How Quincy band program got $65,000 in new musical instruments

Keyboards, guitars, amplifiers, alto and soprano saxophones, a stage piano, percussion – even a gong.

These are just some of the 36 brand new musical instruments valued at over $65,000 in all, which were just donated to Quincy’s middle school band program by Ernie Boch Jr.’s Music Drives Us, a nonprofit supporting emerging artists and music education throughout New England established in 2006.

Young musicians crowded into Point Webster Middle School‘s gymnasium on Tuesday, Sept. 9, to see the new instruments after a brief ceremony attended by Mayor Thomas Koch, Superintendent Kevin Mulvey, Assistant Superintendent Erin Perkins and representatives of Music Drives Us.

Also in attendance was Point Webster’s band instructor, Chuck Wilson. Under his leadership, the school’s music program has exploded from just 13 students in 2015 to 85 today.

The young musicians clearly appreciate the soft-spoken Wilson. After polite clapping for the mayor and other school official, the 60 or so middle-schoolers burst into a thunderous ovation at their maestro’s name.

“A lot these kids won’t play the flute or clarinet for life,” Wilson said. “But they’ll always have an appreciation for music that they’ll carry through their whole lives as a result of this program.”

The gift will help the band programs at Quincy’s five middle schools grow even larger, Wilson said, allowing the district to lend out more horns, woodwinds and strings to those who can’t afford them. That’s music to Wilson’s ears, especially given Point Webster’s high percentage of low-income families.

The donation, which includes a stage piano, makes a significant addition to the district’s stock of about 175 musical instruments, many of which show signs of heavy use and even rust, Wilson said.

“Some of them are older than I am,” he said.

Spreading musical education and access to instruments is the main goal of Music Drives Us, according to the nonprofit’s program coordinator, Jacyn Tremblay.

A talented soul and jazz singer who has performed at Boston Symphony Hall, Tremblay said music education goes beyond pitch, tempo and deciphering sheet music. For building confidence, teamwork and creativity, music education is instrumental, she said.

“We are on a crusade to keep music in schools,” Tremblay said.

Students at Point Webster were singing the same tune as Tremblay. Sixth-grade saxophonist Lucas Ooi said his musical training gives him confidence and motivation.

“When I play a song just right, it’s like, Yo! I did it!” Lucas said. “Let’s do this! Let’s go the next level!”

Lucas wasn’t the only one amped up about the new gear. After the short ceremony, students jumped off the bleachers to explore the instruments laid out on the gymnasium floor.

As they gathered around bulking timpani, shiny new brass and a beautiful electric jazz guitar, a group of boys and girls began to improvise using hand drums and the large gong.

One tapped out a drum beat. Others chanted in unison, gradually increasing the volume as the beat quickened in tempo. When the beat and chant reached a climax, another student stood ready to strike the gong with a mallet at just the right time.