Ask Mike
Helping other Music Educators learn from our mistakes! No need to reinvent the wheel, Mike has been there and done that. Just ask Mike!
Mike Lunney spent 31 successful years as a head band director in the State of Texas, where his bands were consistently recognized as superior bands. Mike is still active as a clinician, mentor and adjudicator.
Derrick Killam has been involved in school music programs in the state of Texas since 1990 through music retail. Derrick has been a repair tech, shop foreman, Education Rep and currently is the Operations Manager for N-Tune Music and Sound, a NAMM Top 100 Dealer!
Episodes
79 episodes
The Culture Code: Keys to Creating a Positive Culture In Your Program
Daniel Coyle is the author of, among others, The Culture Code, a best selling book looking at tools to build culture in groups. In this episode of Ask Mike, Mike pulls out some key thoughts that should resonate with ...
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Season 2
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Episode 44
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1:07:45
Ratings: I’m All Verklempt
In Texas, UIL Competitions and Evaluations are an annual part of our calendar and curriculum. It’s just part of what our music educators do in Texas. From the big picture overview, it should be straight forward and used as a tool to measure the...
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Season 2
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Episode 43
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1:02:53
Inside The Circle: Looking at the concepts that created "God's Hornline!"
Don't mind Derrick fan-girling during this episode. Mike introduces us to the teaching methods and concepts that Matt Harloff (and brother Ben) developed to create the incredible sounds of the Carolina Crown brass, among others.Simple co...
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Season 2
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Episode 42
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1:06:22
Estate Planning: Actually Easier than 3 against 2...
Everybody wants to get to heaven, but nobody wants to go today...One of the certainties of life, along with taxes. Is it uncomfortable to talk about? Usually. But does it have to be? Not really.We're joined by guest Tim Jones, own...
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Season 2
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Episode 41
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1:34:44
The Talent Code: Teach Their Brains to Do More
After Mike and Derrick get through debating whether people work their way to talent or they are born with it, Mike has some great points from “The Talent Code” by Daniel Coyle. Mike walks us through deep practice habits, ignition points, and ma...
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Season 2
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Episode 40
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59:29
Friday Night Videos!
So you record your Friday night halftime performances. Or your festival marching contest performances. Now what?There is a wealth of information at your disposal if you watch and listen in a way to improve your group. Mike Lunney takes t...
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Season 2
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Episode 39
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1:12:29
It's Fine...Everything is Fine!
Do you know this person? Seems to be in control, is typically successful at what they do, and is on a forward track... is also in constant fear of losing it, can't slow down because the spinning plates might fall, and won't talk about it out of...
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Season 2
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Episode 38
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51:11
Creating a Dynamic Ensemble on the Marching Field. You Can Do It!
Which comes first on the marching field, movement or music? No matter what your answer is, the music better matter! One of the best ways to make music instead of noise is remembering dynamics! Is there more to dynamics than loud or soft? Are dy...
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Season 2
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Episode 37
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1:01:08
Second Summer! Reminders about the Heat and Practices
It's September! In Texas that means second summer is in full swing! As we work outside and travel Friday nights, here are some tips and reminders of how to combat the heat, and what precautions and preventions we can put in place to keep our gr...
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Season 2
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Episode 36
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1:01:56
Booster Clubs and Parent Groups: A Visit With the Prez!
Mike Lunney and Derrick Killam sit down with Juan Ramirez in this episode to discuss Booster Clubs. What does a healthy parent organization look like? What does a good relationship between boosters and the director look like? With over a decade...
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Season 2
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Episode 35
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1:05:03
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 8: The Strength to be Graceful
It's the last episode in the Mike Lunney Marching Band Academy series. As we close out this set of episodes, Mike reminds us that before we start throwing too many body moves at our group, it might be good to work on a little core strength. Alo...
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Season 2
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Episode 34
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56:52
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 7: A Little Bit of Everything
In this episode of Mike Lunney's ongoing Marching Academy, Mike covers points to use for rehearsal procedures, reinforces teaching sequence for most groups, and talks about some overall marching concepts. There's also a few random items in the ...
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Season 2
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Episode 33
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55:36
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 6: Moving With Confidence and Uniformity
In our ongoing discussion, we have talked about the set positions, what we look like when we aren't moving. This episode Mike Lunney explains to me what good body movement looks like in the midst of a marching show. Getting from set to set, etc...
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Season 2
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Episode 32
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1:19:23
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 5: Position Your Group for Success
Let's talk about body positions, horn positions, set position, horns up positions... all the positions that will help position your group for success! See what we did there? Let's talk flutter step, trail position... Let's talk about ALL OF IT!...
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Season 2
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Episode 31
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1:05:19
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 4: Deep Dive into 8 Core Principles
The Eight Core Principles for Marching Band. This episode Mike Lunney takes a closer look at each of these principles and how they will improve your group. We also look at some more concepts of physical movement! Who knows, you may learn new wo...
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Season 2
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Episode 30
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59:04
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 3: Finding Success Beyond the Basics
In this episode Mike Lunney shares keys to success by looking beyond the basics. In the discussion, we discuss the importance of creating a confident and strong look on the field through body movement. Not just marching but marching well....
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Season 2
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Episode 29
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1:08:31
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 2: Checking the Boxes
In our ongoing episode series for all things marching band, this episode is focused on the different boxes adjudicators are using to determine how well your band is performing. Is your band demonstrating the measurables for the highest box, or ...
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Season 2
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Episode 28
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1:21:59
Mike Lunney's Marching Band Academy - Lesson 1: How Do We Win?
How do we win at Marching Band? Mike isn't talking about trophies in this episode; he's talking about the things that make us successful regardless of trophies or plaques. Let's help your program establish a standard. Let's help your kids get b...
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Season 2
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Episode 27
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1:05:52
The Non-Varsity Groups...Are You Experienced?
New Guest Alert! Ask Mike is excited to welcome Jett Lowrance to the podcast! We sit down and talk about the triumphs and pitfalls of the non varsity group. How do we motivate them? How do we teach them? Listen to the wisdom that comes from exp...
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Season 2
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Episode 26
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1:10:12
They Aint Heavy, They're Our Program Kids!
The Hollies had a hit with, "He Aint Heavy, He's My Brother." One of the lines... "His Welfare is of my concern, no burden is he..." What a great sentiment! And one that many of us in Music Education relate to.But how do we help? What is...
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Season 2
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Episode 25
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1:08:28
Wiggly Bodies - Rule 19! Mike Lunney's Band Rules!
In this episode, Mike Lunney shares his Rules for Band! Read them, learn them, live by them! Or at least give them a listen and follow the link to download a document you can share or edit for your program!
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Season 2
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Episode 24
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40:42
On Further Evaluation... Thoughts on Teacher Evaluations
The question for Mike Lunney this week is, "Does it matter who evaluates a music educator?" What can we take away from an evaluation done by a non-music supervisor. Should we prepare differently, can it be constructive? Settle in and listen to ...
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Season 2
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Episode 23
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44:50
How Do We Manage our Classroom?
In this episode, Mike Lunney answers the question of classroom management. Is it discipline? Is it having a plan in place to create a positive learning environment? We'll discuss! And we'll discuss the importance of having a plan ready when an ...
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Season 2
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Episode 22
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58:37
Teaching Perfectionists and Superstars
Mike and Derrick are joined in this episode by our friend Rusty Gray. Our conversation is about recognizing your high achiever and your perfectionist and digs in to how we can best help them reach their potential while teaching them how to be t...
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Season 2
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Episode 21
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1:06:33
Are We Successful? What's the Definition?
Glad to have friend Anthony Gibson back to help Mike and Derrick hash out how we define success as music educators. Or maybe a better thought... how SHOULD we define success as a music educator? Let us encourage you with this episode, you are d...
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Season 2
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Episode 20
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1:13:18