Supportmusic.org: All the Tools You Need for Your Band Program

The NAMM Foundation, the advocacy wing of the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), is an incredible supporter of music education and has created materials designed to tackle the challenging questions of: How do I recruit into my band program? Where do I find tips about successful music programs? How do I retain the students for my band program? The greatest news is all of these resources are free to download. 

These three guides are made possible through the NAMM Foundation and the Music Achievement Council (MAC), which is an action-oriented nonprofit organization that encourages more students to remain in instrumental programs. By sharing successful strategies developed by instrumental music teachers, your band program is sure to get a leg-up. 

For the New Band Director

For the new band director, gaining new material and adding it to your director’s toolkit is essential. Take a look at this downloadable PDF that will give you 24 Tips on how to improve your band program. Learn to elevate your program and have your students develop into advanced musicians. It will even discuss specific topics such as knowing when to service your instruments, how to plan your first concert, and how to seek new funding opportunities from administrators. Even if you’re a seasoned veteran, you may find some of these tips to be quite helpful. It’s worth the time investment to read it!

For the Middle Schoool Band Director

“A Practical Guide for Recruitment and Retention” is a valuable resource for the band director. Whether you are just starting in your first year or have nurtured your program for 10 years, this guide can easily be adapted to suit the needs of your program. If you don’t know where to start with music dealers, parents, or administration, this will give you suggestions how to address each group. 

For the High School Band Director

The key to the success of any program is retaining students – especially as they transition between middle school and high school. “Bridging the Gap Between Middle School and High School” contains the formula for ensuring the students you recruited and trained so diligently in middle school make it into the high school program.

Well, there you have it—your guide(s) to success! All of these materials are intended to help you teach, recruit and retain more effectively. The best part is you have free access to these resources at supportmusic.com. We hope this information is useful to you as you continue on in your teaching career. These three publications are just a small part of what supportmusic.com has to offer. We hope this site and these publications help you as you work with your programs.

Learn about Vandoren JUNO reeds, the only reed specifically designed for students. 

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