Musicians at Home

The world is always changing, but what really matters may be how we adapt to these changes. Like many other groups at FCHS, the band has had to face many difficult challenges so far in online schooling. “Playing with others was always so easy, but now everything is new and different, so it’s been a little difficult to adapt,” said jazz band member Bee Wilkins

While in the past the group usually would play together, in order to reduce laggy audio their computer mics are now muted as they play their instruments. “It’s very different from the band room,” Wilkins said. “There’s been a lot of changes, but I think we’re all just working our best.”

The band students appear to have taken well to the changes made, both with their new director, Burton Hable, and online classes, and are working hard during the pandemic to improve their musical skills. There’s a mutual understanding between the director and the students on what needs to be done. Students meet and exceed those expectations by working on their music from class and their own musical goals. “While they can’t play together right now, they can always learn together and grow,” said Hable. Students may have to learn from a distance, but it doesn’t stop them from achieving their goals. Many students are putting in serious hard work and dedication to make online band a success.

Because playing together has been a bit of a struggle, the band has been working on other things such as the fundamentals of music theory and how to play better independently. “We’ve gotten to learn more music theory now than in previous years, and not everyone knows it, so it’s been fun,” said jazz band member Andrew Scida.

While adjusting to a new learning situation may have not been ideal, band members have been taking these challenges with optimism and determination. They’ll better understand some of the things that they wouldn’t regularly learn in band, and will continue to get better and learn from this experience. Experiences like these may make a huge difference when FCHS students go back in the future.