Ridgefield Public School Music Teacher Sees What It’s Like on the Other Side of the Baton

“Don’t forget to be awesome,” reads the sign in Hilary Brown’s East Ridge Middle School music classroom, where she stands giving a percussion lesson to a group of eight sixth-graders. “We’re piloting a new initiative this year,” explains Brown after class.

Every six days, sixth-grade students in band and orchestra at both East Ridge and Scotts Ridge have small group lessons where they can focus on their instruments. “It’s something we’ve been talking about doing for a long time, and we’ve managed to schedule it so students don’t miss their other classes too frequently,” she continues, “about once every twenty-four days.”

Brown is the 2022 RPS Teacher of the Year and offers a unique perspective on music at the Middle School level. “Playing music at this age is not necessarily about students becoming musicians when they grow up. Playing music touches on all aspects of our vision of the RPS Graduate. Grit. Determination. It is so good for the brain. It connects synapses on the right half of the brain with the left half.”

Brown describes the wide variety of abilities of her students—from beginners to accomplished musicians—who all need to play together. “I’m not as much focused on the benchmark but on where they were and how far they’ve come.” She encourages parents to help their students find places to practice where they can play without being afraid of making a mistake or bothering family members. “Brain science reinforces the concept of smaller bits of regular practice being better for maintaining muscle memory so it’s preferable for students to practice a little every day than long stretches once a week,” says Brown.

When her younger son went off to college, Brown joined a Wind Ensemble in Sleepy Hollow with some very talented musicians. “It’s good for me to be on the other side of the baton. I can see what’s effective and what’s annoying. It makes me practice better and become a better conductor for my students.” Brown is always thinking about what will make the experience better for her students. They started “Bucket Drumming” last year because it was harder to sing and play wind instruments during the pandemic. She still uses them as a special treat or when introducing new rhythm concepts.

She says, “if I’ve learned anything this year, it’s ‘everything is in pencil.’”