Briefly describe your job.
I am the director of bands at a public high school. I currently teach students in grades nine through twelve. In this position, I teach a symphonic band, a jazz band of twenty two students, two beginning piano classes and a beginning guitar class. I also oversee a color guard class, marching band, and other related activities outside of the regular school day

How long have you been working in this field?
I am currently in my thirteenth year of teaching.

When and how did you decide to choose this career?
I decided to pursue a degree in music education during my fourth year of college at the age of twenty three. I resisted pursuing education for two main reasons. First, I wanted to earn enough income to be able to provide a future family with a nice standard of living. The other reason was that I once had a man tell me that, “in life, those who can, do, and those who can’t, teach.” As a result, I saw teaching as a profession full of people who were failures, unable to do anything else. I find it ironic that the man who told me this was a minister; a teacher!

What education and training did you receive before entering your field?
My formal education was earning a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music and a teaching certificate to teach K-12 Instrumental Music. However, to pursue a career in music it is necessary to begin music training long before college. My music training began in public schools. I began to study piano when I was nine years old, and joined the school band when I was ten years old.

How did you begin OR what was your first job in the field?
When I was fifteen years old I was asked to perform in a German Oompah Band for one performance. It was a lot of fun When I received $30 at the end of the performance I was totally surprised! I had no idea one could actually get paid for something that was so fun. I would have been happy to do it for free! The next music teaching job I had was while I was still in high school. I won a few solo competitions and was asked by some people to give private music instruction for which I was paid. My earnings basically offset the amount I was spending on taking private lessons of my own. After graduating from college, with my degree in hand, I tried to find a teaching position in the area where I was living at the time, but the local school district was a very good place to teach and few openings were available because no one was leaving their positions. I worked as a substitute teacher in the district I desired for a year and a half before I found a part time position teaching K-7 General Music. To be honest, there were several reasons I didn’t find a full- time position sooner. First, I was unwilling to move to a school district where there were more vacant teaching positions. Second, I was earning more income working as a substitute teacher during the day and waiting tables in a restaurant by night.

Describe a typical day on the job?
I arrive at 7:00 a.m., open the doors to my band room, and attempt to read my email over a cup of coffee. I say “attempt” because much of my day is spent being bombarded with questions and concerns from the hundreds of students I see every day. First period begins at 7:30 during which I have a planning period without students. This time is usually spent on answering email (approximately 10 to 15 each morning), writing calendars, planning fundraisers, correcting papers, entering grades into the computer, working on the recruitment of new students into the band program, and writing check requisitions for my staff (five specialists who come in once or twice each week to help give individual instruction), music equipment, sheet music, filling out work orders to maintain the facility, and planning lessons and selecting music for upcoming classes. From 8:30 to 10:30 I teach my two piano classes. From 10:30 to 11:20, I get another fifty minutes of planning. Next, is the symphonic band class comprised of seventy students. Most of the time, this class is preparing for some sort of upcoming concert or competition. Next comes lunch which I rarely stop to eat. The typical lunch break for me is grabbing a quick bite of something while working on the vast array of things already mentioned. In addition, my band students all have lunch at this time too, and they hang out in the band room where I get to supervise them and collect permission forms, money for ongoing fundraisers, or answer the many questions the students face. After the half hour lunch, the band students go to other classes and the room fills with beginning guitar students. Only about half of the students in the room really want to learn to play the guitar, the others just want to hang out and play what little guitar they already know. This is a much different student than the average band student, but I actually enjoy it most of the time. My last class of the day is the jazz band/color guard class. These two groups meet at the same time, and are under my jurisdiction, but I really just teach the jazz band while one of my staff members comes in to teach the guard. I take care of many of the logistics for the guard members such as fundraising, purchasing supplies, travel arrangements etc., but I am very fortunate to have a guard advisor who takes care of much of it as well. After school, I often have rehearsals and parent meetings that extend into the evening hours, especially in the fall months. In the spring, a few times each week, I make a concerted effort to get away from the school early enough to be able to pick up my own kids from school, oftentimes before having to go back to the school for evening rehearsals, performances, or meetings.

What do you like most about what you do?
I enjoy making music every day and seeing kids get excited about a wonderful art form.

What has been the most rewarding experience so far in your career?
Watching students grow musically and emotionally. I enjoy the interaction with my students even though it is exhausting at times.

What do you like least about your job?
The amount of non-musical tasks that I have to comply with such as teaching to the FCAT (our standardized state test), providing piles of lesson plans simply so administrators and lawmakers can justify what they think I am teaching.

What is the biggest challenge for you in this job?
It is difficult to be proud of working such long hours and still not be able to provide for my family financially.

What would you like to say to someone considering this career?
I would not recommend it. Although I find much happiness in what I do, one can be involved in music without having to make your living at it. It’s easy to be idealistic and want to devote your life to the arts when you are young, but it is very difficult when you can’t afford a home for your family or college for your own kids. Retirement is also scary. Consider retiring at the age of 65, earning less than what you already can’t live on, and still having another twenty or more years to live.

What are the most important personal and professional skills necessary to succeed in your field?
One must have strong musical, communication, and organizational skills. Good time management is also important.

What would a person interested in entering this field have to do to get a good job in it?
Go to college and discuss it with your teachers and guidance counselors.

What could someone who is interested in this field do to learn more about it right now?
Like anything in life, find a successful mentor, ask a lot of questions, and emulate what they do.

Is there any general advice you would like to offer to students on making a career choice or on work life itself?
I think it’s critical to have a strong personal philosophy behind what you do, especially in education. Everyone knows that teachers don’t earn a lot of money so you must find rewards in the work itself.