Why Band?

 

Why Band? Mr. Malm is known to ask his freshman religion classes, "Why 40?".  The question has become a bit iconic in the building, but as Malm will tell you, there's a significance to the number 40 in the Bible. However, in my circumstance as a band director, I often ask, "Why Band?". Why do some young people continue to play an instrument long after so many others have started and quit? Or never tried an instrument in the first place? What keeps those students going through the long hours of practice and rehearsal, when learning an instrument gets tedious and frustrating, and life would be easier without one more commitment. Why Band?

 

I would argue that the connections that students make playing in an ensemble provide the significance and meaning necessary to keep them going and thrive through the experience. We talk a good deal in band rehearsals about the "why" of what we do. Sure, we want to play the music technically well, and we want the right notes to come out of our instruments and blend appealingly. We would love to get superior ratings at festivals and enjoy the exuberant applause of our audience when we perform. More than that, we want to connect to others in a way that goes beyond the notes on the page and into people's hearts.

 

Music understood and performed well connects the performers to the composer, the director, to each other, and the audience. It provides an acute awareness of belonging to something bigger and more beautiful than one can accomplish individually. It can have a profound impact on the emotions of performers and audience members alike. As a musician, there's nothing more powerful than knowing that your performance left an impression that touched someone so profoundly that it will last into the next day, through the week, or well into the future.

 

This is God's gift to us that we can use what He has given us to uplift and edify others. That through us, others can see God and be brought more fully into His presence. We are blessed to experience this at performances here at home and throughout the country as we tour. And it is always humbling to see how God can use a high school band to uplift people He loves so dearly. 

 

That is the "why" of the band. 

 

 

 

We invite you to join the LCL Instrumental Department for our Fall Concert on Thursday, November 4, at 7:00 pm in the PAC.

 

Additional LCL Instrumental Department 2021-22 Performance Dates:

 

Christmas Concert Friday, December 10, 2021 7:00pm

Winter Concert Monday, March 14, 2022 7:00pm

Concert Band Tour March 16-20, 2022

Children's Concert Thursday, April 7, 2022 TBD

Spring Instrumental Concert Friday, May 13, 2022 7:00pm 

 

Or, come cheer these student musicians on at a sporting event. Go Lightning Pep Band!