Edgar Leon '25

Hello! My name is Edgar Leon, and I am a rising senior double majoring in Computer Science and Music. This summer, I was able to continue my position as the Summer Percussion Instructor at Waltrip High School with the Roaring Red Ram Band for the third consecutive summer. 

The Waltrip High School Band has been recognized various times within the community for the past 32 years and has been asked to perform at many events in Houston such as the Presidential Inauguration Parade, Houston Marathon, HEB Thanksgiving Parade, Houston Rodeo Parade, and many more.

This summer was unlike any other because I was not only the Summer Percussion Instructor, but I also got the unique opportunity to be one of the composers for the Marching Show, Where The Streets Come Alive and help with Storyboarding/Prop Design. I was able to mentor students regarding leadership, college, career, and life advice, and give back by offering free private lessons on drum set, electric and upright bass, marching bass drum, and marching snare drum. I also created a guidebook, A Drum Captain’s Guide For Future Drumlines, for the percussion captains to reference after my internship comes to an end. It covers topics such as teaching, reading music, cleaning the music, discipline, and more.

There were various segments to my summer experience. In June, we had the first half of band camp where we offered instruction to anyone in Houston grades 4th-12th that signed up. During this, we taught fundamentals, cadences, and a few stand tunes, which we later showcased in a community exhibition. After this session of camp ended, I continued offering private lessons on drum set, marching snare, and electric bass throughout the summer, while simultaneously preparing for the upcoming band camp. 

In July, we began the second part of band camp, where I taught more advanced percussion technique, marching fundamentals, and ensemble coordination, preparing the students for the demanding marching season ahead. On top of these responsibilities, due to budget cuts of the band program I was asked if I could compose the percussion parts to the marching show for free. It seemed like a daunting task, but I was up for the challenge realizing it was an amazing opportunity to compose for a 5A Marching Band in Texas. I immediately got to work, and I also asked my friend Evan, also a percussionist and a former drum major, if he would be interested in co-composing with me to learn a few things about composition to which he said yes. Although he had been heavily involved in teaching last year, he had no experience in music composition. Thankfully, my experiences with my professors at Haverford allowed me to teach him basic music theory and mechanics to expedite the writing process.

When composing for the percussionists, it was helpful knowing what they could and could not play so that I knew what level of difficulty to write the music. I purposely wrote it to be quite challenging for their current abilities so that they could grow as musicians. It was an unforgettable experience to be teaching your own composition, making revisions, offering private lessons, helping students with their college essays, going home, continuing to write the next movement, and then going back to do it all over again the next day. The 12-20-hour workdays always flew by and there was never a dull moment.
 
Throughout this internship, I have learned how important leadership, mentorship, and my role as a composer and instructor are to nurturing young musicians and affirming the vital role of performing arts education in fostering well-rounded individuals. I have learned more about composition and arranging for wind players, incorporating countermelodies, new methods of teaching and mentorship, and how to teach elementary & middle school students. This internship has shown me the impact and value that just one more summer with the students could bring and how different things would be without the funding I received this summer.

For the students that are interested in music composition, music education, or teaching, I strongly recommend volunteering or working at a Title I school. Not only do you get to teach a diverse population of students, but you also get to form meaningful connections, make an impact, and develop a diverse set of tools to be able to teach many different students. Although they may not realize it, every conversation I had with students left an impact on me and I learned something new from every student.
 
I am truly thankful to the CCPA and the Liberal Arts in the Workplace Grant for giving me the opportunity to teach at Waltrip High School for an additional summer in which I feel like I have learned the most and contributed the most. I am very grateful to the Director of Bands, Brenda Corral-Smith, the staff, the leadership team, and the students.

Check out the final performance of the Marching Show!