“ Band is going kind of fine this year. However, it is different from previous years since we aren’t playing together as a band at all, and we don’t really play many band pieces, but rather independent ones. I do not enjoy online classes in music because it is nice to have people around you to cooperate with and work together to play music or finish assignments. In previous years, we have played independent music pieces as assignments to turn in, and we also use apps such as BandLab (online sheet music writing app) to make music. In previous years we would still play together as a band once in a while, while we can’t do that online. Instead, we don’t play pieces that require a whole band to play, but rather pieces that just one person needs to play. We sometimes go into breakout groups and work on assignments together but the band teachers have made fewer assignments that include group interaction, and they have not been giving any pieces for us to play together as a band. Now, there are assignments that include improvisation, and creating music in BandLab. 

I looked most forward to creating music with the app BandLab that he has provided for us. This has not changed because of the pandemic, since we still do this a lot. I do miss performing at concerts.and I’m not aware of any virtual concerts we might be having. We use about half of the time for synchronous learning. Then, he lets us off for another half of asynchronous learning. I play the piano and flute And I have been practicing some pieces of music, which are quite difficult. I do find it a bit more difficult to improve while distance learning because I can’t interact with my teacher so often, and I can’t improve my ability to play together with the band at all.”

Arhan Padmanabh

“The hardest parts about playing the guitar is making your fingers flexible enough to reach all the strings and learning how to switch between chords quickly but the easiest part is learning how to play individual chords. Whenever I feel stressed about school/college deadlines, I take a break and try learning new songs on my guitar. While playing guitar in person will always be better, Mr. Anaya has come up with various ways to help us learn in a more collaborative environment. I think that it has somewhat slowed us down but overall it has actually been much better for learning. I feel that Mr. Anaya can pay attention to students by using the breakout rooms. Oftentimes, he puts the students in groups of 4, and lets them practice by themselves while periodically visiting the groups and checking on everyone. This has been extremely helpful, and I think it might be a better method than in-person schooling. 

Sometimes, when I have to complete assignments for the class, I would zoom call my classmates after school, and we would work on the assignments together. Although the assignments are relatively short, the calls allow me to keep in touch with my friends as I was looking forward to chilling with “da bois” during lunch and advisory sessions. Fortunately, I am still able to hang out with them through zoom. I plan on continuing to play the guitar after high school because it is a healthy distraction for me, and it helps make me less stressed.”

Rishabh Pandey

Interview by Tanmay Lakhotia