My class is a band, and my room is our performance space.

Sometimes I’m the conductor, sometimes the road manager, but rarely a performer.

I want my students to play the instruments. Some are more skilled than others. A few may be picking up their instruments for the first time. One or two have a tendency to want to dominate with long guitar solos like Jimmy Page.  Others would prefer to be the guy who taps a tambourine and can’t possibly screw up the music.

My classroom is the safe practice space for all this off key music.  The music is rarely played in sync or in any kind of rhythm, which is my fault as conductor.  There are moments when it comes together in a beautiful fugue – each student picking up their instruments one by one and building up to a tremendous sonic climax.

A few students want to skip band practice, or be the louche rock star who never seems to care about anything.  This is fine, every band needs a variety of characters. They add the tension. Tension leads to better art. Just ask every band ever featured in Behind the Music.

More often you may walk by my room and hear only one instrument playing, and then another, but never in sync or sequence. Building a band takes time, especially when so many are only discovering the power, the big loud voice, of their instruments.