A surprise piece in honor of Dr. Fairchild!

The band students at Lakeside High School have commissioned a piece in honor of David Fairchild's 20th year at Lakeside High School! This project originated from, is being organized by, and will be performed by DR. F'S BAND STUDENTS. These are their words...

What comes to mind when you hear "20 years"?

It's over a quarter of the national life expectancy, twice the time it takes to train an astronaut, and certainly more than the duration that we, a group of band kids here at Lakeside, have lived. But that's how long Dr. Fairchild has been leading the Lakeside Viking Band: from 2003 to 2023, from graduation all the way into his 40s.

As the direct benefactors of his teaching, we find it only sensible to do something and show him how we feel. Respect; gratitude; admiration; for those emotions words are inevitably vague - you can only say "thank you" so many times, but not music. Music, as Dr. F has taught us, conveys feelings, unbounded by moments where speech falls flat.

For that reason we started this project. The idea is simple: we get a piece of music commissioned for Dr. F, rehearse it, and premiere it at the end of our Spring Concert on May 4th.

The piece will be written by Mr. Michael Standard, a professional composer and former student percussionist at Lakeside; Dr. Scott Steward, Director of the Atlanta Youth Wind Symphony and a longtime mentor of Dr. Fairchild, will rehearse with the 25 of us and conduct our performance. With their help, we will be able to put on a show so splendid that we may get precious footage of Dr. F in happy tears, which all students involved have agreed is our second goal.

The composition will go into national publication afterwards, with Dr. Fairchild's and Lakeside High School's name in the program note and printed on top of each page to honor the profound impact he has had over our community.

Donations for the commission will be handled by the board of the Lakeside Band Association, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. (This is why Ginny Fairchild is the official organizer of this GoFundMe campaign: with two of her own children in Dr. F's class, she is an LBA board member; and as Dr. F's wife she is also the person best situated to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't find out!) Any funds raised above the cost of the commission will be donated to the band program and directly benefit the students.

Thank you for your support, and please put the time of our performance - May 4th at 7pm - on your calendar. It will be an incredible night!