As part of my transition to a new high school in my district, I had the great opportunity to request new musical instruments for my school. Some of the instruments were taken from other schools across the district, but a larger number of instruments are brand new- pretty exciting for my students when they will see the band room for the first time!
Here are some tips if you have to go through a public bidding for new instruments or equipment:
1. Order the equipment you need. You will be able to build trust with your administrators if you can take a realistic look at the needs of your program, rather than shooting for the stars to try to get every item that you want for your program in the next ten years. If you request far more than you need, you run the risk of administrators not understanding which items are a priority, and which ones can be saved for later. Remember that the money to pay for these musical instruments comes from taxpayers; we want to be responsible and diligent with the money that has been allotted to us. The other extreme of this situation is not ordering enough equipment to be sustainable for a clear direction in your program. You are the expert when it comes to the needs of your program; make sure that you have a specific plan for current instruments as well as future requisitions.
2. Some times you may have a dollar amount to work with, other times, you may not. Administrators may have a variety of reasons for why they choose to keep dollar amounts to themselves, but if possible, request to know the financial situation of your school district and how much they have budgeted for your program. Ultimately, this will help you make the most financially responsible decisions. The amount available to you will affect the quantity of instruments, the quality of instruments, and the variety of instruments that you may choose. Purchasing a few, high quality instruments will be able to retain value more so than several cheap instruments. But if you are expanding or starting a new program, you might not have a choice about the kinds of instruments that you need. Having a budget in mind will help you make realistic decisions.
3. Plan for the long-term. While the immediate needs of your program are most imminent, you’ll also want to think about the bigger picture goals and estimated retention of your program. By meeting with the middle school teachers that feed into our high school program, we were able to compare instrumentation, students involved in band, class sizes, and current retention in order to help formulate a retention model for the future. This helped me figure out which instruments I really needed, i.e. I should expect x amount of euphonium players each year, and should order x amount of euphoniums to meet this need. Without planning for the future, a person may end up purchasing several instruments that are only needed for a single year, and collect dust for several years to come. If you have a larger school district, see if you can share instruments between buildings for “outlier” years when you have a disproportionate instrumentation.
4. Be very clear about the model numbers for instruments. Often times, since schools go through a public bidding process, you may never have direct contact with the vendors that will sell you your instruments. Keep your eyes open for model numbers that don’t quite make sense. One saxophone I almost ordered had a slightly incorrect model number, i.e. ABCD-BL, where the BL stood for “black lacquer” even though the picture and description of the instrument listed did not mention black lacquer. If you are using a large distributor like WoodwindBrasswind, be aware that some of their model numbers are unique to their company. Many percussion items I ordered started with “KIT,” which referred to their packaging of a percussion item with a stand. Other companies can offer the exact same product, though they aren’t listed together with the “KIT” model number.
Ordering instruments for a new school, an expanding program, or simply to replace older instruments can be an exciting but tedious process. Make sure that you foster connections with other music educators and performers who have experience with the equipment that you are considering. I found it especially helpful to get second opinions, cross-referencing collegiate specialists (with great expertise in their specific instruments) with public school music educators (who are in the trenches and understand the fiscal realities and needs of school programs). Making smart decisions about purchasing musical instruments can be a very rewarding experience as an educator, knowing that you were able to provide your students with quality equipment to enhance student learning.
Musical Instruments. [Online image] Available http://www.canadatop.com/uploads/keyword_204.jpg, April 25, 2010.
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