My students come from a plethora of cultural, religious, and ethnic backgrounds. These kids are incredibly unique and hard-working in their own ways. A majority of our students are low-income meaning that many of them can't afford to purchase their own instrument or step up accessories. Due to budget cuts, it makes it very difficult to fund a band program. We are fortunate in our ability to provide each of our students a free opportunity to participate in band and borrow an instrument. This means that sometimes our instruments lack supplies such as oils, reeds, mouthpieces, and ligatures. Many of our accessories are outdated and damaged from years and years of use. As a graduate from Tulsa Public Schools and MHS myself, I know how important it is to make sure every student has a fair chance at excelling in music. Outdated and damaged mouthpieces and ligatures often hold students back from their full potential. Students may lose interest if they are stuck with low functioning equipment. It is incredible seeing my students develop a passion for the band. It's incredible how quickly some of these kids are improving in their core subjects since starting band.
My Project
These accessories can play a major role in our student's success in music. Many of our mouthpieces and ligatures are falling apart. A lot of our equipment is upwards of 20 years old. I have very responsible and honest students bringing me brittle and broken ligatures and cracked brass mouthpieces. A lot of our mouthpieces are very shallow stock mouthpieces that make it difficult for students to fully advance on their instrument. These mouthpieces will be a major step up and will potentially expand our students' range and improve their tone quality. These are major necessities for successful performances. This will help our students reach the classroom and personal goals such as band contest and honor band auditions. Students who play on difficult, old, and damaged equipment are more likely to quit the band due to a lack of progress outside of their control. I hope that these upgrades can help keep my students motivated in their progress. Thank you for sharing and/or donating to our project! Any help goes a long way!
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