New Beginnings-Presented by the SCF Music Program, Thursday, October 7, 7:30 p.m. in the Neel Performing Arts Center

Robyn Bell: Look who I have with me today, I will be speaking to four SCF music students who will be performing in our upcoming Fall Festival of Music concert on Thursday, October 7th, at 7:30 PM in the Neel Performing Arts Center. This concert is called New Beginnings because in many ways this year really does feel like a new beginning. We are coming off of our COVID year at the State College of Florida, where, although we had rehearsals and performances, we couldn't have any audience members. And we were sitting six feet apart and we were wearing masks. So you felt very isolated in your music making, but currently this year, we are back to rehearsing as normal, and we can have people in our audience for our performances. So it is definitely a new beginning. I have asked a representative from each of the four ensembles that will be performing to join me on the podcast and talk about what their group is playing and how things are different for them. This year. Our first two music students are second year vocalists, Katelyn Reinschmidt, and first year percussionist, Jarek Vogt, Katelyn, and Jareck. Welcome to the club. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Thank you. 

Jarek Vogt: Thank you, Dr. Bell. 

Robyn Bell: Now, normally I would say ladies first, but Jarek since you are a first year student in the SCF music program, I really want to hear from you first. So tell us about your life, where you came from and how you ended up as a music major this year at the State College of Florida. 

Jarek Vogt: All right. So I'm not actually from Florida or from Pennsylvania. 

Robyn Bell: Nobody's from Florida. 

Jarek Vogt: That is true. It seems like a lot of us keep moving down here, but we moved down here about three years ago. And I left for a mission for my church. And then I got back. I was like, I have no idea where I'm going to go. I love music and I wasn't really sure what to do. And, uh, I started working down at Venice High School as a drum line instructor and Mr. Wing, the band director introduced me to Dr. Bell and, one thing led to another. And then I ended up here and I got to say, at first I wasn't exposed a community college. Like what could they really offer? But this. Far more greater and a greater experience that I think I could have really asked for even dreamed to be given as just a guy who was just trying to find his way into the music world, where I was basically at nowhere when I first got there.

Robyn Bell: That's a great story. You started band like in sixth, seventh grade, like everybody. 

Jarek Vogt: You started in seventh grade, 

Robyn Bell: did your littlebell kit.

Jarek Vogt: I was more of the guy that they just kind of put on, like sleigh bells to keep entertained for the most part, I didn't really think band was that exciting until about like ninth grade. And then I was like, okay, maybe I should take this a little seriously 

Robyn Bell: when marching band started. Right. Drum line stuff. And you've graduated from that high school in Pennsylvania. Okay. And then your family moved here. You ended up, I think this summer you were in our percussion ensemble, that the camp we had with the Pops. And that was your first experience here. And now you are a music major. You're taking percussion lessons. You play in the symphonic band and the jazz band. You're going to play in the Bradenton Symphony Orchestra. You have just embraced all of it 

Jarek Vogt: Yeah, I, yeah, it's the best way to go. Sometimes you just got to jump right in and take it all at one.

Robyn Bell: And you live down in Venice. So you kind of have a we're 52 minute drive. I'm guessing

Jarek Vogt: pretty long drive. 

Robyn Bell: And what do you want to be when you grow up? 

Jarek Vogt: Well events, you want to get old enough to grow up. I want to, I would love to be a high school band teacher. That's my, 

Robyn Bell: that's my very nice in this area. You think you'll come back here and. 

Jarek Vogt: I would love to stay here. I love living here. I love the music program here. I haven't seen a music program care so much about their students really in this aspect is in this area of Florida. So I would love to stay 

Robyn Bell: and we would love to have you. You're also, taking percussion lessons from our percussion instructor, Tomasz Kowalczyk, who is the principal percussionist for the Sarasota Orchestra. And we have really, for the first time, this year, a percussion ensemble, because now with our new building, we have a dedicated space for that. How's that going? 

Jarek Vogt: Uh, it's incredible. I've, never really been in one before. I've been in many ones in high school, but the experience to really learn more about the instruments of the percussion world that you sometimes don't dive into because you don't have time and band had been really insightful, but also helps me have a better perspective that no matter where you're at in your musicianship or what instrument you're on, there's something more to learn, even if it's the smallest detail that can change. Where you play practice and even sound at performances. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. It puts a whole new perspective on your vast array of percussion is so different. I mean, I played trumpet. I have like three or four trumpets, but you, what you guys have to do back there is truly amazing. Now you are in the jazz band as well. Is this your first time playing in a jazz band? 

Jarek Vogt: Yeah, I never played in a jazz band before. 

Robyn Bell: Tell us about that experience. 

Jarek Vogt: So at first it was really weird. Dr. Carney is an incredible instructor, but the idea of just kinda going with it and not having like a set sheet music where you can follow was really weird to me. Cause that's how I was taught. Like you always follow the sheet music, don't go off the script. And so it was fun to be able to learn like there's a whole nother side of music that comes to really understanding like, You processed music and how you're able just to go and follow other people and not necessarily have to just look at a piece of paper and 

Robyn Bell: it's more communal.

Jarek Vogt: Yes. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. Instead of just siloed on your individual part. And so had you ever sat behind a drum set, done anything like that before? 

Jarek Vogt: I did once, but it wasn't really much is pretty much just using the kick drum snare and high hat. So I would say my knowledge and experience there was pretty limited. 

Robyn Bell: All right. Well, not now. I mean, we're in week six and a, you are a music major. You're doing all this other stuff. Is there something here at the State College of Florida Music Program that we could do better for you? Anything you need from us faculty or classes or anything? 

Jarek Vogt: Man, that's a tough question. I don't know everything has been, so like not given to me on a silver platter, but everything I need to succeed has been given to me. I think a lot of it comes down to whether I want it or not. I mean, it hasn't really been anything where I'm like, man, I wish they could do this better. It's all been like, wow, I have everything at my disposal here. It's just, what do I want to take from this? 

Robyn Bell: The state of Florida does not allow the community colleges. They have a football team, then we don't have a marching band. So that is the one experience we don't give the students. Are you missing out or are you fulfilled through your role of Venice high school working with their drum line there 

Jarek Vogt: I'm a little fulfilled. I think I finally reached the age where like I enjoy playing the drum line, but. Teaching it now it gives me a lot more excitement than actually playing it. Analogous is a whole nother 

Robyn Bell: site. And if you had to be in our drum line here, that might take away time from you working with high school students. 

Jarek Vogt: So it's a pretty big time commitment. 

Robyn Bell: Well, this really has truly been a new beginning for you as the title of our concert. Can you tell us what the jazz band is going to be playing on this concert? Because they opened the whole show. Do you know yet? 

Jarek Vogt: I think we have a few pieces. I'm not exactly sure what Dr. Carney is going for. 

Robyn Bell: You guys just had a big performance last night, so you gotta kind of read till you get two weeks. And we got to put on another show is kind of crazy. So, 

Jarek Vogt: you know, we have one piece Blackbird that worked on. He's pretty excited for the Big Band. That's like the. Positively. Sure. He's going to play with us 

Robyn Bell: almost 100%. 

Jarek Vogt: I don't want to say exactly. So if he changes it up, it's like, oh, what was he thinking? But, uh, it's, it's a fun piece. I really enjoy. It's it's a lot harder than I think the pieces we've played so far and a lot more challenge to it, but it's a really exciting and fun piece to play. 

Robyn Bell: What all percussion instruments will you be playing with the jazz band and you also play in the combo, right? So what all will you be performing? 

Jarek Vogt: Uh, so right now it varies between vibes, timbales, drum set and, or congas or miscellaneous percussion instruments that may get thrown in based off what my add to it. So 

Robyn Bell: repercussion. Yes. I want to see you back there. Shaking the tambourine Jarek. 

Jarek Vogt: Maybe this concert will do it. I don't know it could work. I mean, jazz band, anything really goes with the percussion. I feel like. So 

Robyn Bell: what's really cool about. I'm excited. I'm excited for you. It's like it opened up a whole new world for you. And I've seen just in these six weeks, you personally grow in all of those areas. So congratulations on that.

Jarek Vogt: Thank you. 

Robyn Bell: Now, Katelyn Reinschmidt, I understand your friends call you Kat. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Yes, they do. 

Robyn Bell: All right. Am I supposed to call you Kaitlin? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: No, you're allowed to call me. 

Robyn Bell: So tell us where you came from and how your life led you to SCF. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Yeah. So I was born in Georgia. I've moved around a lot 

Robyn Bell: What part of Georgia. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I was born in Cartersville. It's an hour. 

Robyn Bell: I lived in Ringgold, Georgia before I moved here. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I also lived in Decatur. 

Robyn Bell: Yes, no regular. That is so 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: cool. 

Robyn Bell: We probably shopped in the same malls. Anyway. So when you were in Georgia, were you singing at all in your schools? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I have been singing since I was in kindergarten in choirs. My parents met in college choir actually. 

Robyn Bell: Oh, how sweet. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I kind of grew up in a musical household.

Robyn Bell: Right. And what age did you move to Florida

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Okay. It was halfway through my sixth grade year. 

Robyn Bell: I was about to say you jumped right in, in middle school. Where'd you go to middle school? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I went to Venice middle. 

Robyn Bell: Okay. So you're also from the Venice area. I didn't know this. And did you jump right into the choir in middle school?

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Of course, of course. Happy place. 

Robyn Bell: And then, so then you move on to Venice High School and you're in the choir program there. What kind of stuff were you able to do? Experiences of Venice High School being in the choir. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: It was a really cool experience. I think I didn't learn as much musically as I did socially, but I was, I was the first Venice Middle School student to go to Allstate and be in the all-state choir.

Robyn Bell: The Allstate choir, that's a big deal 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: in seventh grade because that was fun. And that was my first introduction to music theory and learning how to read music, learning sort of. The more grown-up version of music. 

Robyn Bell: I was given a speech one time at a, like a media round table thing. And I finished talking and I said, I was always, are there any questions? And someone asked me, you know, what's the difference. Or someone said, one time that being a singer is easier than being an instrumentalist. And it's, you know, I wouldn't say that's true, but we like, if I, if I asked you to sing happy birthday, You could just sing happy birthday. But if I handed you a trumpet and said, play happy birthday, you need some training before you can do that. Right. And so that goes to the, sort of this idea about vocalists that you can reach a point where you can just sing along and here's how it goes a play on the piano. You just match pitches, but then when you really start to read music and understand the theory of it, that's when you're really takeoff, right?

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Yeah, no, absolutely. At the beginning, I would say vocally, it's a lot easier to sing. Just. You grew up talking, so you already know how to kind of play your instrument in a way, 

Robyn Bell: singing with the radio, 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: but diving deeper, there's so much you have to focus on and so much to learn, especially at the college level.

Robyn Bell: Yes. Yeah. And you are a second year vocal student here. You have lived through SCF music's pandemic year, and you are also part of this, really the first class that SCF music had before the Studio for the Performing Arts and after the Studio for the Performing Arts. So before we talk about what the music, the choir and chamber choir is going to sing on the New Beginnings concert. Tell us about how your music education life has changed since we've opened this new wing this year to the music building. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Well, I love the new music building. It feels very homey already, even though it's so new to us, 

Robyn Bell: it's very student centered. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: It is, it is. It's a great. To hang out as well as have accountability for practicing. So, 

Robyn Bell: because the hangout spaces, right, where all the practice rooms, right? So the practice rooms are always like pulling you. Come to me, say what the percussion studio is just right there. Yeah. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: They do. And they all have windows. So you can tell if someone else is practicing and then you feel guilty for not practicing. So it works. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. I think we planned it that way. Yes. So you find it. Practicing more with the new building. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Absolutely. 

Robyn Bell: Beautiful. Beautiful. Now, when you were graduating from Venice High School, you had lots of choices on where to go to college. Why did you choose the State College of Florida? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I'm kind of a jerk. I really didn't want to come here actually, because. I didn't like the fact that it was a two year school. I really wanted to go to university college experience. 

Robyn Bell: And that is, I think, in the back of people's minds until, you know, you get here. Right.

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Very much so. Yeah. So I also left for a mission trip. I took a gap year in between high school and college, but when I came back. Reconnected with Ms. Dickerson. And she kind of convinced me to give it a try. And of course I wanted to do music. So I figured I might as well start here and being here, I have realized how intentional all of the professors are with their students and are able to be so, because it's a smaller school.

Robyn Bell: That's right. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: The music program here is incredible. 

Robyn Bell: Oh, well it's because a great students, like you, both of you really it's, it's important because some people don't understand where he wants to go to Florida State. Right? That's the big school. And there's so many music students at Florida State that if you, as a vocalist or you as a percussionist, Jarek went to Florida State, your teacher would be like a graduate student. You would not be taking lessons with the primary vocal teacher or the primary percussionist. And you might be in the second or third choir or second or third band. You know what I mean? Because you're competing with students that are getting a master's performance degree or a doctoral performance degree, where here you are the superstars you come in as first chair, or you come in as a section leader. And, that's one of the things that makes this experience to me, very wonderful and unique for our students. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Absolutely. I've also learned a lot of leadership skills kind of been pushed into that because it wasn't my first 

Robyn Bell: that's. Right. And we're in other places you might have to wait to your third or fourth year to be in a leadership position here. It's like immediate. 

Yep. 

Yeah, that's pretty cool. And so besides you're in the choir program or you're in the chamber choir and you're in the musical theater ensemble, what other classes do you take here in the SCF Music Program? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I'm also in music theory, three Aural theory, three 

Robyn Bell: that makes my head hurt. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Sort of the third round of all the typical musical classes 

Robyn Bell: and who's your private vocal coach.

Katelyn Reinschmidt: It would be Ms. Dickerson. 

Robyn Bell: I'm sure those lessons are extraordinary every week. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: They are. She pushes me definitely beyond what I think I can do. And then I realized that I can do it if I just work for it a little bit, 

Robyn Bell: a hundred percent now, Katelyn, if you had to draw a picture of the perfect job career for you. In like 10 years, what does that look like? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: So mine is not a typical answer. Um, so with my education, I really want to go towards ethnomusicology. The study of ethnic music. I think it's fascinating, but I want to. Be able to study the music of different cultures. So less in a teaching role and more in a, life learning role.

Robyn Bell: This may be because of your mission trip experience. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Yes. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. See how that comes together. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: It does it very much. I 

Robyn Bell: Now some schools specialize in this, so do you know you're in your second year, you got to start thinking about this. Do you know where you want to transfer? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: There's a couple of schools I've been looking at Florida State does have a wonderful ethnomusicology program. There's also, the University of Hawaii. They have a wonderful ethnomusicology program and it is, 

Robyn Bell: well, isn't that convenient? It didn't. Have you ever been to Hawaii? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: I have not.

Robyn Bell: I've been to twice. Yeah. It's really nice. And my high school band, I took my high school band over there and. The college band director, at the University of Hawaii he did a clinic with my band. So it's so cool. It's a really neat school. Our cello teacher here, Ashton Chen, he's getting his doctorate at the University of Florida in ethnomusicology. So I don't know if you've looked into that program. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Well, yeah, I have a little bit, 

Robyn Bell: that's a really cool degree. I mean, you can go. It's so many different places from there. So, you're singing in the chamber choirs, we said, so tell us what's in store from the choirs on this New Beginnings concert, what are they going to be performing? 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: So each choir chamber choir and concert choir are performing two songs. Each one has a more classical, almost Renaissance style. Yes. So we're going from the old to kind of a newer song. And I know that the meanings of the songs relate to new beginnings and especially in our new choir room with the acoustics, 

Robyn Bell: as in places like singing in a church,

Katelyn Reinschmidt: it's wonderful. So definitely a new beginning for the choir and then we have a fun gospel song that we're singing as well. Let Everything That Hath Breath. So that's a wonderful, upbeat song. Rejoicing and the new start. 

Robyn Bell: Yup. And this is going to be in the Neel Performing Arts Center so far. We've had a couple of performances this year. They've all been in the Recital Hall. So this will be our first time back in the Neel. We're really excited. It's been a long time coming to prepare a concert and play for a live receptive clapping audience. I know you are both very excited about this as am I, and I want to thank you both for joining me and sharing your experiences with us. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Absolutely. 

Jarek Vogt: Thank you. 

Katelyn Reinschmidt: Thank you. 

Robyn Bell: And when we come back, we're going to hear from two more SCF music students, Jacob Wicks, and the Guitar Ensemble and Nathan Reid from the Symphonic Band back right after this break.

Robyn Bell: Welcome back to the Suncoast Culture Club. Where today we are talking to SCF Music students about their performances and our upcoming concert on Thursday, October 7th, at 7:30 PM in the Neel Performing Arts Center called New Beginnings. It features the SCF Big Band and jazz combo. The guitar ensemble the concert and chamber choirs and the symphonic band, we spoke to Jarek Vogt who plays in the big band and the symphonic band. And we spoke to Katelyn Reinschmidt who sings in the chamber choir. And now we're joined by guitarist, Jacob Wicks, who performs in the SCF guitar ensemble and tuba slash trombone player, Nathan Reid, who plays tuba in the symphonic band trombone in the jazz band and trombone in the Bradenton Symphony Orchestra. But. He has a little surprise in store for us for this concert. Both of these guys were superstars last year at SCF, as they were winners of the statewide student artists competition. And you are both also composers taking composition lessons from Rex Willis. So I feel like I'm kind of sitting here among SCF music royalty.

Nathan Reid: One could say that. 

Jacob Wicks: Yeah, 

Nathan Reid: I'm just, I'm just doing what I love. 

Robyn Bell: Well, welcome both of you back to the club. Thanks for joining me today. 

Nathan Reid: No problem. Thank you for having us. 

Robyn Bell: So Jacob, let's start with you. You are no stranger to the podcast. I interviewed you when you were a contestant in the student artists competition. And March you on the podcast when Mr. Willis did his episode for the guitar festival last year. 

Jacob Wicks: Yeah, that's right. That's right. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. So this is just old hat for you. You're like a regular 

Jacob Wicks: third one. 

Robyn Bell: You're going to start charging me pretty soon. Right? Tell us what your experiences in the SCF Music program have been like so far for you this year as compared to last year.

Jacob Wicks: Well this year, we're still mindful of COVID and all, but it seems a lot more freedom and the safe environment that we have here. Especially with the new building that's been added on, we have so much more room to go out and practice. We have the common areas and we also have our new recital hall. That's really nice. And we get the luxury of being able to go out and practice on it. If we want to. 

Robyn Bell: That's changed everything hasn't it?. 

Jacob Wicks: Yeah. It's been really nice. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. Now, In your third year with us, we do have some students that stay for a third year. And have your plans changed for your future? Since last we spoke, 

Jacob Wicks: I'm still looking into guitar performance. The main reason I'm here for my third year is to get, the credits I need for recital hour and so on. Because when I started here, I started, late. I wasn't sure if I was going to do music and 

Robyn Bell: right, you were kind of a semester behind your cohort. 

Jacob Wicks: And right. And then I started here not having any music knowledge and so on, not having played my instrument. So this, I 

Robyn Bell: look at you now. Yeah. So, that's the great thing too about the State College of Florida is. Students come in with so many dual enrollment credits that they can graduate in like a year and others, especially a few say, you know, maybe like we have a trumpet student that this is his third semester and he's decided next spring, his fourth semester, which would be his last year. He's going to be a music major. So. Starting the music curriculum from scratch in his fourth semester. So you'll be with us at third year, you know, for certain, yeah. We haven't had people stay here four years. Yeah. They don't end up with a bachelor's degree, but yet they're really good when they leave. And we should say, Jacob, I'm very proud actually to say this, you just finished your first full orchestra arrangement. I hired you to arrange that great classic tune Ring of Fire by Johnny Cash for my Pops Orchestra. So starting to make some money on these skills now, huh?

Jacob Wicks: I'm learning a lot, you know, it's, definitely not easy, but it's fun at the same time. 

Robyn Bell: You know, there's the skill of composing something from scratch and maybe. One or two instruments. And then there's the skill of take this little tune and busted out to a full symphony orchestra, 65 players and a thousand different parts. How has that challenge for you? 

Jacob Wicks: Well, the difference between composing, you know, the idea of starting from scratch and using, your imagination to create this music, whereas arranging a song, you already know, you have so much freedom and Liberty. As long as you're staying true to what the artists envisioned arranging really gives you that freedom to do what you want and make things exciting, it's great. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. It's taking someone else's idea and morphing it into your concept of it. Yeah. I wonder if, when somebody already has the original idea. There's, that added element that's taken out from like Beethoven used to really struggle to find just the themes, you know, that he wanted, he had the sketchbook and he was always going back and always going back. But when you're doing arrangements and I'm sure you both know this, there's a lot of money to be made in, arranging things for certain instrumentation. So. 

Nathan Reid: Like marching band arranging and stuff like that. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. That's a good skill. So I'm really excited to present your arrangement to our Pops Orchestra in November. They're going to, they're going to love it. I know it. I just know it. So tell us what's the SCF guitar ensemble playing for the new beginnings.

Jacob Wicks: So for our program, we are doing three pieces. The first piece on our program is called Delta by actual guitar, area performer around here, he teaches at school, the arts, Roger Hudson. He's a great guitar player. Great composer too. He's done many solo guitar compositions and ensembles and 

Robyn Bell: his daughter is a graduate of SCF music.

Jacob Wicks: That's right. Yeah. Yeah. That's right. He was with us last concert. But this piece Delta, it has like the Mississippi, 

Robyn Bell: Delta blues kind of thing. 

Jacob Wicks: Yeah. It's actually for solo guitar and the tempo, he plays it out. It's insane. It's like quarter note equals 350. We're not going that fast, but 

Robyn Bell: it's really fast.

Jacob Wicks: So yeah, it's for guitar quartet and it's, really great. And for our next piece is actually a piece I compose.

Robyn Bell: Oh, nice.

Jacob Wicks: Yeah. It's called Starlight Sailor. It has this very minimalistic, opening, and it's in six, eight, it gets into this like piratey swing, you know, when it goes into it, 

Robyn Bell: like pirates of the Caribbean kind of.

Jacob Wicks: And then for our last piece it's a little Scott Joplin, you know, it's in that style of rag time. Yeah. The ragtime it's called Champagne Rag. It's a fun little piece, nothing crazy, but it's good music 

Robyn Bell: for the concert to be called New Beginnings and to have a piece of yours being premiered new beginning. Very, very cool. I'm starting to see a theme come about here. And how's the guitar ensemble coming on. 

Jacob Wicks: They're going great. You know, we're a small group this year, but you know, we're staying strong. So 

Robyn Bell: do you like your new rehearsal? 

Jacob Wicks: Oh, I love it. Yeah. It's yeah. The acoustics are amazing, especially for guitar. It's such a quiet instrument

Robyn Bell: yes. And you're rehearsing in our new choir room, which is like a cathedral. I mean, the acoustics in there are just really nice and boomy and I imagined for the guitar ensemble, it makes you sound like there's a hundred in there, 

Jacob Wicks: especially the new recital hall. It really helps for yeah. The guitar. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. Yeah. You were really the first performer. Recital hour to play in that guitar was just beautiful. And when we used to do a manNeel, you could almost barely hear and you always needed to be mic-ed in there. It's like, perfect. 

Jacob Wicks: It's just right. It's just good enough. 

Robyn Bell: Good. When you make it big, you can donate a lot of money and we'll call it the Jacob Wicks Recital Hall. What do you think about that? 

Jacob Wicks: Yeah, just 

Robyn Bell: keep doing those arrangements. Now, Nathan Reid, you are our other student artists competition winner. From last year, you won the brass category on tuba and as a budding composer, you have taken it upon yourself to write a piece of music. So you could enter a competition here in Florida. Tell us about that. 

Nathan Reid: Yeah, sure. So I am entering a competition that the Florida Bandmasters Association is presenting to the state of Florida, which they oversee kind of all the K through 12 band events and music and that whole kind of thing in the band world. So they're trying to promote young wind band composers and holding competition, and they put out some requirements. They didn't want it to be too challenging. So they wanted a lower level piece, one to three, which means about a middle schooler early group in high school, 

Robyn Bell: ninth grade. 

Nathan Reid: Yeah, around there that could take it on. So I set out to enter it. I had. Maybe you sent that to me. Yeah. You sent that to me. Thank you. 

Robyn Bell: If you win get a percentage, you know, I'm just kidding. 

Nathan Reid: I'll donate it to the Jacob Wicks Recital Hall. 

Robyn Bell: He would appreciate 

Jacob Wicks: all the help I can get. 

Nathan Reid: So um, yeah, I set out to do it. I just wanted to pick something that would resonate with middle schoolers because I know middle schoolers can't get behind. Advanced more like, I don't know, maybe conceptual ideas regarding musics and themes and everything. So I was like, well, kids like Cowboys. So I was like, that's cool. So I just set out to write a Western theme piece. Cause I had played stuff in the past. With Western theme stuff by like Aaron Copeland and all kinds of other, likewind band composers. So I set out to do that and the most famous middle school composer really like Frank Ticheli. I'm super inspirational. I studied a lot of his scores across a week. And yeah, so I did that. And then I started writing the piece, I got a rhythm, a hook that I wanted and I finished the piece in about five hours, so, 

Robyn Bell: wow.

Nathan Reid: Yeah. 

Robyn Bell: Start to finish. 

Nathan Reid: Yeah. 

Robyn Bell: And what's it called? 

Nathan Reid: Western escapade with an exclamation point? 

Robyn Bell: Yes. We put that on the board every time with an exclamation point. And how does the main tune go 

Nathan Reid: the main theme at the beginning of the opening hook is dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, and then may have some percussion fills in the battery doing all kinds of stuff. And then we have like a heroic cowboy theme and the French horns. It's like D D D D D D. So I surrounded the whole rhythm around a rhythm. That is very good to be taught in schools that you had recommended that to me, something that can be from a music education standpoint, very beneficial across all music. So that's why I picked the D D D D 

Robyn Bell: dotted 

Nathan Reid: dotted eighth rhythm. So that's what I really focused on with the whole piece. And then once I started writing, I don't know about Jacob, but when I compose, I'll sit at the computer and write for four hours and measure and delete it and erase everything. But then if I can, if I get something I like, then it I'm just, just off to the races. 

Robyn Bell: It's very much like writing a novel or, writing an article or a paper for saying, if you have to be creative, like a blank piece of paper in front of you using movies where they have authors like in front of a typewriter and they just. Start, but then once they do same, it just rolls right out. 

Nathan Reid: Yeah. 

Robyn Bell: So for, yeah, for this competition, new sort of, you needed a recording of this and you came to me if I remember, and you said, can we record this? And I said, well, yes. I said, but let's do it one better. I said, concert coming up called New Beginnings. And this would like Jacob be a premiere. I said, why don't we put it on the concert and then you said, okay. And we start rehearsing it. And then we had another plot twist. So tell our listeners about that. 

Nathan Reid: Yeah, sure. The plot twist turned out to be very nice. I walked into your office one day and I was like, well I wrote the piece. Would you mind. Well, I may be conducted it because I want to be a band director and I plan to get my masters in conducting down the road. That that'll happen. So I really wanted to take the opportunity and learn as much as I can and get as much opportunity here SCF while I can. Because the more I learn now, the better well prepared for when I transfer and just my career in general. And you were so gracious to allow me to do. So it's been a great experience. 

Robyn Bell: So you wrote the piece and you are conducting it on this concert. 

Nathan Reid: Yes, ma'am 

Robyn Bell: very, very cool. And then spoiler alert, Jacob doesn't even know this. I am the solo slapstick player. 

Jacob Wicks: That's impressive. 

Robyn Bell: Which represents the gunshots. 

Jacob Wicks: Oh.

Robyn Bell: And I must say I'm first chair, slap sticker, 

Jacob Wicks: going to be up front.

Robyn Bell: I have to ask the conductor. 

Nathan Reid: That'd be fun. That'd be funny. It's just a slapstick concerto with band accompaniment, that'd be funny.

Robyn Bell: I'd probably mess something up. Well, what have you learned Nathan, from this experience of, conducting the symphonic band here at the State College of Florida rehearsed.

Nathan Reid: I've learned a lot already, just in the few times that I've had time with them. I'm learning stuff as a composer and as a conductor, it's kind of different. I feel like if I was rehearsing them with a piece that I didn't write, I might have a little bit of a different experience. But hearing them play something. I have such an exact vision of what I want it to sound like in my head that sometimes I feel like it acts as an obstacle because it allows me to get hung up on stuff. As far as when we're rehearsing, but it's been a great experience overall, even from like, you know, a music ed perspective, which is what I want to go into getting tips from you on conducting and things to say and things not to say. And just how you handle it. It's a lot Different. It's easy to sit in the back row with a tuba and count rest and watch a conductor. But when you get on the podium and you're put in that, and you have a million things going on, at least as a tuba player, it's like the complete opposite. 

Robyn Bell: Yeah. You got to keep the train on the track or else you get a big train wreck.

Nathan Reid: Yeah.

Robyn Bell: Jacob with your piece that you're playing and that you wrote that the guitar ensemble is playing there's no conductors. You don't have that experience yet, right? 

Jacob Wicks: No. 

Robyn Bell: Maybe you write a piece with a band and we'll let you conduct. 

Jacob Wicks: Yeah, maybe uh, no. The thing with guitar music is like, especially an ensemble. It's a chamber group. Right. You know, usually you get to the point where you wrote these groups, you don't really need a conductor. Cause it's yeah, there's four of us, you know, as long as we can hear each other, it's falling but conducting, like, if it's like a full guitar orchestra, you know, that's different obviously.

Robyn Bell: Right. 

Jacob Wicks: You have like 50 people. But especially when it's like your own piece and you're just not bringing it to your group to play it. And, like Nathan was saying, you have these things envisioned on how you want to hear it. And then now you're hearing it for the first time how these players are doing it, 

Robyn Bell: like a lab situation where it's your piece and in. In his situation, he's actually conducting it, but it is a back and forth with the players that are right in front of you, which is not going to be typical. You both know this, the rest of your career, you write something you handed off and then you're kind of at the mercy of whatever ensemble is going to perform it. This is an unusual situation. Yeah. Well, I have to say, I'm very excited to hear your piece, Nathan, as you know, you're doing, I tell you you're doing a great job and it's been very rewarding to watch you grow as a composer and a conductor through this process. And I know you, you're going to be transferring out of here, going to graduate in the spring. Where are you looking to go to school next year? 

Nathan Reid: Um, The University of Florida recently. Yes, go Gators. I was up there recently. On a tour up there and shadowing one of their music.ed students. And it was a great experience. So I'm looking at other places still, I'm going to apply to other places. You always have to have backups for your backups for your backups, but yeah, the University of Florida, I think that's looking good. And I was just going to point out too. It's weird to see how similar. Jacob and I's paths are, even though we're kind of on different ends of like the music world with the whole band thing and the whole guitar thing. Cause like we both have a presentation coming up at the New College premiering music that we had wrote with the Music and Monologue thing that we did program here. And then we're also the music theory tutors for SCF. So we get scholarships for that. So like everything that competition and everything.

Robyn Bell: Jacob's head stage crew and Nathan, your head usher. Yeah. So yeah, that's really something to think about. We ought to put a tuba in Jacob's lap. See what he does there.

Nathan Reid: I can play Smoke on the Water on 

Robyn Bell: that's all it takes you're in. You should be in the guitar ensemble. Well, we should also say in addition to Western Escapade, the Symphonic Bands, other Piece on this New Beginnings concert is a premiere of a piece we commissioned called Shifting Seas. It is by a composer, Zach Friedland, and he wrote the piece to paint a musical portrait of the beauty and diversity of the. Ocean's something that we hear on the Suncoast coast of Florida, know a lot about the many musical themes and the piece represent different aspects of the ocean. There's a theme for the coastline. There's a theme for like deep water, open ocean. There's a theme for Marine life. And then there's a fourth theme for the coral reefs and all the life that lies beneath it. He wrote the piece in celebrating. 50th anniversary of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. And we've had a wonderful time and the symphonic band learning it and putting all the themes together. And so along with Nathan's premiere and the premiere of this piece, truly Symphonic Band, this is new beginnings, and in taking that a step further and Nathan, this. First time conducting a concert band. 

Nathan Reid: Yeah. 

Robyn Bell: So total new beginnings. I'm very excited about this and Jacob and Nathan has been wonderful talking to you two today. Thanks for helping me spread the word about this fantastic concert that is SCF Music programs, Fall Festival of Music called New Beginnings on Thursday, October 7th at 7:30 PM. It's in the Neel Performing Arts Center and you can. Tickets and come and sit in the seats. You can get your scf.edu/neel that's N E E L. And you just click buy tickets and they'll show up right on your phone. It's kind of nice. And if you can't get them a beforehand, you can come on the evening on the show at the door, 45 minutes before the performance and get your ticket there. So we hope to see you all there because we haven't seen you in a year. So come out and enjoy these fine students and the incredible music making on so many levels. Jacob and Nathan. Thank you both. 

Jacob Wicks: Thank you. 

Nathan Reid: Thank you for having us.