This site is hosted primarily for the purpose of keeping Mr. Gilliard’s General Music and Instrumental Music Students and parents up to date by making information readily available online. It also provides a few additional music resources for those looking to learn to read music or wanting some additional tips on how to become better musicians.
Who is Mr. Gilliard?
Mr. Kerry Gilliard is the Music Department Chairman and Band Director at Thomas Johnson Middle School in Lanham, Maryland.
Bachelor of Science, Music Education, Bowie State University, 2001.
Former Assistant Band Director, Student-Staff Liaison and Student Director-Arranger, Bowie State University Symphony of Soul Marching, Pep and Concert Band.
Primary Instrument(s) played: Saxophone (23 years), Piano (21 years), Flute (7 years), Clarinet (9 years), Baritone/Euphonium (9-11 years)
Mr. Gilliard’s e-mail address is available on the faculty page at the Thomas Johnson Middle School Website: http://www.pgcps.org/~tjohnson/directory.html .
Why Music ?
Many different answers to this question exist. Here’s a few of mine:
The academic answer (taken from a paper Mr. Gilliard submitted as part of his work toward his Masters’ In Education Degree):
Bloom’s taxonomy has been my primary reference point in composing my lessons. Instrumental music in particular, constantly forces students to engage all six levels of learning. Sometimes, students must engage them all simultaneously.
To begin with, a student must recall all of the basics of musical language and decipher them while reading the music. These include knowing musical expression terms dealing with how notes are to be played, note values and key signatures. Comprehension and application are virtually merged during the process of playing an instrument. The student playing the instrument must almost instantly interpret the dynamic marking forte for example, in relation to how loud or soft he/she was previously playing and then execute that on the instrument immediately afterward. He/she must do the same thing for every item on the paper – including playing notes correctly (for example, a student may need to put more lip pressure on their mouthpiece in order for certain notes on the instrument to sound correctly along with the rest of the ensemble).
This builds, of course, on the previous level of learning (knowledge) so that he/she must first know the definition before attempting to interpret it in relation to the rest of the ensemble and execute it on his/her instrument.
The student is constantly engaged in analysis and synthesis while playing the instrument. He/she is constantly listening to others around him/her and attempting to make adjustments to his/her mouth placement on the instrument in order to stay in tune, as well as considering whatever necessary adjustments to the instrument need to be made. Naturally, this also involves evaluation, as the student is judging his/her own performance of the music as it occurs, listening and comparing his/her own part against that of other students and making changes to his/her playing as the piece of music progresses.
Using Robert Marzano’s Dimensions of Learning (Marzano, 1997) the objectives and the lessons would not need to be modified, as each activity in each objective would cover all of the areas of Marzano’s taxonomy in roughly the same fashion described above for Bloom’s taxonomy. I do believe that music and other creative and performing arts may be unique in this aspect, as they force a performer or a player to engage all levels of his/her cognitive faculties in the process of performance.
The answer from my heart:
Look around at the joyful times of your life. I can almost guarantee that there was music there – from the day of your wedding, to your prom, to your wedding, to the best party you’ve ever been to, the best times you’ve had with friends…. think of your favorite movie. The music made that car chase scene come to life and not just simply remain as images on the screen. Think of the worst times of your life – a loved one has passed on, a relationship ended….. music was there to help you express the sorrow built up in your heart as you cried your eyes out.
At your favorite sporting event, music was there to help you cheer on your favorite team to victory.
Music is part of the core of human existence. It is a gift from God given to humans to express both their devotion to Him and their life experiences.
The pragmatic answer:
Do you realize how much of an asset being in instrumental music or vocal music can be to you ? People like myself have gotten a free ride through college because of music. My school district graduates roughly 480 football players from all of its’ high schools every year, and while some of them go to college and still play football, only 1 out of 40 (modest estimate) end up on full or partial scholarship to a Division II or III school playing football. The statistics for basketball players are lower. The 480 from PG county are competing against schools with students ranked in their state from the rest of Maryland, not to mention the rest of football programs or basketball programs across the country.
On the flip side, most school systems graduate anywhere from 15-40% of their band members every year. The skill level of the student, their attitude and musicianship all work together in determining whether or not in many cases, will determine what schools court them for scholarships. But the truth of the matter is – even if you’re an average player, if you have the right attitude and you’re willing to work hard, a good band director will take you into his program at the college level.
Sure, you’ll be required to be at all the rehearsals, all the practices and play for everything. But you can major in whatever you want in college…..and let band pay for it. And while in college, instead of wasting time working in the cafeteria or the bookstore, you can make much more of an income by giving private lessons to someone’s child from the local middle school.
Parents, think of buying your child a good instrument as an investment. While their minds are not currently focused on the future, work with them and talk to them about learning to think and plan on a long-term basis, not just based off of what feels good now. So practicing right now may not feel good. But if the time you invest now turns out to be a huge advantage to you 4-5 years from now at Senior Year of high school, then be wise and invest the time. I can guarantee that it will pay it off.
The other pragmatic answer:
Ever been to a gospel play with a live band ? You know most of the time, they don’t have a traveling band, but use local musicians, right ? You know some groups have been known to put ads in the paper where they’ll pay you $300 per rehearsal (just the rehearsal) and then $500-1000 per night for performing, right ?
Ignore your ‘friends’ who tell you that being in band is stupid. Most of them will be working in McDonalds five years from now while you’ll be making better money playing your instrument. Secretly, some of them wish they could do what you do.
The one sentence answer:
I didn’t choose music. It chose me.