Music of Andrew F. Poor

The Pack Mindset Keys to Understanding Team Dynamics  " For the  strength   of   the   Pack  is the Wolf, and the  strength  of the Wolf is the  Pack ." ― Rudyard Kipling.    Inside the ancient parts of our brain, we are wired to mirror the other members of our pack. Our fight/flight/freeze instincts are connected to this innate awareness of our surroundings. Ever notice one person yawns, and you suddenly have an uncontrollable urge to yawn. If I am whispering to you, it would seem exceptionally odd to yell back at me. We see somebody in danger and panicked, and our instinct is to quickly move to help them. Our mirror instincts are at play when we get into an argument, and it quickly escalates. The inverse is also true. When upset, a calming and reassuring voice can quickly change our mood. These reactions are a part of this instinct, which have helped our packs survive and thrive over millennia.  This instinct is unive...

"Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything. "  —   George Bernhard Shaw "If there is no struggle, there is no progress." —   Frederick Douglas "There is nothing permanent except change." —   Heraclitus "Change is hard because people overestimate the value of what they have—and underestimate the value of what they may gain by giving that up." — James Belasco and Ralph Stayer "The only easy day was yesterday." —  Navy SEAL motto Growing up as the son of an Air Force officer, I moved a lot as a young child. Matter of fact, I moved eight times before I was 15. At the time, it was often difficult to leave friends, start new schools, move to a new house, and learn new routines. As a young child, my only option was to accept these changes and make the most of every situation. The reality of change was an inevitability I knew all too well. Every ...

Introduction Here is an overview of some concepts I have found to be helpful when starting beginning brass players. During the first year of study, I start students on all five primary brass instruments--trumpet, horn, trombone, euphonium, and tuba--and we start on these instruments from the beginning of the year. Currently, our classes at South Forsyth Middle School are in homogeneous groups by instrument family; brass in one class, woodwinds in the other and percussion evenly divided between the two classes. NOTE:  I have used these same techniques in heterogeneously grouped classes, but the instructional pace is much slower in this grouping.  Helping the Students Select the Correct Instrument Helping your students select an instrument that matches both their interests and aptitudes is an essential prerequisite to their future success in music. This process may be even more important for students selecting an instrument from the brass family of instrumen...

(This article originally appeared in a newsletter for the Spirit Summer Music Camps in April of 2009) They don't care how much you know, until... I am sure you can finish the phrase. This oft used quote has been attributed to Teddy Roosevelt, but this phrase is much more profound  then cliché in our profession. When many programs are shrinking, and recruiting and retention is an on-going concern for music educators, let me suggest a small idea that may make a big difference. As a good friend, and great band director, Alfred Watkins once told me, “You cannot teach empty chairs.”  FULL CIRCLE 2014 South Forsyth Middle School Symphonic Band performing at the Southeastern United States Honor Band and Clinic at Troy University.  My first band (Beaumont Middle School) I ever took to Festival, now called Music Performance Assessment in 1989 It was early in my career when I had a guest clinician, who was a local band director of an excellent b...

Heart and Home  was composed in January of 2015 and is dedicated to my father, William Poor, who is a proud native Kentuckian. This original lyrical work, for grade 2 bands, was written in a folk song style. The work was premiered by the South Forsyth Middle School Symphonic Band on May 11, 2015. For a score sample: http://barnhouse.com/~barnhous/samples/pdf/024-4391-00.pdf

Over the next month, there are several exciting events that will be happening with my music. On May 8, my new work, March of the Lava Fields, published by Northeastern Music Publications is being premiered by the Forsyth County 6th Grade Honor Band at Piney Grove Middle School (Cumming, Georgia), Dr. Steven Tyndall, conducting. On May 11 , my newest piece with Barnhouse, Heart and Home, will be premiered by the South Forsyth Middle School Symphonic Band. This piece is dedicated to my father, William Poor, and he will be in attendance at the premiere. On May 15-16 , I will be traveling to Hattiesburg, Mississippi, to work with the Oak Grove High School Marching Band as they begin their 2015 marching band season. From May 23-May31 , I will be traveling to Rockford, Illinois, to work with the musicians of the Phantom Regiment as they begin to prepare for their 2015 summer tour performing their production, Paris: City of Gold!