MINOT, N.D. (AP) - Some people make a difference in life through teaching, some through music. For Patrick Schwan, director of bands for Magic City Campus and Central Campus of Minot High School, it’s both.
Schwan chose the simple and rewarding career of a music teacher from the passion for music that stirred inside him when he was just a little boy. Born and raised in Minot, he began playing the drums in fifth grade and then switched to the trumpet a year later. He has never looked back.
“I was just a kid who loved to play his horn,” said Schwan, reminiscing on the days when music first became real to him.
Maynard Ferguson, Canadian jazz musician and band leader, came through Minot and Schwan was able to hear him play trumpet during his childhood years. His love for the trumpet came, in part, because of this musician.
Though music was a big part of Schwan’s life, as he continued playing trumpet through high school and college, he didn’t decide that he wanted to be a music teacher until midway through college. Schwan majored in music education and went on to teach hundreds of students the art and power of music.
He went on to be the band director at Erik Ramstad Middle School for about 13 years, band director at Memorial Middle School on Minot Air Force Base for about five years and taught music in Granville for around seven years.
Now Schwan is coming up on two years as the band director for Magic City Campus and Central Campus of Minot High School, and enjoying each day.
“I always really enjoyed junior high kids they just have so much energy,” Schwan told the Minot Daily News (https://bit.ly/1c5fUU8 ). “But I love the commitment of high schoolers. They’re really great to work with and they’re perfectionists, so they keep working at something until they’re good at it.”
Every week, he teaches music to around 200 high school students in five bands between both campuses. Between the concerts, football games, jazz festivals, the every-other-year trip to Disney World and more, he keeps busy.
“The first day I stepped in front of the Magic City band, I remember thinking, ’These kids are really good!’” said Schwan. “They haven’t disappointed.”
Schwan also touched on the power and importance of music, especially in students’ lives, a factor that caused him to choose this job in the first place.
“So many studies have proven that you’re a better overall student if you’re in music,” said Schwan. “It’s not even a question anymore. It helps you in so many other areas in life.”
As proof of this statement, Schwan put his own life on the table.
“I really enjoy playing, and I always will,” he said. “You can play a variety of styles and it connects with anyone and everyone. Even if you don’t play music it affects you. Think about how much music is around people at all times throughout the day.”
Schwan’s love of all things musical moved him to join the Minot Symphony, Minot City Band, Minot Community Band, State Legion Band, Brass Band of Minot and the Dakota Dixie band, a six-piece jazz group that he has been a part of since college. He is also in charge of the Magic City Jazz Festival and directs and plays with the Minot Swing Band. While he has been in each of these groups for some time, he has been a part of the Minot Symphony and the Minot City Band for around 30 years.
He also enjoys singing, though he doesn’t sing as much as he plays his trumpet.
“I would be a completely different person without music in my life,” said Schwan. “I would have a lot more time on my hands, and I don’t know how I would fill that time.” He laughed. “I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t enjoy it.”
Schwan said that his favorite part about being a band teacher is not the constant practice, or music selections or even the trip to Disney World, though he enjoys all of these things. “It’s the excitement of the students when they finish a performance, when they’ve played well and they know it,” he said. “It’s the look on their faces. It just makes you proud to do what you do.”
Schwan plans to continue teaching at Minot High in the future, saying that retirement is not a priority right now. Sharing the passion, importance and simplicity of music is the priority, and will be for years to come.
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Information from: Minot Daily News, https://www.minotdailynews.com
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