Saint John School Advances Band Program

WAUNAKEE, Wis. - April 7, 2014 - PRLog -- Saint John the Baptist Catholic School has announced a partnership with the Overture Band Program to further advance their music curriculum.  The Overture Band Program will provide the opportunity for students to participate in band as early as 4th grade in the upcoming 2014-2015 school year.

Conni Stark, principal at Saint John School, is excited for the change, “Providing the children with an opportunity to participate in band earlier in their elementary cognitive learning will provide a greater appreciation for music that will benefit them across other subject matters as they progress academically.”  The VH1 Save the Music Foundation shared information to support that message in their “Building Your Instrumental Music Program” document featuring a statement from “The Music in Our Minds,” by Norman M. Weinberger.

In that statement, Mr. Weinberger communicates that, “Learning and performing music actually exercise the brain – not merely by developing specific music skills, but also by strengthening the synapses between brain cells…What is important is not how well a student plays but rather the simultaneous engagement of senses, muscles, and intellect. Brain scans taken during musical performances show that virtually the entire cerebral cortex is active while musicians are playing. Can you think of better exercise for the mind/brain? In short, making music actively engages the brain synapses, and there is good reason to believe that it increases the brain’s capacity by increasing the strengths of connections among neurons.”

The director of the Overture Band Program, Nadine Kerl, will be coordinating the implementation of the program with a parent meeting at the school on April 15 at 6:30 p.m.  “Providing instrumental music education is our passion and we look forward to using our expertise to help Saint John School students advance their musical talents,” comments Nadine.

“We are an expanding Catholic school in a growing community so continuing to offer advanced programs, such as the Overture Band Program, will help us scale to meet the needs of the community,” says Conni.  Saint John School will be transitioning to the Overture Band Program ending an affiliation with the Waunakee school district, who provided the school’s past band program.  Conni also said, “We are grateful for the school district helping our students with band in years past and we feel our children are ready for further development and earlier exposure to music and band.”