Post by blankcheck on Jul 6, 2009 8:23:50 GMT -6
Football season is still a good six weeks away and the Metea Valley Mustangs Marching Band already has mastered the fight song.
Not bad for a group of young high school students that was assembled less than a month ago.
For Music Director and Fine Arts Chairman Don Devany, learning the fight song was the first of many milestones he's looking forward to as the new Indian Prairie Unit District 204 high school prepares to open in mid-August along Eola Road in Aurora.
Devany's task is straightforward but incredibly complex: Build the department from the ground up with an inaugural class consisting of sophomores who have transferred from Waubonsie Valley High School and freshmen.
Metea won't house any juniors until its second year of operation and there won't be any seniors until its third.
"We're excited about how unique we're going to be, having so many different people coming from different places," Devany said. "We have all these different experiences and we're bringing them together to make a new program."
In the process, of course, Devany, the teachers and the students will be making Metea history every step of the way.
"We'll always be the first to do these things and we're setting the standard for future Mustang musicians," he said. "That's cool."
Sophomore chorus member Erin Calhoun initially was sad to leave the Waubonsie music program but is now excited to be a part of building the new culture at Metea.
"Chorus is so intimate and packed with a lot of diversity," she said. "It's really cool that we'll be able to form our own bonds using a little of what each of us brings to the chorus and pick and choose what works for us."
Devany joined the district's Neuqua Valley High School Music Department in 2008 after 10 years at Glenbard East in Lombard. He taught symphonic winds, music theory, symphonic band, marching band and jazz ensemble and then applied for the Metea position, looking for another challenge.
"I've got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to help students build from the very beginning and watch them grow," he said. "So we've assembled a great team around me and I couldn't be more excited."
Along with former Waubonsie Valley band director Glenn Schneider, Devany added Nathan Bramstedt from Crone Middle School and Mark Liu from Waubonsie to oversee the chorus and orchestra sections respectively.
With staff in place, Devany turned his attention to "the little things."
"You look around and realize these kids are all going to need this and that and the things we take for granted," he said, "You know, we need to design uniforms, create a banner for the marching band and things like that."
He's going to have quite a few students to prepare for. Devany said enrollment numbers already show a need to fill three band, three orchestra and four choir classes. So far there are 140 students enrolled in band, 135 in choir, 95 in orchestra and 60 in the marching band.
Many of those students were recruited last year from their middle schools or at Waubonsie by Devany and his staff.
"Those are great numbers to start out with," he said. "We're going to be in really good shape."
Nevertheless, all those students are underclassmen - and that's not something lost on anyone involved.
Incoming sophomore Jonathan Lee plays the violin in the orchestra and says he'll miss the upperclassmen.
"Musicwise, there's no upperclassmen to help us and guide us," Lee said. "My initial reaction was that the program would be weaker and we'd have to work hard to make up for that, but the talent is definitely here."
No matter the age of the students, Devany said his staff will set high standards, as if every group was a senior-level ensemble.
"We're setting the bar so when it comes to putting Metea Valley music on the map, our kids can stand up against anybody," he said. "Our sophomores may as well be seniors."
For the first few years, however, the groups will stick to playing local festivals, parades and home football games.
"I really want our co-curricular groups to focus on the school and the Metea community and building a name for themselves in that regard," Devany said. "That's how you get invited to play places, by building your reputation and character as a solid program."
They'll gain character on Day One, having to practice in less than ideal conditions for several months. The music wing at Metea won't be open until February, leaving the choirs, bands and orchestras to rehearse in empty lecture halls and any other space they can find.
For Devany, that's just one more hurdle and one more milestone as he grooms Metea's maestros for greatness.
"All of the groups are going to be outstanding with each student having a well-rounded music education," he said. "Ultimately the legacy of Metea music will be students who leave high school with an appreciation for good music."
