In CVMS, there are two electives where you can get to learn an instrument: Band, and Orchestra. A band is mainly comprised of woodwind, brass, and percussion instruments. An orchestra is comprised of string instruments. Each has different components. They both require hours of dedication and practice for attaining perfection. In the context of school, to attain good grades.

Why do we have the instruments offered to us though? What makes these instruments important? What good does it do to spend all those hours playing an instrument? All those questions shall be answered in this article.

The first instrument we would have played in school would most likely have been the recorder. The recorder was a great instrument, which was usually made out of wood and was very old. It was as old as Western-notated music. This instrument was later degraded and mass produced and put into public schools for learning. The person largely responsible for this was Carl Orff. He was a German conductor.

The idea behind learning the recorder was that it improved rhythm. It was speculated that it made you smarter. Middle School and high School band and orchestra is just a step up from this. The idea that it made you smarter was not tested until much later than the introduction of the recorder in public schools. It is shown that playing an instrument increases your IQ by 7 points.

The instruments are offered to us because it makes us smarter. It improves our sense of rhythm and improves our ability to multitask. The point of having instruments offered to us is that it just makes us cognitively more capable. It is shown that people in band or orchestra do better in all subjects.

In my fair opinion, I would say that instruments are a vital part of the public school system. They serve a good purpose and also, they are just plain fun.