As part of the new archive several people asked me to write a bit of the history of CMAS as part of things and so I thought I would include some of it here. The entire story is on the new site, along with a lot of recordings and videos, and, if you get a chance, we'd love to know what you think. So check it out at:
ex.susd.org/rmaxwell
A History of the Arcadia CMAS program
(as told by Richard Maxwell, CMAS creator/facilitator - October, 2010)
In the Fall of 1999 I came to Arcadia to be the school's new Band director. For years I had worked as a gigging musician/recording "studio rat," and at that time had been out of school, teaching, for about a year and a half, having completed my second Master's degree, at the University of Arizona in conducting.
I have a great love for classical music, and still write for symphony orchestra and clinic whenever I am able, and I recall many conversations with Greg Hanson at the University of Arizona about how all music can be viable, regardless of the genre. Greg's attitude was just one of several pivotal influences informing my own, personal, musical philosophy - but his was the most potent, because, as I would later come to realize, his was the farthest reaching. To be fair, there were others along the way (Heineman, Vroman, Kaizer and Sanders, etc. at Bradley; Gage at Youngstown; Metzger, Beeler, and Wagner at Sycamore) but I am not sure I was ready back then to really appreciate the true depth of either their expertise or experience at the time. I mention all this, not so much out of false modesty, but rather because, taken all together, they had a huge impact on how CMAS would ultimately be designed. In a very real sense, the true "Father of CMAS" is Greg, and all the others.
Anyway, it has always struck me odd that pursuing "current" musical trends is generally treated as counter to academic musical pursuits. The lack of legitimacy that it can be given is even further confusing, at least to me, when you consider the fact that all the great and lasting music throughout history was composed by musicians who were - every one of them, I would argue - very forward thinking.
By definition, "Bach, Beethoven, and the boys" were all writing "Pop" music. The goal for them was not just similar, but identical, to the goal of today's musicians working in the "current" scene. Somewhere along the line though, music education in schools, for the most part, seems to have lost sight of this. There are exceptions, certainly, but on the whole, the more "modern" classes (ie. Guitar, History of Rock 'n' Roll, etc.) are treated as throw-away classes. Frequently offered to a school's music teacher simply as a way to allow them a contract that keeps them at the same school for the entire day.
I know this to be true if only because in preparing for my second year at Arcadia, I benefitted from just such a scenario. Jim Lee, the principal of Arcadia at the time, came to me late in my first year and asked me, given my "outside" musical experience in studios and such, if I would be interesting in taking over the guitar class the following year. I accepted, and that is very much were CMAS began.
I took the guitar class very seriously. (Perhaps, to some, too seriously?) In any case, I wanted to make the experience more about music fundamentals rather than just a class kids could "hang out and sometimes jam" in. I had a lot of real-world experience, and I felt that it was important to relate that experience to the educational opportunity provided to the students. My idea was that if we used the students' interest in current musical styles as a way to get them to refine their skills legitimately through music theory and such, we might, eventually create something that was really viable both musically and educationally. To say nothing of being able to reach more students with music than I could as only the band teacher...
read the rest here: ex.susd.org/rmaxwell
