Clarinet players who want to break away from their band directors may find it hard to express their creativity. But on the Internet, you should be able to find a community of like-minded musicians. That's where Brooklyn-based dance band French Horn Rebellion comes in.
The self-proclaimed band geek duo, comprised of brothers Robert and David Perlick-Molinari, launched a website called Band Geeks Gone Wild, to encourage anyone to pick up an instrument — think bassoons, oboes and, of course, French horns — and play along with the band's songs.
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Instrumental tracks are posted on the website via SoundCloud (the group is also on Spotify). Sheet music is included in a variety of keys to suit different instruments. They simply ask participants to upload videos of themselves performing along with the track.
"We were trying to think of a way to engage kids who play in orchestra or band, and say, 'Hey you guys can have fun too, and this is how you do it.' We provide the hot jams and you just play your instrument on top of it, and we give you the sheet music," Robert said.
The idea comes in part from hearing other horn players talk about a desire to be more creative with the instrument. As they both come from a traditional music background and found an outlet in dance music, the brothers want to foster a community where one may be lacking now.
"In the future, we want to make [the website] a collaborative environment where people can be sending their music to each other," Robert said, referring to the project as "the equivalent of a pizza party in band class."
The site was created in conjunction with Brooklyn music website The Wild Honey Pie and Squarespace, a service for creating easy websites.
"We've created the tools to let anyone take an idea like Band Geeks Gone Wild and bring it to the next level for their audience," Jessica Kausen, Squarespace's events coordinator, wrote in an email to Mashable. "It's rewarding to see creative projects like this come to fruition. We're really excited to be involved and see how this inspires other music endeavors."
It's a public place to share music and "participate with other people's experience of music," David said. They can use it to showcase new work, too.
"Obviously there's a lot of places for people to hang out on the Internet, but I think what's different about this is how it goes back to our identity," he added.
This December, French Horn Rebellion will embark on a tour and give away tickets for each show to two people who participate in Band Geeks Gone Wild.
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Image: French Horn Rebellion