By MITCHELL PEARL
Patrick Roberts led his final concert at Otter Valley last Wednesday, receiving tributes and a standing ovation after thirty-two years teaching music, twenty-five of them at Otter Valley. Pat Roberts came to Otter Valley in 2000, after teaching for seven years in Missoula, Montana. He grew up in Austin, Texas, and studied at the University of North Texas, which is a magnet in that state for those interested in music, and especially Jazz, which was his main interest. Pat had heard the Count Basie Band play live when he was seven, and grew up listening to Maynard Fergusen—who he says inspired a generation of aspiring young musicians to become band directors.
Although Pat had also completed most of a geology degree at the University of Montana, he decided to stay in music teaching, and followed his brother to Vermont. Otter Valley was his first teaching job in Vermont, and he stayed. At that time, there were separate music teachers for middle school and high school, with each teacher handling both the choral and the band programs in the respective grade levels. Pat Roberts came on first as the middle school music teacher, then shortly moved to the high school program, running both the high school chorus and the band programs for many years. More recently, the music programs were realigned so that one teacher would teach band to students in all the grades, and another teacher would teach chorus. In recent years, Pat has handled the band program and Cameron Wescott has been the chorus teacher. Mr. Wescott will take over the band program after Pat retires, and another teacher has been hired to teach vocal music in all grades.
Pat Roberts has seen some changes and some challenges in his many years of teaching. He counts the COVID pandemic as the greatest challenge and still feels its effects. Teaching music was particularly difficult during the pandemic, as students could not play band instruments, or, at first, do any singing. Most students first start learning their band instruments in elementary school, so those students were delayed for two years or more in learning their instruments. Because of this, when they got to Otter Valley, they were still those years behind, and had not yet learned the skills or gained the experience needed for ensemble playing.
While students affected by the COVID restrictions worked hard to “catch up,” many simply would need more “practice, practice, practice” to achieve the level of musicianship that would normally be expected at their grade levels. According to Mr. Roberts, this year’s seventh grade class is the first class in years that was not affected by the pandemic. Despite these challenges, Mr. Roberts credits a supportive administration and community for keeping the music program intact. It would have been easy to simply limit the number of students or eliminate programs, but the school board, the community, and, of course, parents saw the value of these programs. It didn’t hurt that OV’s principal and vice-principal also have music experience.
Pat Roberts believes that one of the biggest changes over the years has been the increasing pervasiveness of technology. According to Pat, technology has both “invaded and enhanced” the music world, and the music teaching world. And while technology can be useful as an educational tool, you have to be careful. Otter Valley does have a subscription to a good self-paced music theory educational program, and they do use music notation software, but he feels that many students gravitate naturally to the “old fashioned” analogue methods—i.e., writing in pencil on music staff paper. This is because despite the pervasiveness of technology, many students are feeling “digital burnout.”
Mr. Roberts has positive things to say about his current crop of students: “The kids are alright;” indeed, they’re “fantastic!” Whatever we hear from the current purveyors of doom and gloom, Pat will have none of that. The kids that he works with are “hardworking, sensitive and polite.” They have a lot of hope for the future, and, even, “long attention spans.” Illustrating the point, last week’s concert also featured the annual High School Music Awards and Honors. Students who have played in regional and all-state festivals were honored, along with the OV Music Department’s own awards.
Pat Roberts is thoroughly grateful for the amount of support he has received over the years. He has had an endless succession of favorite times, though feels that perhaps this year has been one of the best. He has loved teaching and remembers countless moments when the light goes on and a student “gets it.” He is especially grateful for the amount of support the music program at OV has received from the students, parents, administration—and above all the community. For his legacy, among other things Pat can consider the numerous students that have become life-long music lovers and players, among them a number of professional musicians and music teachers.
Pat is also optimistic about the future of the music program at OV. His successor, Cameron Wescott, has his full trust and confidence. Mr. Roberts has few immediate plans for retirement. He’ll continue playing in the local band “Satin and Steel,” work on some personal projects, and he’ll be available to spend more time with his wife. We wish him the best of luck, and thank him for his many years of service to the students and OV community.
