Saied Music Education and Advocacy Blog

What do you get when you put thirty band directors in a room together?

You get a keyboard giveaway, lots of support and advice, and obviously two of them trying eight of the HOTTEST hot sauces we could find.

On June 5th, we hosted our 17th annual Survivor Workshop in Tulsa, OK! The day was full of laughs, some serious mentoring by retiring Owasso band director Chris Harris, and awesome giveaways! The room was packed with directors in every stage of their careers; from a college student beginning their journey, to veteran directors who have careers spanning more than thirty years, the collaboration that happened at our 2024 Tulsa Survivor Workshop was unmatched.

Our directors connected with their peers and found community and relationship. They spent the day networking with others who understood the challenges and struggles of reaching and leading today’s young musicians into adulthood through their music programs.

Our band directors got to spend time learning how to recruit and retain new band students, how to expand their band programs on a budget, and all the ways to meet the needs of their students and parents while building a well-taught and powerful marching band.

We also got to hear from the iconic character Ted Lasso (Dr. Carter Biggers in disguise!) as he shared timeless wisdom on meeting students where they are in their musical journey, and how to love them to success.

The highlight of our day was when Chris Harris spent an hour being interviewed about his career by the legendary W. Dale Warren in our own version of “Hot Ones.” We assembled a flight of the HOTTEST hot sauces and got to watch as Chris and Dale consumed their flaming chicken wings while dropping some wisdom that burned just as hot.