December 8 Info

Dear Parents,
The Enduring Strings musicians have a performance scheduled as part of the Crete Country Christmas festivities. If you have seen the flyer for the events, we are part of the CUMC bloc on that Saturday schedule. Here's what you need to know.
Our musicians need to meet at the heated tent at 3:45.
They should be dressed casually/nicely but warmly. The tent where we'll perform is heated, but we want to perform without our coats and gloves.
Our performance will take about 15 minutes.
Everything they need will be at the tent where we will perform, so we don't need you to go to the church first.
The place we end up putting our instruments is the place where we will leave our coats and cases while we are playing. When we're done performing the musicians will put their instruments back in their cases. This is where to pick them up.
If we can do some good work between now and the show we'll be great.
Wish us luck.
If things change, I will post here as soon as possible.
DEF

Hmmm, What to Think

We use chalkboards in our class this year. One side is blank, the other has a blank musical staff for note writing and such. Yesterday and today, at the end of the class, I gave them all five minutes to draw a picture of me. I wanted to use one as my profile pic, but feelings started to come into play - duh. So we'll just let you see all the ones I managed to preserve. Of course, feelings being as important as they are, I expect to have to re-commission an art work to complete this gallery.

Honestly, after seeing what they had done, I had to wonder. Of course I don't look like an ogre or Stewie. Right? Of course not. Kids. Right?
DEF


November 13 Update
Gallery completed. Cheers.

I Inspire Song

From the archives.
This last summer, SYSO had a boot camp for young musicians. One of them was so inspired that she wrote a song.
'Nuff said.
DEF

A Picture of Sounds

This has been on our wall since last year. It was our first look at "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." It's going to come down soon, but I wanted to share a picture of it first, because it's a perfect picture of the way Twinkle sounds when I play it on the violin. (I'm a cellist.)
DEF

Welcome!

Greetings.
Welcome to the blog that shares what's going on in Crete's  Enduring Strings program.  Enduring Strings happens before school at the Crete United Methodist Church in beautiful downtown Crete, IL, sort of an adjunct to Miss Kathy's before and after school program there. Enduring Strings is a venture of the Suburban Youth Symphony Orchestra, and I am their music director.
I am also the Enduring Strings teacher. I grew up in this town. I am a product of the orchestra program that once thrived in our school district. It's gone now, and our goal is to demonstrate the worth and viability of string music education in our town. The mission is to make orchestra a part of the curriculum again.
Tall order, yes. Anyway...
As this blog begins, we are preparing to present a performance on December 8 at the Crete Country Christmas celebrations. Of course, as I am in my second year at this, we have some musicians really starting to play things well and we have some beginners. I'm still working on how our presentation will end up going. Stay tuned.
If you have a musician in our program, please do stay tuned, and check out this blog from time to time. As I get going, you will be able to get material we are working on, see pictures and video of our class in action, and keep in touch with me.
If you just found us randomly, do check back. The chronicle of my tilt at this gigantic windmill might be entertaining.
More soon.
Peace,
David