About Mr. Geisler
My name is Mr. Geisler, and I am from Logansport, IN. I graduated from Logansport, High School. We had an overall student body of about 1000. The graduating class of 2002 made up about one-fourth of the total student body at LHS, so my class consisted of approximately 250 persons.
During my High School career, I participated in many extra-curricular activities. I was a member of the swim team, swing choir, speech and debate team, Spanish club, concert and jazz bands, school plays and musicals. Taking part in all of these activities meant a lot to me at the time and I learned a lot about time management as a result of all of those commitments. I was very active member of my high school and thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience.
Music has been a big part of my life from an early age. I began as a vocalist in a local children′s chorus in the third grade. During my years in that choir, I participated in five All-State Honors choirs, three National Honors choirs, and one International Honors chorus. After leaving the children′s choir, my musical guidance came from Dr. Daniel Mordenti. He taught me to play saxophone and really challenged me to work hard and develop my potential as a young musician. Thanks to his coaching, I was able to compete in Solo and Ensemble competitions, play at Butler University′s Annual All Star Band, and receive a nice Young Artist performance scholarship to attend Ball State University.
Outside of the saxophone, I was also involved in a top 40 rock and roll cover band called “General Admission” and I took part in the school musicals and straight plays. I had the privilege of playing lead roles in “Oklahoma!,” “Annie Get Your Gun,” and “West Side Story.” All of these experiences involved performance in front of large audiences and helped me overcome that fear at an early age. This supportive foundation in high school provided me with the confidence to compete and succeed at the collegiate level, and so I am thankful for the many positive opportunities and experiences I had during this period of my life.
During my undergraduate at Ball State University, I have had many great opportunities to get involved in activities and organizations that have fostered my growth as a music educator. As a sophomore, I served the BSU collegiate Music Educator′s National Conference chapter as the president-elect. Then as a junior, I served the organization as president. We were able to do many great things with the organization including Music in Our Schools month activities, hold a regional conference for Music majors at Midwestern universities to connect and grow professionally, and bring in many well-known faces in the profession of music education to present clinics at Ball State. It was a wonderful experience. As a senior, I competed in the Ball State Homecoming Talent Search with a close friend of mine and won with our act entitled, “Dueling Saxophones.” The experience was very memorable, as we had our picture on the front page of the newspaper and got to play in front of a crowd of 3600 people and in front of the administration of the university for the alumni dinner at the end of the week. I also competed in the Ball State Undergraduate Concerto competition and received second prize- and the privilege of soloing with the Ball State Symphony Orchestra. Currently, I serve as director bands and choral activities at Selma Middle School and Wapahani High School and I also am the saxophone graduate assistant at Ball State University.
My collegiate career has been marked by many successes and some of those that I consider most rewarding come not from my own accomplishments, but the accomplishments of my students. This is what leads me to the reason I want to be a music educator. I have held a private saxophone studio in Anderson for the past four years and have experienced a lot of success with my students. During my time working with them, I have dealt with students who range from the upperclass- straight A stereotype, to the lower class and learning disabled. I have learned from this experience that what is important in the educational process is not that everyone performs at the same level, but that everyone performs to the best of his or her capability. Every single student I have had has experienced some form of success and satisfaction through music, and it is the kind of success that both of us can take pride in. This is because my students are being challenged to be the best that they can be, and as long as they are trying their best, we both will be very proud of their accomplishments. This is my reason for teaching. I want to develop an interest in my students that encourages them to want to better themselves and those around them. That is what education is, and as a music educator I fully intend to instill that value in my students. Music education is about continual improvement and striving to become a better musician. If I can teach my students to do this and learn the process and steps involved, then I know they will be able to translate this to the other areas of their lives. This is why I want to be a teacher; and that is where I stand in my Musical Life at the moment.
