Student Ensembles Rock Campus

 Jennifer Conlee, co-news editor

There are many reasons why students from all over the world decide to come to SPC to pursue an education.  One of the top reasons is for the school’s highly-revered commercial music program.

The Creative Arts Building houses this program, and it is one of the most popular hangouts for SPC students, even those who are not commercial music students.  The hallways are always full of musicians playing guitars, singing, and having a good time.

SPC’s Creative Arts Department offers several programs to help aspiring musicians reach their goals.  The ensemble program, which gives students a chance to experience playing in real bands, is one of the most popular offerings for commercial music students.

According to Scott Faris, one of the college’s commercial music instructors, the ensembles vary from rock, R & B, metal and jazz to country, western swing, bluegrass, worship and contemporary Christian music.

“We have two types of ensembles,” said Faris.  “There are the regular ones, which anyone can be in, and the audition ensembles.”

There are many regular ensembles, which count as two credit hours for the students.

 “The only requirement is that the students are in a private lesson for the instrument that they are playing,” said Faris. 

There are a few audition ensembles.  Thursday Night Live, which is directed by Cary Banks, is one of the most popular ensembles.  This group performs country music, but incorporates a little rock into its live, televised performances, which are usually on the first Thursday of each month.

Other televised ensembles include Country Jukebox, directed by Rusty Hudelson, and Pickin’ on the Plains, a bluegrass ensemble directed by Al Munde.

The touring ensemble is directed by Jay Lemon.  This group performs a mix of music styles, and travels to different high schools to showcase SPC’s ensembles.  The touring ensemble plays at events such as career days, and it performs several genres of music for the high school students.

The last audition ensemble is Faris’s own, Alterna TV.  This televised rock concert specializes in different types of rock music, such as Indie, modern, classic, and metal.

“These bands are really amazing,” said Faris.  “There is so much talent.”

These different ensembles are created to appeal to several types of musicians who perform for the audiences who enjoy them.

Students who play in the ensembles greatly enjoy them as well.

D’Etta Brown, a member of Alterna TV, said, “The most fun thing [of being in ensembles] is getting to combine everyone’s musical background and creating our own fusion with it.”

Faris also mentioned that auditions for these bands are held on the second school day of each semester, and they last about six hours.  Each director is responsible for choosing the best players for each particular ensemble.

“In any training to be a musician, learning to play with others is one of the most important skills you can have,” said Faris.

That is the purpose of these ensembles, helping musicians hone their skills.

“Some of the benefits of being in ensembles are getting to know some different people and finding bands I would never have given a second thought to,” said Brown.  “I get to learn from the professor and other students, and get good, honest critiques on what I’m doing wrong and what I’m doing right.”

The ensembles practice consistently to keep their skills sharp.  Some famous musicians got their start playing in SPC’s ensembles. Among these are country stars Leann Womack and Natalie Maines, along with Dan Bletz, a member of Biscuit Burners, a rising bluegrass band which recently stopped at SPC on their national tour. 

 “If you want to be a rock guitar player, you have to be in a band,” said Faris. “No ifs, ands, or buts about it.  We give these students real world experience.”

Indeed they do.