Do you ever hear a rock band jamming out when passing by Room 211? What you are hearing is Boston Latin School’s very own faculty rock band, which consists of teachers Mr. Dennison Blackett, Mr. Timothy McQuade, Mr. Jeffrey Mikalaitis, Mr. Robert Oakes, Mr. Matt Sebold and Ms. Elaine Sylvester. The band’s members come from various departments of the school with a multitude of backgrounds, allowing for rich musical interpretations.
They perform annually at the BLS Faculty Talent Show, a schoolwide fundraising event for the senior class. This year’s show was held earlier in March, where they played Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode” and Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid.”
The band was founded more than two decades ago, sometime before 2006. Many of the current players joined due to a need for members. BLS mathematics teacher Mr. McQuade joined soon after he began teaching at BLS in 2006, becoming the lead singer. English teacher Mr. Oakes joined a few years later, after being persuaded by Mr. Mikalaitis, another English teacher, to play the drums.
Three years ago, BLS history teacher Mr. Sebold entered the group, providing the band with a bass player. Last year, BLS band teacher Mr. Blackett joined, adding the saxophone to the mix. Later, guidance counselor Ms. Sylvester added the tambourine to the band, broadening their musical spectrum. Throughout the years, various student teachers have also participated.
One of the most important members of the band was the late Mr. Michael “Gio” Giordano, one of the founding members and long-time drummer. Although Mr. Giordano passed away in October of 2019, his legacy still lives on through the band.
The band merges different styles of rock, with each member bringing in their own tastes. Mr. Sebold explains, “I think we each have such different musical styles, like [Mr. Oakes] much more straight rock, [Mr. Mikalaitis] is a little more metal, I’m a little ‘bluesy-er,’ so […] we gotta decide on what we can all kind of pull off with our own interests.” In addition to playing, members enjoy listening to other artists for inspiration, including Pearl Jam, Ozzy Osbourne and U2.
The band continues to create music despite facing barriers such as the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Before the group was scheduled to perform, the unexpected district-wide closure canceled their performance. The pandemic, however, didn’t stop them from playing, as they performed through video recording.
A key reason for the band’s success is the fun and lighthearted spirit. Mr. Oakes comments, “I just like practicing and coming together and figuring out the tunes.”
The band encourages students to dance and sing along in their performances as if it were an actual concert. In their latest performance, students poured down the aisles of the auditorium to get up close.
Greta Gorman (IV) comments, “It honestly felt like an actual concert, between the energy and quality of the band.”
Mr. Oakes notes that the band would like to incorporate more “student spotlights” in future performances and collaborate with the student body through different musical forms.
The dynamic faculty band continues their long-time reign and expect to make more appearances in school events.
