Now You’re Playing Our Tune: The Ferndale Community Concert Band
Story & photos by Kevin Alan Lamb
FEW MONTHS PASS WITHOUT DISCOVERING something new in Ferndale. Did you know that there is a Ferndale Community Concert Band? The FCCB was founded in 2015 as the result of the efforts made by the Ferndale Arts and Cultural Commission, who issued a community survey to find out what residents wanted when it came to fine arts.
Surveys revealed a desire for visual and performing arts. Sharon Chess and Timothy Brennan were appointed to follow up. They issued another survey to determine the genre of performing arts desired. A band emerged as the favorite choice. A Facebook page appeared in February 2015 seeking volunteers, and 104 interested musicians came forward.
Next, Mark Haas, retired Director of Music for Cass Technical High School, paved the path for longtime friend Ed Quick to become conductor. Quick taught music for 30 years, 29 in the Detroit Public Schools where he developed prolific band programs. At the Detroit School of Arts he erected a program that received national and international acclaim. Quick was the assistant band director for the Musical Youth International Band on their 1986 tour of the Far East. That organization also honored him for his efforts to involve talented minority students in their own world musical tours. He received the “Spirit of Detroit” award twice from the Detroit City Council and in 1996 was selected as a “Teacher of the Year” by Newsweek and WDIV-TV.
An illustrious career has been complemented by a busy retirement, as Quick remains active in the music community. He regularly works with area high school ensembles and adjudicates for Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association festivals. Additionally, he is the Director of the New Horizons Band program at the new MSU Community Music School-Detroit.
Yet even with the conductor’s active role, he made time for a Q&A with Ferndale Friends.
Ferndale Friends: What are you most excited for on the 2016 event calendar?
Ed Quick: The FCCB’S April 3, 2016 Concert collaboration with Ms. Ava Ordman, Professor of Trombone at Michigan State University. She will be our featured soloist. On that program, the band will feature Hector Berlioz’s masterwork for band, the Grande Symphonie Funerale et Triomphe, which is rarely performed. Ms. Ordman will be featured, not only on a solo with the band, but also on the second movement of the symphony which features solo trombone.
FF: What are three things people probably don’t know about The Ferndale Community Concert Band?
EQ: One… The band is made up of people from all over the metropolitan area. Members come from Detroit, St. Clair Shores, Roseville, Grosse Pointe, Highland, Farmington Hills, Dearborn, West Bloomfield, Macomb Township, and Monroe, in addition to Ferndale.
Two… The band has been in existence less than a year, but has already earned a reputation for quality. They have been selected as a featured ensemble for the Motor City Brass Band Annual Festival of Bands. This event brings together each year several of Michigan’s best Community Bands for a collaborative concert each April. The April 10, 2016 Festival of Bands event will be held at the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center in Dearborn.
Three… The community band has a large contingent of music educators and active performers in its ranks.
FF: Please elaborate on the significance of performing arts in a community.
EQ: The arts humanize the community, and give us inspiration and opportunities to connect as people. It is the face and fiber of a community, and a source of pride.
FF: Could you imagine a better community for a concert band?
EQ: Ferndale is a perfect place for successful community music ensembles. The Ferndale Public Schools have had superior arts education in place for decades, and the community places great value on this. To have an adult band is a natural extension of the Ferndale performing arts programs. Additionally, the diversity of the city’s population makes Ferndale a very education in place for decades, and the community places great value on this. To have an adult band is a natural extension of the Ferndale performing arts programs. Additionally, the diversity of the city’s population makes Ferndale a very creative place for the arts to flourish.
As the director of the band, I believe that Ferndale should have a community-based music school that would offer music education focused on adults that would include not only the Ferndale Community Concert Band, but a community orchestra, jazz band, and chorus. Even more important, it would include the New Horizons International Music model. New Horizons Music programs provide entry points to music making for adults, including those with no musical experience at all. Many adults would like an opportunity to learn music in a group setting similar to that offered in schools, but the last entry point in most cases was elementary school. This model is highly successful and is used worldwide. Having a program like this would allow all adults to be involved in the arts!
FF: Who is your dream collaboration?
EQ: Northshore Concert Band. The FCCB is modeled after this prestigious band, celebrating their 60th anniversary season in 2016!”
FF: How may someone become a member of the band?
EQ: Qualifications include a high level of playing proficiency. Technical abilities (scales, arpeggios, intervals, rudiments, etc.) advanced rhythms and time signatures, sight-reading skills and the ability to work out individual parts without supervision. If qualified candidates play an instrument that has a full section, they may be placed on a substitute/waiting list, if they desire.The Ferndale Community Concert Band’s next performance is February 21 at the Ferndale High School Auditorium. Admission is free, with a suggested donation at the doors of $3 per person and $5 per family.
How to follow the band:
Website: www.fcconcertband.org
Contact: fcconcertband@gmail.com
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/ferndalecommunityconcertband
Special thanks to Mr. Roger Smith, former band director and current Principal of Ferndale High School, Mr. Elon Jamison, Director of Bands at FHS, and Tim Burke, Director of Music for Ferndale Middle School. Both have helped permit the use of Ferndales spacious facilities for rehearsals and concert venue. Mr. Jamison has also serves as guest conductor in the absence of Mr. Quick.
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