Published January 31, 2025
Think about a big and exclusive event for high school musical ensembles. Then think bigger and more exclusive. Then – maybe – you begin to sense the stature of the Midwest Clinic International Band and Orchestra Clinic.
“The reference for non-musical people is that this is like the Super Bowl for high school bands,” said Spencer Hile, John Hersey High School band director, whose symphonic band earned a performance spot at the annual clinic in late December.
Formed at a Chicago YMCA in 1946 with the goal of improving music education, the Midwest Clinic at Chicago’s McCormick Place has become a destination event for music educators that draws more than 18,000 attendees from all 50 states and more than 40 countries.
Hersey’s band performed in rarefied air; only five U.S. high school bands met the high standards required to perform at this year’s clinic. To earn an invitation, Hile submitted three independent letters of recommendation and an audition tape – a recording of two pieces: one a march and a second larger work of the director’s choosing. In addition, he submitted videos and photos of programs covering three years. The idea, he explains, is for prospective participants to demonstrate a level of quality built and sustained over time.
“They (clinic organizers) want comprehensive historical context. They’re not interested in whether you have a good band right now,” Hile said. “You’re auditioning last year’s band, and while this year’s band has some of those kids, about 60 percent are new. That’s the scariest part when you apply; are you still going to be good next year?”
Hile needn’t have worried. The Hersey ensemble – 56 students playing 17 instruments – drew three standing ovations throughout the performance, one for an original work composed for the occasion by Buffalo Grove High School graduate Janelle Finton. The students’ performance of the number was, he said, “phenomenal.”
The significance of the audience response was not lost on band members. Senior trumpet player Grace Fuller said, “Of course our audiences are always supportive, but this audience of musicians and teachers really understood what goes into this process – the time commitment, the physical and mental endurance of a set that long, and the honor.”
“My favorite part is that the students felt good about it, which is what matters most to me,” Hile said. “I was excited to see them enjoying that time. During the performance, I could see them smiling. (For something like this) it’s easy for stress to feel like the primary motivation, and I wasn’t wanting that for them.”
In addition to performing, Hersey students sampled and enjoyed many other elements of the clinic. They tried out some of the many instruments on display. They met composers. They were wowed by a Japanese high school band that combined choreography with superb musicianship – a highlight cited by several Hersey musicians. “They put so much passion and confidence in their music. They had amazing soloists throughout, and their encore was jaw-dropping,” said senior bass clarinetist Alyssa Mammen.
Hile, whose parents were music educators and who first attended the clinic as a Highland Park High School student, has returned many times over the years, often with other educators, always with the same objective.
“We go to be inspired. By how good the performances are or by hearing a soloist or by a really good clinic,” Hile said. “We go to define what’s possible for high school students, what can they achieve, what level of excellence. We always go to be inspired.”
For senior horn player Ben Mungons, the inspiration was to keep working. “My main takeaway from the Midwest Clinic is that it’s never really about the destination. It’s about the journey to get there. Even though the performance was great, most of my memories are from the rehearsals, and in the end you can’t really perform without rehearsing anyway.”
