Guide
Blind and low vision students in marching band and music classes
Students sharing their tips and experiences about marching band and music classes.
“Music is not what I do, it’s who I am.” This rings true for many students who are blind or low vision – music is life!
Recently there have been a number of questions about tips on how support blind and low vision students in marching band. Let’s hear from the musicians themselves!
Macy, a senior studying music at the University of Arkansas and a vlogger for Challenge Solutions, recently released the video, “All the question you had about studying music as a blind person”.
Macy’s Video:
A frequent Paths to Technology blogger on P2T and her own website, Veroniiiica, Veronica is currently working on her M.Ed in Curriculum and Instruction: Concentration in Assistive Technology at George Mason University. Veronica has a number of great posts about participating in band with low vision.
- How I play in GMU Green Machine/pep band with low vision
- Marching band and low vision
- Considerations for writing marching band drills for low vision students
- Concert band and low vision
- Adapting band uniforms for photosensitivity and sensory overload
- Options for watching the conductor with low vision
- My large print music binder
- Tips for reading music on an iPad with low vision
- How to make music accessible with PowerPoint
- How to modify an instrument fingering chart for low vision
- Why I chose the clarinet as a musician with low vision
- Requesting extracurricular accommodations
Another blogger on Paths to Technology, CWhodat, shares her experiences of band in K12 and marching band her freshman year of college in her post, The power of music and persistence.
As a high school student, Kendra composes, writes lyrics, sings and plays a variety of instruments and has recorded albums. This post, Learning about Kendra: Video, was written by Kendra’s father and includes a video of 16 year old Kendra.
Are you a student musician? Please share your tips and music experiences with us at [email protected]!
Connecting with other musicians
Jay Pocknell (also a low-vision musician himself) from the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) in the UK runs a website called Sound without Sight. It is a relatively new platform and community hub to support, promote and connect blind and partially sighted musicians and audio engineers. They have monthly online meetings and welcome musicians to join in!
By Diane Brauner
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