Wind Musicians at Brentwood

Brentwood is a community that not only promotes acceleration in academics and athletics, but equally in our staggering arts program. One fundamental performing art is our Wind Ensemble. Our ingenious conductor, Mr. Clausen, focuses on challenging students to hone new skill sets and go beyond their limits. At the beginning of the year, we initially practiced for our Winter performances “Christmas Sketches” and “ A Christmas Carol”, which was conducted by Ms Katherine Als who joined Mr. Clausen this year to aid him in perfecting the band. We are currently preparing our festival music as we travel to various schools and attend festivals at Whistler later in the spring. Buchannon F, Rogers ‘22 exclaimed, “ This arts class has been one of the greatest experiences in years”. It is really rewarding to work with the amazing musicians I met this year. We have a diversity of backgrounds and began the year playing together as a band and learned the importance of each member and how they contribute to the tone quality of the group. From music I have learned how to play with emotion, feel with the heart, and, ultimately, learn that it is okay to make mistakes, because as Mr. Clausen states “Trying is all I can ask for.” I have been a part of the band for two years and have truly enjoyed the rhythm of music in my life through this class. We feel that arts such as Wind Ensemble provides a melodious balance to our Brentwood careers. Areeb S, Rogers ‘20