GLENVILLE, W.Va. – Eight Glenville State College students – Myrtle Copen, Olivia Dillon, Daniel Hinger, Joe Lutsy, Cameron Knopp, Mary Pratt, Seth Price, and Marcus Spinks – recently attended the West Virginia Band Director Clinic held at the West Virginia University College of Creative Arts.
The Clinic featured guest conductor Colonel Don Schofield, Commander and Conductor of the United States Air Force (USAF) Band. Colonel Schofield is responsible for all activities of the 184-member USAF band squadron, including equipping, training, and deploying Airmen musicians to perform nearly 1,600 missions each year.
“We always enjoy attending this annual clinic, which is designed to focus on teaching and conducting topics and techniques and pedagogical concerns related to band directing,” said Dr. Lloyd Bone, Associate Professor of Music at Glenville State. “The most impactful part of the event was our students getting to work under the baton of Colonel Schofield, a world-class band conductor who conducts one of the top concert bands in the world. He took the time to give our students individual input – which meant a great deal to not only the students, but to me as well.” Bone accompanied the Glenville State students to the clinic.
“The band clinic was a way for band directors to get together and share their knowledge. As students, we felt more than welcome to attend and the band directors had much to share with us. We learned how to teach jazz ensembles, how COVID-19 has changed teaching music in public schools, and how music can have a big impact on student lives,” said Copen, a senior music education major.
“It was great to meet people who are already established in the field that I am studying to be a part of,” said Hinger, a junior music major at GSC. “I enjoyed seeing into the great minds of the professionals who took time to give amazing lectures and answer any questions we had. Overall, it was an eye-opening experience with very helpful information that I will use throughout my career as a musician and teacher.”
The Clinic was sponsored by Phi Beta Mu and the WVU Bandmasters Association.
For more information about the Department of Fine Arts at Glenville State College, call (304) 462-6340.
