Marsalis Presents Award at Carnegie Hall

On March 11, 2011 on the great stage at Carnegie Hall, five exceptional music teachers accepted much applause and gratitude. The 9th Annual Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation Award was presented to each of them with a check for $10,000 and our deep thanks for their service to their students and to their profession.

Presenting the award, a gentleman who personifies musical excellence: Wynton Marsalis. Artistic Director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, a Pulitzer Prize and Grammy Award- winning composer, an educator and a tireless advocate for the arts, Mr. Marsalis spoke these words before introducing the awardees.

“Thank ya’ll very much.  It’s a great pleasure to be here on behalf of band directors, music teachers. 

They are artists; they are tremendous trumpet players that know how to finger a clarinet. 

They are psychological concierges; they know how to help you get over the fact that you’re not first chair.  They know how to teach you how to get along with your neighbor who can play better than you.  They know how to console you when you’ve messed up the one solo you had and you worked on it for an entire year. 

They are politicians they know how to deal with the politics of parents and the school administration. 

They know first aid, you mess your lip up, hey we’ve got to play this concert tonight put some of this on it, you’re gonna be alright. 

They are spiritual advisers, you have some type of deep problem you don’t want to talk to anybody about they are there for you. 

They are coaches.  They know how to put teams together.   They know how to get us all to work. 

They are surrogate parents.  They give you love.  They show you respect and they show you how to respect.  They get up early in the morning.  Many times they have to have classes before school starts, classes after school.  They deal with an unspeakable cultural ignorance…unspeakable.  And they do the work.  They get all the parental permission slips to take 40 kids, 30 kids, 50 miles away to see a concert and then stand for 2 hours after that concert for someone to sign autographs and talk to their kids. 

They raise money.  They are business people they know how to rent equipment, get free equipment for students, and above all they love their students.  They love our way of life.  They love us and they deserve to be respected. 

It is such a deep and profound honor for me to stand on this great stage and introduce this year's recipients of Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation Award and present each of them with a check for $10,000.  It is so richly deserved.”

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