Smoke Signals
Musical GMts Sim Tine Family
TaggartGrout children have hit the high notes.
10 MAY 15, 2004
By Ron Karten
At 18, Tribal member Zane Grout
is already sophomore at Western
Oregon University (WOU). A
youngster who once came within a
whisker of singing for the President
of the United States, Zane today is
thinking about a future in geology
and the earth sciences.
At 17, his sister, Tribal member
Brittany Grout is a senior at
Tillamook High School. Currently
a member of the Portland Youth
Philharmonic, she has at various
times in her youth considered ca
reers as a sign language interpreter,
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She's In Tune Tribal member Brittany Taggart
practices trombone with the PortlandYouth Philhar
monic. Taggart is the daughter of Tribal member
Richard Grout and Debbie Taggart. She is the
granddaughter of Tribal Council member Val Grout.
a marine mammal trainer (as with
the former whale, Keiko) and a nu
tritionist. One recent day at the end
of March, Brittany had moved on
to consider the fields of court report
ing and travel agenting.
We're not holding either of them
to today's ambitions, they're still so
young, but in the event that this
travel business holds Brittany's in
terest, she knows that there's a
pretty good school for it in Hawaii.
And not that Hawaii is part of ei
ther of their dreams ("We're from
Tillamook," said Zane. "We're not
used to the sun,") but Zane also
noted that for anything in the field
of geology, Hawaii is right up there
with Oregon as the place to be.
Meanwhile, these two talented
kids continue to pile up credits next
to a bunch of everyday pursuits like
rugby (Zane), Key Club and the
Kids Making Miracles program at
Doernbecher Children's Hospital
(Brittany) and of course their mu
sic, which formally and informally
has worked its way into their hearts.
Brittany has played in her
district's Honor Band every year.
She's performed in the Solo Con
test every year. And she has re
ceived top marks every time she's
done it. This year, at the urging of
a teacher, John Hammond, she au
ditioned for and was accepted into
the Oregon State Honor Band.
As a result of Brittany's acceptance
into the state Honor Band, she and
her friend, Bethany Bake, will be
touring Europe early in July for two
weeks. Sponsored by Oregon Am
bassadors of Music, the tour will in
clude concerts along the way.
At Tillamook Junior
and Senior High
schools, Zane per
formed in the district
Honor Band and Jazz
Band. He was in a
vocal ensemble ("He
has a great bass
voice," said his mom),
which took him on a
four-day Alaska
cruise during his jun
iorsenior year. (He
graduated a year
early).
Earlier than that,
in eighth grade, Zane
was singing with the
Jazz Band at the
Tillamook County
Courthouse for a leg
islator home from
Washington, D.C.
The band was invited
to play for legislators
at the nation's capital,
and it took a year to
put the gig together.
Members of the band
had moved on, and all
but one regrouped to
pull the trip off.
While there, the
group was singled out
again, this time to give
a concert to the Presi-
dent but it was not to
be. "He got sick or something," said
Zane, "and it was cancelled."
Zane still plays and writes and
sings, but on his own.
Today, as trombonist in the
Philharmonic's Portland Youth Con
servatory Orchestra (PYCO), Brit
tany attends rehearsals once a week
in Portland to prepare for about half
a dozen performances throughout
the year. The next will be on
May 2nd, 5:00 p.m. at the
Newmark Theatre, part of the
Portland Center for the Per
forming Arts.
(PYCO is the second of two
full symphony youth orches
tras and a string youth or
chestra supported by the
Portland Youth Philhar
monic Association.)
Until just recently, Brit
tany was taking lessons
from the Oregon
Symphony's principle trom
bonist, Aaron LeVere. He
told her that she was a little
behind but had the poten
tial to succeed, even at a
metropolitan symphony level, and
for months she was practicing for
90 minutes or more every day.
"She is enjoying the symphony
but enjoys her regular band music
much more," said her mom, Debbie
Taggart. "In band, the trombone
is a significant instrument. Sym
phonies don't use trombones
much."
In a full orchestra, "it's all about
the strings," said Zane, who at his
peak, played eight instruments in
addition to singing.
Meanwhile, LeVere told Brittany
that he did not allow himself to miss
a single day's practice because one
day's rest translated into an unac
ceptable loss of skills.
Finally, it struck her: "This (un
relenting practice) is not something
I can see myself doing for the rest
of my life."
Zane has always been the one
with the natural talent, said
Taggart, Brittany the one that
practiced hard.
Long ago, Brittany "saw Zane
playing and I said, 'Heck, I wan t to
do that, too.'"
"He could play anywhere," said
Taggart of her son. "He can play
most anything. He started on trom
bone, moved to tuba, played bass
trombone and all the guitars."
"I improved without practicing,"
said Zane. "Brittany didn't have
the natural talent. She had to work
really hard at it. If I practiced as
hard as she did, I'd probably still
be doing it (in a formal setting).
Talent only takes you so far."
So, the question comes up: where
did these children get all this tal
ent and these skills? Perhaps from
the parents?
"Absolutely not," said Taggart.
"We were just laughing about that.
He can't hear music at all. I can at
least get rhythm."
The fact is, said Taggart, there is
nobody on either side of the family
that can play or sing like the kids.
The credit for their musical suc
cess goes in part to a
tireless, inspiring
music teacher,
the aforemen
tioned John
Hammond.
"Both of them
Photos by Peta Tinda
( ,
Tribal member
Zane Taggart
1
Mei Ann Chen
Conductor and Music
Director for the Portland
Youth Philharmonic,
directs Taggart at a
recent rehearsal.
would not be where they are with
out John Hammond," said Taggart.
"He would do Jazz Band before
school. Forty-five minutes early."
"Brittany started on the flute in
6th grade," said her mom. "She is
an excellent flute player. In 7th
grade, she wanted to go into Jazz
Band but the flute doesn't go
there." The junior high school's
music teacher, John Hammond,
"turned around and handed her a
trombone."
"By the beginning of 8th grade,"
said Taggart, "she was one of the
top trombone players."
Like many schools, Tillamook
Middle School cut a music teacher
position to half time last year. That
position was manned by John
Hammond, and it could have been
the end of the story, but in Tillamook,
the parents and kids knew what
they had in Hammond, and raised
the other half of his salary and ben
efits ($35,000) to keep him.
This year, the district cut his po
sition altogether, so many parents
packed up their musical kids and
traveled to him in Seaside for les
sons. "In high school," said Taggart,
"we would go to his house in Bea
ver once a week. (Hammond) fol
lows them even through high
school."
As far as Tribal activities, Brit
tany joined Royalty when she
was young. "Zane would dance
but nothing formal," said his
mom. Both kids helped in the
kitchen with food for pow
wow. Zane has continued
to include his heritage in
his education, demon
strating traditional
dance and regalia for
classes, using it as a
subject in his
speeches.
Zane also has
started playing the
Native flute. "It's had
an influence," he said.
The two are the
grandchildren of
Tribal Council mem
ber Val Grout and the
children of Tribal mem
ber Richard Grout.