I had my first experience in band in the 5th grade. I played trombone. I don’t remember why I played trombone. It wasn’t like I wanted to play the trombone. I remember that the trombone that I played was provided by the school. I don’t think I was never excited about the trombone, but I didn’t dislike it either. When I was in 5th grade, I still had the same teacher all day instead of changing classes. It seems like band was something thrown in at an odd time of day and not on a regular schedule. It seemed like a half-hearted attempt at starting an elementary school band program.
It was my first real attempt at reading music in a real way. But I was only bass clef, so my ability was limited. As with any beginning band program, I was learning songs like Hot Cross Buns and Go Tell Aunt Rhody. I never progressed that far and for unknown reasons, I didn’t continue with band in the 6th grade. I would not return to band until the summer between 7th and 8th grade. And that’s when I began to play alto saxophone. Without a need to read music, I lost any skill in this area that I developed.