The Impact of Great Opportunities by Bailey

The Impact of Great Opportunities by Bailey - December 2019 Scholarship Essay

When I was in the fourth grade, I played my first instrument - the flute. It took a couple of tries to really be able to get a few notes out, but I fell in love with the instrument, and music in general, in that moment. When I went into the sixth grade, I joined the High School Marching Band because they were in need of more band kids. Joining the marching band led me into joining concert band and from then on, I've received amazing opportunities. I've been directed toward paths that have helped me to be where I am today and I've made friends that are more like family who've also taken part in helping me become the person I am today.
The first opportunity that I got was concert band. From preforming well in the marching band, the band director allowed me to be the first sixth grader to join the concert band and that meant that I could play with the band at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (ULL). Ever since then, I always played with the high school band all the way up till now, my senior year, whereas it will be my last performance. By playing at ULL, I've been allowed to meet professors from all across Louisiana and some who even come from the surrounding states and these professors gave me tips to better my playing to help make a future for myself. Out of all of these professors though, I met the head of the music department at ULL.
By the time I was in eighth grade, my band director told me that the head of the music department at ULL had been watching my performances and I had the opportunity to go to ULL on a band scholarship that would cover the fall semester. My eighth grade year was also the year that I was chosen by band directors to go play with the Parish Honor Band without having to try out. I played in Parish Honor Band ever since then and it helps me to meet new band directors and get good advice about my future. Another great opportunity that band has given me is when we go to ULL to host a class for the students training to be a music professor. We put on something called "clinical class" where we demonstrate warm-ups and certain songs. This class is a great time to be able to have one-on-one conversations with professors that specialize in your instrument.
Lastly, the people I've become friends with in band have helped me through a lot and I can only thank being in band for that, because without band, I probably wouldn't have met these people. They have been here to experience the great opportunities with me and have impacted my life in ways that no other can imagine. They helped me to achieve what I have achieved in band and I've done the same thing for them. Out of all the things I've done in school, band was the most efficient and something that I will never, ever regret doing because of all of the amazing opportunities it has given me and the way it has impacted my life.