Not So Great Conduct

We have a substitute in seventh-grade band class, as the regular teacher is out for unexplained reasons. It’s pretty obvious from the beginning that the substitute doesn’t know anything about music and is either having an off day or just bad at teaching.

After attendance and housekeeping stuff is done, we start practising. The first piece we practise has a bunch of rests — periods of no playing. She doesn’t count in the right time signature, which throws us off, along with her general attitude.

When we get to one of the lengthy rest sections:

Substitute: “YOU GUYS! YOU NEED TO PLAY! START OVER!”

We comply.

We get to that part again.

Substitute: “WHY AREN’T YOU PLAYING?! PLAY!”

My Section: *Mumbling* “We don’t play there.”

We repeat starting over and getting to that part.

Substitute: “I’M GETTING TIRED OF THIS! Y’ALL NEED TO PLAY!”

My Section: “LADY, WE DON’T PLAY THERE! RESTS EXIST AND YOUR KNOWLEDGE OF THEM APPARENTLY DOESN’T!”

She shut up about us not playing after that, and we got another student to conduct the band.