May 21, 2003
Students compose patriotic music
Musicians use Preamble to the Constitution as source of inspiration
By Carol South
Herald contributing writer
Putting pen to paper, some area music students tapped a vein of patriotism and creativity by composing music for one of the country's most important documents: the Preamble to the Constitution.
Starting with the words, "We the People of the United States_" violin, viola and piano students of Heather Ann Alpin searched for the notes, tempo and mood appropriate for these words. The students created music ranging from marches to ballads to upbeat tunes, each striving to convey what those words meant to them.
"Composing for me, and it sounds like for most of us here, is a emotional can opener," said Amelia Shugar, 14, a homeschooled student from Bellaire. "It's a lot easier to put emotions into words and when writing, I just thought how blessed we are to have these words to lean on."
Some of Alpin's students worked with other patriotic words while one seven-year-old student, Corey Thayer, wrote and scored an original song called "Eagles, Fireworks and Flags."
Composing while Operation Iraqi Freedom was taking place, these students found their voice in music.
"When I was writing, I just thought of the people in the service and the people who have died or the people who have not seen their families for a while," said Catlin Orschel, 12, a seventh-grade student at Cherryland Middle School in Elk Rapids. "When I wrote it I kind of thought of the people who fought for our freedom."
"People like us kids don't know how veterans or prisoners of war feel, but after reading the Preamble, it gives us a different outlook," she noted.
Natasha Bailey found inspiration from her father, who was serving in Saudi Arabia when she was born 12 years ago.
"I liked the theme, liked that we expressed how we feel," said the sixth-grade student at the Seventh Day Adventist Church and School.
Bailey's sister, Brittany, 9, wanted her composition to help balance the daily dose of scary or negative news and images.
"What helped me to make my music is that I thought when you watch TV it talks about the war," said Brittany Bailey, a third-grade student at the Seventh Day Adventist Church and School. "It doesn't make me feel very good. When the war was over, I wanted to make it very happy. I wrote a lighter song,"
Alpin has been a private music teacher for 11 years. She regularly incorporates music composition in her students' lessons and also holds an Annual Composer's Showcase where students perform their works. This year, the second year of the showcase, Alpin chose a theme and challenged her students with the words of the country's founders.
She was stunned and inspired by the works.
"I am extremely proud of the students and it is nice to see them doing something to give back to the community," said Alpin, owner of Illusionary Sounds Music Studio for 11 years. "Not only do they get a sense of what patriotism is but what's patriotism means to them."
"Music is so expressive, that's why it is so important," she said. "The students know what's going on, they watch TV and hear about it in school."
Natalia LaLonde, an eighth-grade student at East Junior High, drew her inspiration from the past. When composing her music, she did not think of the ongoing war in Iraq but instead turned her thoughts to the country's founding.
"I was thinking of how the country started," LaLonde said. "When I wrote it, it was more like a ballad. It had to be emotional, I put in climactic points because when our country started, they had points like that and downfalls."