Blair band and orchestra patrons are making music

Wherever the band goes, they're there. If the Marching Band goes to perform on "It's Academic," they drive along. If the Honors Jazz Band, Orchestra and Marching Band recruit students at middle schools for next year, they come. If the instrumental music program has a concert, they sponsor a bake sale in the lobby. "They" are the Blair Band and Orchestra Patrons (BBOPS), and they're not superheroes, just committed parents.

The money that MCPS provides for the Blair Band Department covers only about 10 percent of its operating budget, according to Blair instrumental music teacher Dustin Doyle. The BBOPs help make up for the majority of this shortage by soliciting parents of band students for donations. At the moment, the BBOPs have about $8,000 for the band program.

Making music isn't as effortless as it seems

The BBOPs not only raise money for the band; they also act as the band's mouthpiece. "The BBOPs exist to support and promote the instrumental music department and the students at Blair," says BBOPs Co-Chair Nancy Weil. "We have a publicity person to do outreach, who publicizes [the students'] activities and awards. We bring specialists, who work with the students to increase [their] musical awareness."

Doyle stresses the importance of the monetary contributions of the BBOPs, especially in helping the music department to purchase what it wants, repairing broken and damaged instruments, buying music and replacing aging instruments. Percussion instruments and appropriately styled music stands for the Jazz Bands were purchased earlier this year with BBOP money. Also, the BBOPs are helping to pay for the new Marching Band uniforms, which cost a total of $30,000.

BBOP Co-Chair Lee Comstock says that people usually try to help when they find out how much help is needed. "We find that people are very generous. You just need to make them aware of the [monetary] shortfall."

Weil emphasizes the BBOP's work to raise the profile of the instrumental music program in the eyes of the Blair administration. She explains how the instrumental music room was supposed to receive new chairs suited to proper posture when Blair moved buildings, but these chairs were never located. "They were supposed to get chairs for playing music but got ones that are bad for posture. The [good chairs] were ordered, they were paid for, but for whatever reason, they weren't delivered [to the band room]," Weil states.

The BBOPs lobbied the administration to get new chairs with little success until Principal Phillip Gainous had a meeting in the band room. "Gainous said, 'These aren't the right chairs,'" Weil paraphrases. The band room now has new upholstered, cushioned chairs with straight backs to encourage good posture while playing.

To make music, you need musicians

In addition, the BBOPs are trying to halt the decline in band enrollment. "Because there aren't that many periods and because of the number of required courses, [we've] seen enrollment take a hit," Weil states.

Comstock emphasizes the same problem. "Montgomery Blair has on a per capita basis one of the lowest involvement [rates] in the music program of any school in Montgomery County. As my Co-Chair last year liked to say, 'There isn't something in the water in Silver Spring that stops people from playing music.'"

The BBOPs try to increase enrollment in a number of ways, according to Weil. "We visit the middle schools, we talk to students and we tell them to sign up," she says, adding that the BBOP's visits to Blair's feeder schools seem to be working. "We've seen freshman enrollment jump. We had about 25 [freshmen in band] the past two years. Now, it's more like 50."

The BBOPs also have a wish list which includes enough students to hire another part-time music teacher, a recording system for the band room and tuxedoes and gowns for the Symphonic Band and Orchestra.

Comstock explains the BBOP's reason to get an assistant for the instrumental music teacher and states that increased enrollment is necessary for the music program to prevail. "We lost a very good music director a few years ago because he got burned out, and we don't want to lose this one. The way to get the support [needed for an assistant] is to help enrollment."

The BBOPs are looking ahead to the future, but Comstock also remembers why he stayed involved with the BBOPs. "You go the first few meetings, and you find out how much they need support. The county doesn't fund the arts very well. Somehow, that has to be made up."

For more information about the BBOPs, contact Blair instrumental music teacher <a href="mailto:doyledus@mbhs.edu>Dustin Doyle.