A good day...

We had a slow week overall... two of my teachers are off performing with the Chicago Symphony this week, and between them they've got about 60 students. But this morning made up for the off week with the business.

My 10am student, Nicholas H., has been with me for about 4 years. Started off as your typical aspiring rock guitarist, learning lots of Metallica and other heavier stuff. Then last fall he came in and said he wanted to try out for the school jazz band (he's in 8th grade). The auditions were that week; he had all of 3 days to prepare.

That got me nervous. He'd never played a major 7th chord in his life... and up to that point I held a perfect record: every student I've ever had who's auditioned for a school jazz band has made it. So we crammed on the things he was likely to see on the audition charts, and I cautioned him to not get his hopes up - there were several guitarists up for the one spot in the band.

Well, he made it in (and kept my record intact). In the months since then he's done a lot of hard work, and he's become pretty competent finding his way around altered dominant chords, soloing with various scales, etc. We've worked through some of the standards, and he's come a long way.

This morning he came in with a guitar in one hand and a gold medal in the other - his school jazz band won the local competition, beating about 30 other schools, and they're now on their way to regionals. If they win there, they'll go to state.

And if they happen to win there... it means our little school will have produced the #1 elementary school band jazz guitarist in Illinois - for two years in a row, as our student Chris L. won that honor last year! :)

Keep your fingers crossed!