In a house where the mother is an elementary school music teacher and the daughter, now 17, has been playing the violin since she was 3 years old, the importance of music can often come up as a topic of conversation.

Elizabeth Tober, a junior at La Plata High School, and her mom, Catrina, a music teacher at Billingsley, T.C. Martin, Dr. Samuel A. Mudd and Mary B. Neal elementary schools, were discussing how disappointing it is to find out younger students lost interest in or quit playing an instrument once they reached middle or high school.

“[My mom] was saying ‘It’s such a shame that a lot of my kids haven’t continued with music,” Tober recalled. “I said, ‘Maybe we should show them what music looks like in high school.’”

From that, the Music Mentors program was born.

Tober talked with La Plata’s principal, Douglass Dolan, to get his thoughts on the program. If Tober could get some friends from band and orchestra interested, could they visit feeder elementary and middle schools to show younger music students the benefits of continuing to play an instrument? Dolan gave the thumbs up and Tober headed to La Plata’s summer band camp to drum up support.

La Plata music teacher Wes Harler agreed to be the club’s sponsor and Tober started pitching the Music Mentors idea to other students. “We have really great musicians at this school, so I put up a sign and a bunch of people gave me their email addresses,” she said.

Elias Alicea Jr., a senior at La Plata, was on board. “I thought it was a cool idea,” Alicea, a percussionist, said. “A lot of students at La Plata will do anything when it comes to music.”

Tober, who La Plata’s liaison to the Board of Education of Charles County, connected with Andrew Blumhardt, a Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) fine and performing arts content specialist, who helped coordinate the visits and transportation.

The plan was to visit the feeder schools — Dr. Thomas L. Higdon, Mary H. Matula and Walter J. Mitchell elementary schools and Piccowaxen and Milton M. Somers middle schools — four times a year or once a quarter, but snow put a crimp in that this year, and the trips were cut down to three visits. There was also the dynamic schedules of high school students to contend with, Tober said. “It is hard to get high school kids to commit but so many are willing to sacrifice to be part of the program,” she said.  

Recently, the group stopped by Higdon, Piccowaxen and Somers. At Higdon, where fifth graders are just starting to play instruments, the La Plata students showed off their skills and led small group workshops, while at the middle school level they sat among the students and joined in practice. Alex High, a Piccowaxen seventh grader, said he enjoys when the La Plata students visit. “You hear how the music ‘should’ sound,” he said.

“Seeing high school musicians who have developed their skills through years of practice can help younger students envision their own potential and recognize the benefits of sticking with their instrument,” Blumhardt said.

High, who choose to play the trumpet because “I liked the noise it makes,” said he would like to continue playing as he finishes up middle school and heads to high school.

The band plays on
Enrollment in band, orchestra and chorus programs across CCPS dips once students reach high school. This year, there are 679 elementary, 953 middle and 382 high school students in band; 397 elementary, 997 middle and 405 high school students are in chorus with orchestra enrollment at 431 elementary school students, 633 middle school and 287 high school students.

Blumhardt pointed to several factors that students face when deciding to continue with or move on from the performing arts once in high school. “After giving it a chance, they may find it’s not for them,” he said. “Limited elective slots sometimes force students to choose between music and other interests [and] as students get older, their priorities shift, and some opt out of music to pursue other extracurricular activities.”

Yet for some high school students, music remains a constant. Tober and her friends in band and orchestra share a connection. “Music is just really important to me. When I surround myself with other musicians, it feels right,” Tober said. “I feel myself relating to them more.”

Music also widens the scope of a student’s world and can usher in unique opportunities.

Outside of La Plata, Tober takes part in other musical outlets. She plays in the American Youth Philharmonic Orchestra which meets on Mondays in Annandale, Va., and performs throughout the year. She is also in the Harmony String Quartet, a local foursome made up of Tober, Maurice J. McDonough High School students Zachary McKay, a sophomore, and Janiya Davis, a freshman, and Jocelyn Burns, a junior at Henry E. Lackey High School.

As a junior, Tober is preparing for the next step after graduation. A member of La Plata’s Mock Trial team, she is interested in studying law at college and ultimately working for the Innocence Project. But music will not be forgotten. She plans to continue giving violin lessons and taking them. “Practice is the most important thing a musician can do,” she said. “That’s really what we want to teach the kids. We want to share with them our experience so they can be prepared in advance.”

Tober said she would like to see a program like Music Mentors launching at other CCPS high schools to benefit younger musicians. “There is definitely potential to expand the Music Mentors programs to other schools,” Blumhardt said.

About CCPS

Charles County Public Schools provides 28,162 students in grades prekindergarten through 12 with an academically challenging education. Located in Southern Maryland, Charles County Public Schools has 38 schools that offer a technologically advanced, progressive and high quality education that builds character, equips for leadership and prepares students for life, careers and higher education.

The Charles County public school system does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age or disability in its programs, activities or employment practices. For inquiries, please contact Dr. Mike Blanchard, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (students) or Nikial M. Majors, Title IX/ADA/Section 504 Coordinator (employees/ adults), at Charles County Public Schools, Jesse L. Starkey Administration Building, P.O. Box 2770, La Plata, MD 20646; 301-932-6610/301-870-3814. For special accommodations call 301-934-7230 or TDD 1-800-735-2258 two weeks prior to the event.  CCPS provides nondiscriminatory equal access to school facilities in accordance with its Use of Facilities rules to designated youth groups (including, but not limited to, the Boy Scouts).