Yvette M. Devereaux

Yvette M. Devereaux

Hello and welcome to my Musicaneo Page!

First of all, I would like to congratulate all of you who have made a commitment to developing the minds of young people with music. I know the many hours you have put into preparation, organization, and administration, and the many hours (including, undoubtedly,hours of frustration) you have put into finding music appropriate for your students.

So, it is my hope that I can make your life a little easier by providing you with orchestral string arrangements just right for your school and/or community youth orchestras.

As a conductor/violinist/educator/composer,I know firsthand what you are going through at this very moment. My greatest concern (particularly in relation to string players) has always been with the lack of well written, quality music and arrangements available for elementary and middle school orchestras. On a daily basis I receive repeated comments from my private students about their school orchestras and the choices of music given to them. My question is “why?”  Why does a conductor or music teacher have to introduce such intimidating music to young people at this early stage in their development? Yes, I know we want to introduce children to the world of great virtuoso classical music, but do we have to start with such challenging music? I'm very often dissapointed when I hear a youth orchestra perform these difficult arrangements and I ask myself "why?". Why should it have to be this way?  There must be a better way to present standard repertoire to our children!

Fellow conductors,educators, musicians: for the past twenty-seven years I have conducted and instructed many youth orchestras, summer camp music ensembles, musical clinics, start-up string classes, etc. (sometimes with large budgets, sometimes with no budget at all) and I have come to realize that the only way to enable youth orchestras (even those consisting of seven year olds for example) to excel and truly “sound good” is to choose an appropriate repertoire. Consequently, I am now devoting a significant amount of my time to writing string arrangements for school and community youth orchestras and I am doing this through the vehicle of Batonic Music, Inc.

Batonic Music provides orchestral arrangements geared specifically towards elementary and middle school as well as other youth orchestras.  Hence, conductors and music teachers can purchase scores and partial scores digitally. In addition Batonic Music provides personal service to youth orchestra conductors and music teachers enabling them to make specific requests regarding arrangements (from classical to contemporary music) for their ensembles. I believe music can and should sound exciting even with youth orchestras of the earliest age! Now you can finally have a string orchestra where all children regardless of their abilities can play and engage in melody, counterpoint, and harmony. Moreover, your students can now “feel good” about playing in the orchestra and can truly have fun while making beautiful music!

Additionally, among the included materials you will find a “rehearsal tip” section designed specifically to help you significantly enhance performance preparations as well as the performances themselves.  It is my hope that you will take advantage of my rehearsal suggestions and string arrangements and incorporate them into your annual repertoire.  And it is my hope that you will call upon me so that I may be of aid to you and your musical life as well as to the musical life of your students for many years to come.

Happy playing and good luck! I hope to see you very soon!

Musically,

Yvette


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