Whether it be the sweet sound of an orchestra or the dominant sounds of a band, everyone can agree that a well played instrumental performance is unrivaled. In this month’s article of the Stellar Keller Newsletter, we strive to bring some insight to our closest music ensembles－the Keller band and orchestra.

In the pilot article of the Keller Instrumental Piece, we delve into learning more about our instruments by interviewing our band and orchestra music teachers! Let’s start off with Mrs. Gomberg’s interview.

Zach: What has been your overall experience with teaching seventh graders concepts of orchestra?

Gomberg: Seventh graders are generally enthusiastic about learning; they want to learn as much music and as many musical concepts as they can.

Zach: Have you had any negative experiences with teaching orchestra at a junior high level?

Gomberg: Once in awhile there is a student who just doesn’t want to be there, but overall it has been very positive and enjoyable.

Zach: What is your favorite instrument in the orchestra group?

Gomberg: I don’t think I can answer that question without upsetting my students *Laughs*

Zach: When did you have that moment that you knew you wanted to be an orchestra teacher?

Gomberg: When I was twelve I realized I wanted to be a band teacher, and I’ve taught band and orchestra for a lot of years and it evolved until I wanted to only teach orchestra.

Zach: How has working in collaboration with band and chorus teacher(s) been?

Gomberg: That experience has been great. The three of us get along and have fun everyday.

Zach: Who plans the concerts, you or the music department itself?

Gomberg: All three of us plan our individual part of the concert.

Zach: Final question; what would you say to those students that want to be a music teacher?

Gomberg: I would say practice. And yeah, that's pretty much it *laughs*. Yeah, practice and keep playing as much as possible.

Thank you for your time Mrs. Gomberg!

Now let’s see what Mr. Gear (the band teacher) has to say:

Zach: What has been your overall experience with teaching seventh graders concepts of band?

Gear: My overall experience is that every student learns at a different pace, so I have to vary the way I teach things so that the students at different ability levels show growth.

Zach: Have you had any negative experiences with teaching band at a junior high level?

Gear: Not really, for the most part, it’s wonderful. Occasionally, you’ll find students who are not motivated but that’s pretty rare in the band program.

Zach: What is your favorite instrument in the band family?

Gear: That’s a difficult question. I’m going to go with the tuba.

Zach: When did you have that moment that you knew you wanted to be a band teacher?

Gear: Ummmmm, always *laughs* I started in fourth grade, but I loved it all the time, but the best impression I got was in junior high.

Zach: How has working in collaboration with orchestra and chorus teacher(s) been?

Gear: Good, very good, we all get along very well and it’s nice that we get so much support from each other.

Zach: Final question, what would you say to those students that want to be a music teacher?

Gear: Ummmm. I would say two things－this job is about building relationships with students more than it is about the music, and you have to be very passionate about learning music while studying to become a music teacher.

Thanks for reading this article of Instrumental Insider. Come back next month when we interview the band and orchestra members themselves!