March 3, 2012 at 7:00 a.m.

Music lasts a lifetime

Students put on concerts in honor of Music In Our School Month
Music lasts a lifetime
Music lasts a lifetime

By Monica [email protected]

With budget cuts and cutbacks, music programs across the country are being reduced and the School District of Rhinelander wants the community to see and hear why it's important to keep music in school.

March has been officially designated by The National Association for Music Education as Music In Our Schools Month (MIOSM) to make it the time of year when music education becomes schools' focus.

Rhinelander High School band director Connie Piasecki said the district will host its annual sixth through 12th grade choral and band concerts at 7 p.m. on March 6 and 8 at the RHS auditorium to help people in the community acknowledge the importance of music.

"We have been doing this concert since before I started here and it is known as our big event," she said. "Every school in the state does something different but we think having middle and high school kids playing together is a really great way to show how much the students grow in their musical ability."

This year's theme is "Music Lasts a Lifetime" and Piasecki said, as a teacher, the purpose of MIOSM is to help raise awareness of the importance of music education and to remind people in the community that school is where students need access to music the most.

"We (teachers) are the number one advocates for having music in school so we definitely are passionate about it and try to convey it to the students," she said "It's not a class students have to take, they want to be here, and we want them to convey that passion for music. We want to make sure they know the value of music in their education."

She said music is a skill that transcends cultural boundaries and playing music is an inherent quality for humans as a whole.

"Music education is common in most nations because it's a fundamental component of culture and behavior," she said "It is our responsibility to teach that music is an accomplishment that can distinguish you like a language does. It's a fundamental component of human behavior."

Through music, student will develop skills and acquire knowledge about different cultures and can learn their musical language through listening and playing.

Piasecki said the annual concert gives people an opportunity to see the progress students make through the years because each grade will get a chance to play and then all the grades will conclude the concert together.

"I think the biggest thing people will see is how quickly kids do improve and how much music can be shared by people of all ages," she said. "It's so neat to see the sixth grader with the senior creating music together and that's unique in itself."

She said the older students enjoy working with the younger grades because they can help the younger students become stronger musicians.

"They just love it and even though it's all very new to the sixth graders, the older kids step in and help," she said. "They all really enjoy it and it's really gratifying to be able to connect these groups and create music together."

Monica Baltich may be reached at [email protected].

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