This episode is a practical conversation about how band directors choose repertoire that fits their students, their instrumentation, and their audience. Rick Schwartz is joined by Cooking With Valve Oil, aka Mr. Morgan, and Megan Vinther to break down how they balance educational value, enjoyment, and realistic rehearsal time when programming concert music.

In this episode, Rick Schwartz introduces the topic of repertoire selection as the ongoing challenge of finding music that is challenging, playable, and enjoyable for students.

Megan Vinther shares that her first question is always what her students need skill-wise and where she wants them to grow by the end of the year.

Mr. Morgan explains that having both middle school and high school bands gives him a long-view approach, letting him think about what the students have already done and where they are headed next.

Instrumentation comes up as a major factor, especially in schools with unusual or incomplete sections, and all three agree that arrangers and directors often have to rewrite or adapt parts.

Megan describes using score study and sight-reading to see whether a piece is actually balanced, especially when one section has more exposed or difficult material than the others.

Mr. Morgan and Rick both describe adding or rewriting parts for missing instruments, including horns, oboe, bassoon, percussion, and even piano.

The episode closes with a discussion of how important it is to keep buying new music, while also digging into older repertoire and library gems that may still be great teaching pieces.

Sponsors:

Sightreadingfactory.com

https://geni.us/bettersaxclassicsax

Thebandblueprint.net

Timestamps

00:00 - Opening gag and why choosing repertoire is so hard

04:51 - Sight-reading as a way to test difficulty and student interest

06:18 - Knowing your audience and what parents will respond to

09:04 - Does instrumentation influence repertoire choices

11:14 - Strong sections versus missing color instruments

13:15 - Rewriting parts for strong players and unusual personnel

16:11 - When and how often they rewrite or modify parts

18:28 - Rewriting concert band and orchestra music for combined concerts

21:21 - Rebuilding percussion parts when a section is too large or unbalanced

23:44 - Writing extra parts in orchestra and mixed ensemble settings

26:51 - Why Mr. Morgan opposes forced themes

29:44 - Holiday concerts, Krampus, and avoiding a dark seasonal vibe

32:38 - Using repertoire to reinforce tone, air, and fundamentals

34:21 - Event-based themes versus overly conceptual concert themes

36:39 - Limited Hanukkah repertoire and rotation of strong existing pieces

40:29 - Why a piece can be fun without being filler

43:50 - A program note project that lets students write about the music they love

46:20 - Why a whole concert cannot be all grade 4 and 5 music

50:28 - Warning signs that a piece is too easy

53:36 - Programming easier in the fall and building difficulty through the year

56:21 - Easy music can still teach tone, phrase, and intonation

58:12 - Planning concerts around what the ensemble needs to succeed

61:34 - Common mistakes: overprogramming and selfish programming

64:34 - Underprogramming and not trusting the ensemble enough

67:22 - Using concert preparation knowledge from marching season

68:51 - A student-requested Omar Thomas piece that grew into a strong performance

70:46 - Searching for new music by listening passively and building a purchase list

73:01 - New composers writing directly for current music education practice

76:03 - Do not buy everything just because it is on a list

78:18 - Final recommendations: what to program now

78:32 - Mr. Morgan’s picks: Sunbloom and The Summoning

79:31 - Megan’s picks: Country Club Stomp and Shine On Me

80:46 - Rick’s personal recommendation: Havana Knights and its sequel

81:39 - Closing thoughts on choosing music that students will enjoy

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