In a normal year, the New Albany Winds would be in the midst of its 2020-2021 season, but this is of course no normal year. The community band has paused operations because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The local nonprofit usually performs in late September through mid-June, but because of the virus, the NA Winds has gone quiet. The group began in 2007 as an outlet for adult musicians to continue to perform and to give high school band members the opportunity to play alongside adult community members.
As the band develops plans in response to the pandemic, Darren Falk, a co-director of the band, says a community band is essential to provide people a way to play a musical instrument after high school and college.
“Music is something you can do for a lifetime,” he says.
Playing a musical instrument can be good for your brain, too, Falk adds, because it engages the behavioral, affective and cognitive aspects, and in comparison with sports, playing a musical instrument doesn’t wear out the body as much.
“It does the body good,” Falk says.
The NA Winds is open to all ages from high school students to members who play into their 70s and older. The band’s repertoire of instruments include flutes, oboes, bassoons, clarinets, trumpets and percussion.
“We have a mix of experience levels,” Falk says.
The NA Winds has performed at a variety of events and venues in central Ohio including Concert of the Commons at New Albany High School and Night Moves at the Jeanne B. McCoy Community Center for the Arts.
While COVID-19 may have changed its season this year, the NA Winds is used to change. Falk, who is the director of bands at NAHS, originally founded the organization as the New Albany Community
Band for students who wanted to continue playing their instruments after graduating. The organization changed its name to NA Winds to be more contemporary, Falk says.
In addition, the band started out as one of the programs of the now defunct New Albany Arts Council. After the arts council disbanded, NA Winds became its own nonprofit organization with its own board of directors. It’s one of the few arts council programs to continue.
Falk says starting under the arts council’s umbrella gave the NA Winds a solid foundation to grow because it handled mostly the administrative work and established the member base. While the administrative structure has changed, Falk says, not much has changed for the band itself, except growth.
When the band started, for instance, it had about 30 to 35 members, but has increased steadily over the years, Falk says.
The band has been unable to host virtual rehearsals as not everyone has the technology to participate and coordination is difficult, Falk says.
The now 50-plus member band may perform in smaller groups and in outdoor settings in the near future, he adds.
For now, however, they wait.
Brandon Klein is the editor. Feedback welcome at bklein@cityscenemediagroup.com.
