As anyone will tell you, the only way to get to Carnegie Hall is … practice, practice, practice! If you are engaged in the performing arts, you know that “practice”, involves hours of alone-time honing skills, commonly referred to as woodshedding, according to the Urban Dictionary. Current events have provided much alone-time and for musicians, a rare opportunity to “practice, practice, practice” and get ready for big shows.
For members of the John Walter Band, the Community Concert Band of Cape May County, New Jersey, many of whom are hunkered down working from home for now, this extra time is an opportunity to review music selections, to exercise important passages and focus on key dynamics, as they prepare for scheduled performances this summer.
In its 23rd year, the John Walter Band is slated to perform in Middle Township, Cape May, Ocean City, Wildwood and other Cape May County venues in 2020. Members are readying for the upcoming season and looking forward to rehearsing with their fellow musicians at the first opportunity.
According to Dr. John Curtis, Music Director of the John Walter Band, “Rehearsals normally involve learning the (musical) piece. Once we have a grasp, we work to blend the sounds from the various sections (percussion, trumpet, etc.), to complement and highlight how the composer expected the music to be presented. In this unusual year, we anticipate that our musicians will have mastered the music selections at home which means our upcoming rehearsals will focus on raising the music to a higher level of perfection and expression. We anticipate that our audiences will be impressed with how the band sounds this season.”
For more information about the John Walter Band, visit our website at www.johnwalterband.org.