Mission

The Wind Symphony is a performance-oriented wind band devoted to the preparation of instrumentalists and conductors for professional careers in music performance and education. Additionally, it provides Andrews University students, staff, faculty, and community members with an avenue to continue their involvement in the performing arts. Participation in the Wind Symphony fulfills the following program and learning outcomes:

Department of Music Program Outcomes

• PO #1: Students will exhibit effective technical and artistic skills in music performance of repertoire from a broad range of stylistic periods. 
• PO #2: As appropriate to their degree track, students will learn and apply pedagogical methods, techniques and tools related to their area of expertise.
• PO #6: Students will hone critical thinking skills by: a) consciously making informed interpretation choices; b) connecting theoretical and historical understanding to musical performance; and, c) developing a personal and discerning philosophy of music
• PO #9: Students will apprentice in a spirit of artistic community. 

Student Learning Outcomes

• SLO #1: Students will deepen their musicianship by striving for the highest attainable performance standard.
• SLO #2: Students will develop their technical ability by working to meet the new technical demands of challenging repertoire.
• SLO #3: Students will increase their awareness of wind band music through the programming of historically important and artistically distinctive repertoire.
• SLO #4: Students will deepen their understanding of the link between theory and practice through rehearsals that engage students’ prior knowledge of music theory and analysis, ear training, and music history.
• SLO #5: Students will advance their knowledge of teaching, rehearsal, and conducting techniques through the implementation and modeling of a variety of available methods.
• SLO #6: Students will expand their artistic, intellectual, and spiritual horizons.