#9: Matthew Potter - Chaska, MN

The Band Director's Lounge Podcast

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The conversation today is with my good friend Matthew Potter who teaches middle school band in Chaska, MN. Matt has a lot of great insight for how to lead a band program at the middle school level. In our conversation today we get into the details of how Matt structures his lesson program and co-curricular offerings. In addition Matt talks about what it's like to teach at a middle school in a large school district and the ways he and his colleagues bridge music students together between buildings. There is a lot that we cover so I hope that if any of this interests you, that you will tune in!

Episode Overview

• Why MS Band? (3:00)
• Middle School Band and the Chaska ISD (4:10)
• Middle School Lesson and Band Program (9:00)
• Teaching, Fixing, and Handling it All (26:25)
• Multi-school Co-Curriculars (33:50)
• Unique Offerings in Chaska (38:10)
• “Friday Fun” (41:00)
• Favorite MS Band Pieces (44:20)
• Advice for Young Directors (48:05)
• What Makes a Great Band Program? (49:30)

That was my conversation with Matt Potter.

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Other Resources

• Matt Potter (Guest)
• Logan Burnside (Show Host)
• http://thebanddirectorslounge.com (Podcast Website)
• https://www.facebook.com/TheBandDirectorsLounge/ (FB Website)
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