MUSIC VENTURING CREW 160

Objective

To initiate a BSA Venturing program among young men and women between the ages of 14 and 21, High School through College, for the programs of music of all varieties, and to teach the specifics of video production, sound recording and editing, computer graphics as they relate to video production, and special effects, along with a business training courses covering miscellaneous topics such as band management, in order to prepare these young adults for college coursework and the workplace, while enhancing and promoting the BSA Venture program. You do NOT have to be a part of the BSA to participate in this program, but it is highly recommended.  

Overview

There are limited programs available to teen bands today. I started asking around to various companies and schools if they had a program for young adults ages 14 through 21. Unfortunately, only college classes exist. That leaves a huge hole from the teen years of 14 through 18 when kids start college. No one is teaching sound, video, and lighting production!

Therefore, we have started a Venturing program, with a music, video, sound and lighting production theme. Just think of this: boys who already play a musical instrument can join and play music. Those who don't can hang out and play Rock Band, which is a successor to the highly successful Guitar Hero. Teens could get together and learn how to play music, albeit simple video music. Then if they are interested, we will try to hook them up with a music school to give discounted music lessons.

The next step is to get them to learn video production, sound production, and lighting production. We have some local companies that have facilities that teach how to make and edit videos and sound recordings. 

I have asked over many teens about this program, and 100% have said they would be interested in learning about music, video production, sound production, or lighting techniques. If we can get a steady stream of teens interested in the above, this will ensure a steady stream of college-bound teens who will want to make this their college major, and/or their chosen profession.  

So far everyone, and I DO MEAN everyone, has told me this is a GREAT idea. The BSA have said this is one of the few programs that actually teaches the boys (and girls) something they can use when they get into the workplace. Parents should be interested because not only are we teaching them valuable skills, but we will be doing it under the guidance and support of the BSA,  

What this means, of course, is that we will be trying to show these kids that being a musician is not all about the bad influences like drugs, smoking, and drinking, but the music and the advantages of learning these skills that will allow them to succeed in life. All members of the Venture Crew 160 will be required to sign a contract that firmly states they will not be smoking, drinking, or using drugs at any time while they are members, or they will be removed from the Crew.

I have or will be contacting the following companies to ask their assistance in getting this program off the ground:

I have many more ideas, but until I get them organized, I don't want to let "the cat out of the bag"- but I can say that I am working on another phase of this program that may give whoever gets together with us NATIONAL media exposure.

Planned Courses

How You Can Help

This is a new project. We are starting from scratch. I have contacted many different companies for suggestions. We could use donations or help from individuals and/or companies willing to give their time to help the program succeed. Call it a mentoring program, call it an intern program, or whatever, but everyone out there know someone who could help and in the process get some needed publicity for their companies.  If you have any suggestions as to who I can contact and get additional instruction in the sound, video, and lighting arenas, I would be very grateful. 

We are looking for places to have Battle of the Bands. We need someone who knows someone at Comcast to produce concerts that may be aired on a local access cable program. We need instructors for sound, video, and lighting instruction. AND, most importantly- we need some additional adult leaders who want to pitch in and make this Venture Crew successful. We need a minimum of 5 boys and 3 adults to be on the original charter. We could also use a sponsor who wants to kick in a few bucks every year to help offset expenses. With any luck and a lot of help, we can become self-sustaining soon and take all the money we hopefully make from the Battle of the Bands events and roll it back into sound, video, and lighting.  

Lastly, of course, we need everyone reading this to talk about it with their friends ages 14 to 21, who may be interested in joining. We haven’t even decided on a membership fee, but BSA usually charges $40-$50 to get into their programs. These funds help to develop all Venturing programs, so the idea here is that if you join us for the music end, maybe we can get you to join us for a BSA trip sometime to enjoy the great outdoors. I’m even thinking of how to organize a band or bands to play out in the country somewhere at an official BSA Camp where we can play outdoors and have a great time. Once again, under the control and guidance of the BSA. Every summer there is a huge Camporee in Rantoul, IL, and they get THOUSANDS of Scouts show up. There is a stage there that is hardly EVER used. How about us showing up this year and rocking the house? Sound pretty good? Outside concert, too!  

Everyone in the entire Chicagoland area is encouraged to join. As far as I can see from my initial investigation, there is NO OTHER BSA Venture Crew that is teaching music along with the subjects of video, lighting, and sound production. This should be great fun learning all the cool tricks of putting on LIVE events! 

Give me a call, or if you know anyone who may be interested on helping develop this project, have them call me.

I look forward to hearing from everyone soon.

Contact Information

Steve Reddington

Crew 160 Advisor
Steve@crew160.nwsc.org

Cell 224-558-0407


 

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