Michelle Leigh Maury's Profile

Yesterday.
I am from Albuquerque, New Mexico. I began playing the clarinet when I was 8 years old. Through out my education, music always played a prominent role in my life. I used to tell everyone that if it weren't for band, I would have quit school in middle school (As though my parents would have let me!)

Today.
Currently I teach elementary music in Tacoma WA, and I must admit...I have the best job ever. Each day, I go to school and am responsible for making sure that my students love music. I dance, sing, drum, play xylophone, recorders and the piano nearly every day. My days are busy. I generally teach eight classes a day. When I go home though, I never doubt that I have the best job in the world.

One Day.

I have been dreaming of becoming a band director from the time I was 10 years old. I love instrumental music, and while it may sound crazy, I love all of the problems associated with adolescence. I love the rebellion, the drama, and the cathartic moments when students figure out that they must know more than their teachers.

I believe with all of my heart that instrumental music is a perfect thing for many teenagers. I think that sometimes we all need something to hit, and I feel that a drumming is a productive way to do that. I believe that all emotion, especially violent emotion can be made into something beautiful when you channel it into music. I believe that music can make people check their differences at the door, and come together for a higher purpose. To me, a trumpet or a clarinet holds as much power as a well placed bit of propaganda.

I feel that these instruments of such power should be in the hand of anyone who wants them. A band director's job is not just to teach music, but to convince the world that we need it...every day.

One day, I hope to become a great one.

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