My young drummer friend Otis Logan has a band called 4 Soul, and last Tuesday, February 7, they had a jam session at Juicy Jim’s on the Highland strip near the University of Memphis. Local rap artist Snipes performed songs from his recent mixtape, and everyone had a lot of fun.
band
My young drummer friend Otis Logan has a band called 4 Soul, and last Tuesday, February 7, they had a jam session at Juicy Jim’s on the Highland strip near the University of Memphis. Local rap artist Snipes performed songs from his recent mixtape, and everyone had a lot of fun.
Lake Providence High School Band at Grambling Homecoming 2011
#087 Lake Providence High School Band.MOV (by jdoggtn7)
The Lake Providence High School band marches in the Grambling Homecoming Parade, October 22, 2011
(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)
Melrose Homecoming 2011 in Orange Mound, Memphis
Toward the end of the third quarter of the Melrose High School homecoming game, I realized that I needed to head on out of town if I wanted to get to Pine Bluff, Arkansas by 5 PM for the UAPB/Southern game, so I walked back to my car and rode out.
Melrose Homecoming vs. Whitehaven in Orange Mound, 2011
Melrose High School had their homecoming game against Whitehaven on Saturday in Orange Mound, and not only was the weather perfect for football, but the atmosphere was like a college game, with both sides of the stadium packed, and two of the best high school marching bands in the stands. Across the street at the Orange Mound Community Center, the Melrose Class of 1981 was having a tailgate/picnic with a DJ, and when the bands weren’t playing, the sounds of Frankie Beverly and Maze and Willie Hutch drifted across the street along with the smells of barbecue. A perfect football day, except that Melrose was down 49 to nothing at the half.
Despite the drizzle, I managed to catch the end of the Hamilton/East game at the Fairgrounds Friday night September 16.
Thursday night, neither team brought a band to MAHS vs. Westwood at Melrose, and Douglass didn’t have their band at the Fairgrounds, so I ended up riding out to Whitehaven to catch Hillcrest and Carver, and Hillcrest seems as if it might be an up-and-coming band program. They are clean, and for the most part, in tune.
The high school band situation in Memphis is not a pretty picture this year. I drove out to Southwind to see the Southwind vs. Wooddale game, only to find that neither team brought a band to the game. So I drove back out to Raleigh to catch Raleigh-Egypt and Trezevant, and at least Trezevant brought a small band, but not Raleigh-Egypt, who just a few years ago looked like a program that might be on the right track. What I find even more disturbing this year is that most of the schools have tiny bands, with only a handful of horn players added to a large drum section. I would assume that the problem is a breakdown at the middle school level of music education. Perhaps the pending merger of Memphis with the county schools will improve the band and music education, but I’m not holding my breath.
The high school band situation in Memphis is not a pretty picture this year. I drove out to Southwind to see the Southwind vs. Wooddale game, only to find that neither team brought a band to the game. So I drove back out to Raleigh to catch Raleigh-Egypt and Trezevant, and at least Trezevant brought a small band, but not Raleigh-Egypt, who just a few years ago looked like a program that might be on the right track. What I find even more disturbing this year is that most of the schools have tiny bands, with only a handful of horn players added to a large drum section. I would assume that the problem is a breakdown at the middle school level of music education. Perhaps the pending merger of Memphis with the county schools will improve the band and music education, but I’m not holding my breath.
Memphis Carver vs. Memphis Sheffield at Halle Stadium
Carver High takes on Sheffield High on a hot September evening in a Memphis Interscholastic Athletic Association football game at Halle Stadium