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Musical Instruments??? (Only the best at our Magnet School)

The Christmas Concert presented by the MHMS Instrumental Music Department on Tuesday, December 7 was full of surprises. Not the least of which was the novelty selection "Christmas in the Kitchen" played by the 6th/7th Grade Band. March Martin and Michael Ponce, outdid themselves with their featured part of this selection. March, who typically plays mallets in the 6th/7th grade band's percussion section, played three glasses filled with varying amounts of water to produce different pitches. He played them to perfection with a metal triangle beater. Michael, who typically plays snare drums and accessories in the 6th/7th grade band's percussion section, played three pots of different sizes which he struck with a plastic mallet. They are both first year band students. Michael is in 6th grade, and March is a 7th grader. "Christmas in the Kitchen" was a first for MHMS concerts, but it promises to be a favorite tradition as a novelty piece for years to come. This feature captured the attention and produced delight among concert goers, particularly Michael's grandparents who had traveled all the way from New Jersey. Michael and March each contributed enjoyment and enthusiasm to this feature, which was exactly what was needed. Thanks to the talent and fun personalities of this pair and the entire 6th and 7th grade band, Mr. Clark said they brought it off like pros.

Post Concert Partying

Mr. Clark enjoys the post concert reception just as much as his students. Pictured standing left to right are Mr. Clark and Hunter Nielsen. Seated left to right are Michael Ponce and Dylan Carpenter. The Annual Christmas Concert featured selections by the Strings Ensemble, the SURPRISE performance by "Jazz Actuality", 6th/7th Grade Band, and the 8th Grade/High School Symphonic Wind Ensemble. The concert culminated with a rousing audience sing-along of holiday favorites.

Student Spotlight

John Clinton is the Featured Student this month. Each month we have a website contest to generate interest and readership of our Instrumental Music Program's website, www.mhmsrocks.com, and the winning student's photo and an article written about them is featured on our website's homepage

John is a 9th grader at MHMS, and he is a talented musician as well as an accomplished athlete. His family follows him around the county and the country to watch his soccer tournaments and cross country meets. When his sport is in season, it's difficult to find the Clinton family at home. But John had somehow found the time to study piano and become quite accomplished at that instrument before he was actually "discovered" by the MHMS Instrumental Program. When our program graduated the pianists who had been in the Strings Ensemble and in the Jazz Band since the school began, John was waiting in the wings to take their bench at the ivories. He has not been a disappointment to anyone. John is also an excellent French horn player making 1st chair, Silver Band for Midstate this year. When the strings practice on Tuesday mornings at 7:15 AM, he's there. When the Jazz Band practices until 4 PM on Thursday afternoon, he's there. When the Symphonic Wind Ensemble practices at 7:15 AM on Thursday mornings, John is there. And now that "Jazz Actuality" has formed, he's there for that, too.

When your web writer asked John a few questions, she learned he is clever and witty as well. When picturing a hypothetical situation of a band class in a zoo (so what's hypothetical about that?) John had no problems whatsoever. He said, "Mr. Clark would be Brown Bear (that plays brass instruments in a circus). Joseph would be a very loud dog that sticks his head out the window all the time and has his own dog goggles to deflect projectiles. Garrett is obvious-he's a spiratic hyperactive monkey (maybe a spidermonkey). Then there's Kara, a meerkat like the ones in whack a mole where they disappear in one spot and pop up in another teamed with her buddy Calli who would be a Flying Squirrel that can really fly not just glide. And what about Abbie? A Lemur and Chris would be a sifaka, the animal that nobody knows what it is until you show them and they're like OH! ZOBOOMAFOO. Anyone else? Brionna, of course, and she'd be a bird that lives in a palm tree." Where is John in this hypothetical zoo? Ironically John didn't name himself, but this writer having grown up in the dark ages of Captain Kangaroo knows the answer. He'd be a horse? Right, no, no, no; he'd be a horse in striped pajamas, that's who. A zebra, I see.

You can find John almost any day with his buddies from MHMS. He hangs mostly with Garrett, Joseph, Chase, David, Noah, Chris, Cody, Tanner, and Jeffrey and when they hang out, anything can happen. John finds his fun wherever he is. He says running, soccer, listening to music, and being outside are his favorite pastimes with friends. He quotes Tucker Cowden when he makes his wishes known for MHMS; "Actual sports fields not just "a front yard that we happen to play sports in" or John says the band kid's answer would be "it would be cool to have a state of the art band room..." No, John, you only get extra credit for saying it would be the coolest ever to have a state of the art AUDITORIUM WITH A REAL STAGE!

On the more serious side, John was asked to name who in his life had influenced him the most. He was very thoughtful when he answered, "I wouldn't say there is one specific person, but teachers and instructors have all taught me different values and life lessons." It's difficult to stay serious with this guy for long. I had to ask, " People say that your dog is a mirror image of you (like the big burly bouncer guy who owns a great big flat faced bull dog). If you have or had a dog, how would it mirror you?" And his answer was, "Ok, my dog is a friendly, spiratic, hyperactive, fun-loving, sock-stealing ball of energy and I think that kind of mirrors me (except for the socks..)" Well as long as we were back on the goof ball side again, I just had to ask my favorite interview question. Imagine Mr. Clark a fruit or vegetable. What would it be and why? Potato or ear of corn (wearing sunglasses), I don't really know why. Potato John; an ear of corn has those curly tassels on top of its head!

Trying once again to steer John back onto the straight and narrow, I asked what does music mean in his life. He said, " I would be a lot emptier if there were no music, and math homework would be particularly boring to do to without music." John has one musical wish that hasn't yet been fulfilled with Mr. Clark's groups. John would like to play "Free Bird" with the Jazz Ensemble. I'm betting that's going to happen.

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