Humboldt is in the musical season in April with the Annual Humboldt and District Music Festival kicking off with the band, string, and guitar competitions Apr. 11-12.
Both days consisted of many different solo, duets, trios, with the full bands competing Monday night and Tuesday morning.
Band instructor, Sharon Bates, goes into eight schools, St. Dominic, St. Augustine, Humboldt Public, Annaheim, Muenster, Lake Lenore, St. Brieux, and Middle Lake, to teach full bands around the Humboldt area.
She says that there were a lot of good performances at the festival, including some exceptional performances by some students.
Humboldt Music Festival Association President, Patti Durand, says she has incredible admiration for musical instructors with the limited time they get in schools.
鈥淥ur band programs in our area have been in the schools for a varying number of years depending on the school they are coming from and they tend to get very limited classroom time.鈥�
Especially for solos, duets, and trios, Bates says that students have to come to her on their own time to practice.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 spend any class time on it, they have to come to me after school or before school because they鈥檙e isn鈥檛 that much time for that stuff.鈥�
The band portion of the festival did get to show off the talent and the instructors the area does have, says Durand.
Band programs are available in the area but these still cost students significant fees to rent or own their instrument, not including funds for trips and symposiums.
Instructors are paid for one hour of instruction per week per group and Durand says it is amazing what instructors can do with that time.
What musical training they are given helps kids discover a new way to learn, says Bates.
鈥淚n a smaller centre, the more variety you give a child to learn in different ways the better because not everyone learns the same.鈥�
Bates also takes her students on band trips which they would have few opportunities to take otherwise, especially musically based trips like to Persephone and the National Youth Band.
Strings and piano instruction is usually on the student鈥檚 own time and paid for by the parents.
Piano performances are on Apr. 18-21 and Vocal, Choral, and Speech Art performances are on April 25 鈥� 27 both at the Jerome Assembly Room at St. Peter鈥檚 Abbey.
The Final Awards Concert wraps up the festival聽 on May 1 at 2:00 pm at Marysburg Assumption Church in Marysburg.
