Following band director John Burn’s retirement last school year, Mark Lee accepted the assistant band director position that opened up. In his role, he will be the teacher for Wind Ensemble 2 and co-teacher for Concert Band, Lee said.

As a class of 2010 alumnus, Lee participated in the Wind Ensemble and marching band as a trumpet player, Lee said. Being a part of the band program is what inspired him to teach, Lee said. 

“I really loved the [band] experience and I felt like it was a place where I made a lot of my friends that I still keep in touch with even now,” Lee said. “It was such a special place, and I want to give the experience of having a community like that back to other people.”

In his first year of teaching, Lee brings a fresh perspective to the music department, which can improve the program, trombone, junior Naveen Badrinath said. 

“[Lee] brings a lot of positive energy every day to class, and it really makes you want to participate and get better,” Badrinath said. “He’s newer to the program, but that allows him to approach it with a new mindset that helps change it for the better.”

So far, Lee has increased the use of sectionals, which allow students to work on individual parts of their music, Badrinath said. This provides a valuable opportunity for players to work on little inconsistencies in the music with their sections before playing as a large ensemble, Badrinath said. 

Additionally, Lee has implemented new exercises and warm-up routines that can help the ensemble play at a better quality, saxophone, sophomore Lucas Golden said. Through feedback forms, Lee checks in with students and accommodates class needs to create a more open learning environment, Golden added. 

“He’s very engaging with us and he’s really nice to talk to, while providing nice feedback,” Golden said.

Moving forward, Lee said he will continue to curate his leadership style, aiming to improve the music program together with students.

“I want my style ideally to be very collaborative and co-led with students who can be leaders and step up to make the band better,” Lee said. “My goal is very much to develop everyone as individual musicians, and from there have that funneled back into the ensemble.”