Bands are no longer only a thing of the Middle and Upper Schools. Operated through the after school programming Parker Plus, the Parker Rockers, two bands–one for the fourth grade and one for the fifth–give Lower School students a chance to interact with music in a new way.
Band members can pick from a wide variety of instruments like guitar, keyboard, drums, cello, and oboe, or even give vocals a try. Paul Gilvary, founder of the Parker Rockers and current substitute teacher at Parker, says that he “loves using non-traditional rock instruments in rock bands,” because it allows even more instrumentalists a chance to participate. While some rockers would turn their heads at the thought, Gilvary takes the challenge in stride and seeks to use every instrument’s unique sound to their greatest potential.
Parker Rockers plays covers of classics like “Living on a Prayer” by Bon Jovi, and “Sunshine of Your Love” by Cream, but also newer rock songs like “Ho Hey” by the Lumineers. Gilvary wanted the band to specifically perform rock music because he believes that “a lot of kids if they are given traditional or more classical music find it to be boring,” and that rock music helps connect the students with the music while still teaching the same musical principles. If he could get them interested, he could teach them anything. His love for rock music stems from his childhood. He grew up when the Beatles were first getting big and experienced arguably the best period of rock music, the 60s and 70s .
Gilvary spoke at length about the community the Parker Rockers created, specifically mentioning the band’s connections with other schools. A couple of years ago, when Parker Rockers had just been created, the band had a show in the Harris Center where they invited two other schools to come join them. McCutcheon Elementary, another school where Givary directs a rock band, and Franklin Fine Arts came down to join the rockers and performed alongside them. At first, Parker Rocker’s fifth graders were nervous about performing in front of other, older bands, but Gilvary said that “my fifth graders held their own. Even though they were younger than the other bands, they still did really well.” Normally, these three schools would never meet, but through Parker Rockers, new, long lasting connections were formed.
Parker Rocker’s last performance was on Wednesday, November 29, in the auditorium, where they showcased their hard work and talent in front of their friends and family. While no event is set up yet for the Upper School to attend, Gilvary expressed interest in organizing a performance for the high school to show up and cheer on the next generation of musicians. Parker is a K-12 school, but as a community, there is a struggle to show support across different age groups. Finding a way for the Parker Rockers to perform would be a step towards breaking down divisions within our school.
