Why do we pay a DJ hundreds of dollars to play canned music at a school dance when we have talented students who would play for pizza?
Many educators have taken advantage of a renewed interest in social dancing. David Mills and his colleagues at Neighborhood Music School are reconnecting dance and live music by creating a dance orchestra that can provide stylized music according to the dancers’ terms. With representation from each of the instrument families, The NDO can perform with just these six essential instruments: violin, alto sax, euphonium (or other low brass), guitar, bass and drums. (A variety of other instruments can be added.) Below are some computer playback samples of the dance scores: The intention is that each arrangement can be played by good, high school musicians with plenty of room for virtuosity in the improvisation sections. No conductor is necessary, so a school could have varsity and junior varsity dance orchestras, and the students might find themselves performing every weekend rather than just the occasional recital or school concert.
Music is not an end product, it is a form of communication. As such, it transcends language