaction, but there is no brain activity.
You sit there and stare at a television set. You don’t create anything. No vision. No response. Nothing.
Even reading books – something I love – lacks some basic interaction. Your mind creates what you read, but beyond that you are not doing something physically.
Playing music, though, you do.
I do understand where the school district is coming from. They need to fill a $5.5 million deficit in the next few years. Sacrifices from everyone must be made. But doing away with the music program is a steep cut.
In doing so, you are taking the creative nature from the students out of their hands. You are sitting them in an overcrowded classroom where their needs will be difficult to meet. Some students will be lost in the shuffle and without music as an escape, who knows where they would be?
I’ve done a couple of stories on the Rancho-Maze band. Each time, I’ve asked the same question to students: why do you love music so much?
The reaction is always similar. First the student pausing, maybe looking down or up, and then smiling.
It’s a rare thing in this world – an educational tool that students love. Why take that away?
