When walking into the USF honor band, some say it felt like Charlie entering Willy Wonky’s chocolate factory to find fabulous flavorful tidbits. Jasmine Finley, Etienne Ferrell, and Diego Garcia were the participants representing ILS in this honor band. As the name implies, being asked to participate in an honor band is indeed an honor for not everyone who plays an instrument is invited to participate.
I thought the schedule was a little difficult to deal with sometimes.
— Etienne Ferrell
The USF schedule was extremely efficient as almost every waking moment was dedicated to music, whether it was about playing it, learning new techniques, or listening to others play. This legendary schedule went along these lines:
Wake up 6:15
Breakfast 6:30-8:10
Walk from the hotel to the honor band building 8:15-8:45
Get instruments ready 8:50-9:00
Rehearsal 9:00-11:30
Lunch 11:30-12:15
Watch a wind ensemble, quintet, quartet, or jazz combo 12:20-2:00
Rehearsal 2:05-6:30
Special surprise or another wind ensemble to listen to 6:35-9:00
Walk back to hotel 9:05-9:50
Free period going to gym or getting snacks 9:55-10:45
Lights out (shower during lights out, hang around in your room, study rehearsal music, etc…) 10:45 pm – 6:00 am
Repeat the previous steps until the fourth day, when the concert takes place.
“I really enjoyed taking care of myself,” said senior Diego Garcia.
Part of the USF honor band experience is to take care of yourself and others through thick and thin – especially if there was a prank-inclined roommate involved. Giving others motivation to continue improving, to get ready for the day, making breakfast, and helping each other to choose practicing the music sheet had to be prioritized over messing around.
“I found that everybody has room to grow,” said senior Jasmine Finley.
No matter what the activity is, there will always be more to learn, and even in simple tasks there is more to find. In creating music (which is a complicated thing), musicians often have to look at their building blocks first and then move on to the next steps. These building blocks are rhythm, tone, mood, and articulation. Off of these rudimentary elements, musicians add their seasoning, which is dynamics. When you put all these components together, you achieve “music.”
To see your classmates perform, click the link to USF Honor Band Concert Below.
https://www.youtube.com/live/Y4Vrfy0cdbY?si=Al40UJKu8PeVAbML
