I hand-delivered the letter, asked if I could speak to him/her about it after he/she had read it, and later set up an appointment to meet. During our meeting he/she refused to change the policy but had very weak reasoning behind this decision (reasons which I answered very well in the lette.) A couple of weeks later, I sent a similar letter appealing to the director of the School of Music (also explaining the results of my meeting with the marching band director), who later went on to change the policy, although it did not take effect until the next year.

Dear Dr. Name:

I have been a baton twirler for many years and have worked hard to improve my abilities in hopes of pursuing my art in college. It has recently come to my attention that you will not be hosting twirling auditions for the Fall 2008 semester, since the two twirlers from Fall 2006 and 2007 wish to return. While I have nothing against them and realize that a band director has numerous responsibilities to attend to (music education is my major), the issue of selecting twirlers for the marching band needs to be addressed differently – by holding auditions every year. This letter is to inform you about my side of this issue, in hopes of persuading you to hold auditions for Fall 2008 twirlers.

Twirling, like music, is an art which is held in high regard by both the artists (twirlers) and their audience (football/exhibition spectators). As with any other art, twirlers work hard, investing much time, money, and effort into improving their twirling abilities so as to better entertain the audience and visually express the music played by the band. When auditions are not held for twirling positions, many twirlers with great talent are denied the opportunity to share their art with an audience.

The profession of music is one in which great emphasis is put on selecting the best performers to achieve the best performances, a task which is usually done through auditions. Twirling works in the same manner. To best accentuate the band, one must find the best twirlers available to insure performances of the highest quality and entertainment value. Hosting annual tryouts brings to light the highest levels of talent – those who can best embellish the band by visually expressing the music for the entertainment of the audience. Annual auditions are also beneficial in the aspect that it motivates twirlers with hopes of returning to practice in order to improve their skills, which – in turn – brings their level of performance even higher than before. In the educational system, this is a valuable tool because it reinforces the value of hard work and persistence – the keys to success. If tryouts are not held regularly, many available twirlers with much talent to offer the band are overlooked. The Name of School Marching Band has always prided itself on its ever-improving level of excellence. Holding twirling auditions along with the annual section leader, guard, and drum major tryouts will help maintain a superior level of performance.