Create a Booster Club to Support Your Student Jazz Band

Introduction

Is there an excellent Jazz band at your school that has continued to struggle even though they have immense talent? Perhaps they lack proper instruments, promotions and / or additional learning opportunities. Well your school Jazz band is not the only one facing these uphill battles. Every school has amazing talent in niche focuses like Jazz band, but due to tightened budgets, schools generally do not have enough funds to support these smaller groups properly. Instead of letting your school Jazz band and the talented students who participate fade away, consider stepping up to create a Student Jazz Band booster club. A Jazz band booster club is probably the best way to support the students interested in studying and playing Jazz in all of the different ways it needs help.

A Booster Clubs Can Fundraise For Your Student Jazz Band

If you create a student Jazz Band booster club the first purpose of any non-profit booster club is to support the goals and needs of the activity it was created to support. Running a school jazz band is composed of many moving parts that will make it successful. Almost all of these moving parts require a continuous supply of funds, which is where your Student Jazz Band booster club comes into play. With the help of its booster club, the Student Jazz Band now has a mechanism to raise enough funds to support new instrument purchases, extra instruction, special trips and more! Here are some of the more important specific Jazz Band needs that could be fulfilled with the help your Student Jazz Band booster club.

Buy Instruments for Your School Jazz Band

One of the most important and expensive items that the Jazz Band members need fairly regularly are high quality Jazz instruments. In many cases, School Jazz Bands are making use of old instruments that can be broken and hard to use. The lower quality of the instruments directly impacts students’ ability to play well. When purchasing musical instruments for your school Jazz band, always consider the band’s specific needs. For reference here are some musical instruments and related items that are generally needed:

1. Any needed musical Jazz instruments.
2. Performance Equipment including: Speakers, wires, sound boards and microphones
3. Additional specialized instruments and electrified instruments
4. Proper musical Instrument storage

Support Jazz Related Trips Through Your Student Jazz Band Booster Club

It is essential for any student of music, including members of the Jazz Band, to experience different types of concert trip, Jazz related events and Jazz band competitions. From being in the audience during performances to by chance meeting professional Jazz musicians, these experience help build and influence each student’s day to day practice and performances. Supporting that increased exposure and interaction within the Jazz community not only impacts Jazz students but also helps keep Jazz alive as an art form.

A secondary impact of increasing the students’ exposure within the Jazz community through special trips is that reciprocally – the Jazz community itself becomes more aware of the school student Jazz band. As the Jazz Band becomes known in Jazz circles, the Jazz community will be more likely to step up and support the school band as well as help increase the overall visibility of the student Jazz Band throughout the area community.

Unfortunately even the smallest trips have costs attached to them. Whether it is as simple as gas for the car or as complicated as plane tickets, accommodation and food – every Student Jazz Band trip needs monetary support. Your Student Jazz Band booster club would help fill this critical void common for many Jazz Bands. With a solid strategy and cooperation between the school, jazz band and the booster club, your student Jazz Band could have the money to be able to participate in international contests, major Jazz concerts and events and other special travel opportunities.

Get Additional Instruction From Jazz experts

Another huge impact on any music student is having the chance to gain special instruction from music professionals. This is no different for those studying Jazz. Bringing a working professional in periodically for specialized instruction will help students in the Jazz band gain new tricks and skills. The issue here as always is that bringing in a working professional (expert) has a cost attached to it. To remedy the expenses associated with bringing in special instructors, your Student Jazz Band booster club can raise the necessary funds to cover those costs. And while the cost might seem high in some cases, keep in mind that not only does this have a massive impact on the students, but it also increases the profile of the your student jazz band within your local community and the Jazz community.

Organize Student Jazz Concerts to Increase Visibility

While we have been focusing on ways to positively impact the student Jazz Band by spending money, there are also ways to positively impact the band that can raise money for it! As with all other types of music, bands gain fans and popularity by regularly performing live. Not only do live performances engage current fans of the Jazz Band, but it helps increase the fan base exponentially. This happens by people attending the concerts on a whim, or by the student Jazz band participating in a larger concert where they are one pf many bands on the bill. Another way performing increases your Jazz Band’s fan base is through people posting the band’s live performances on social media.

While organizing a concert on your own can be expensive, there are a number of ways your Jazz Band Booster Club can keep the expenses to a minimum.

1. Hold your concert on school premises – this will eliminate the cost of a venue
2. Work to have the Jazz Band open for local or touring music groups in your area
3. Consider partnering with local business, perhaps restaurants to provide some music at their establishment
   

By setting up a regular performance schedule throughout your community, your student Jazz Band should see an increase in fans and its overall profile. On top of that, if your Booster Club charges for tickets or the band collects tips when playing out in the community, your Jazz Band could actually raise money to help fund its other activities and opportunities.

A Student Jazz Band Booster Club Can Support Special Recording Sessions 

One final way that your Booster club can support the student Jazz Band is through organizing special recording sessions. Professional music recording is not cheap, but that high cost of entry can be handled through fundraising organized by the student Jazz Band booster club! With at least one annual recording, the student Jazz Band will not only have a goal to work towards but a great promotional tool and a way to earn additional revenue to again support other activities and opportunities.

A Jazz Band Booster Club can be the gateway that greatly improves the skill, visibility and opportunities available for your school Jazz Band. Whether your specific student Jazz Band’s needs are new instruments, outside instruction or access to outside events, your booster club can help them over any and all of these hurdles and let them focus on what they are best at – Making amazing Jazz Music!