Guilford Park High School band director Eric Posner has had a passion for music since he was a small child. Now Posner aims to pass on his lifelong passion to his students, and aims to do so through a unique artists-in-residence program with Maryland Winds, a nonprofit professional music ensemble.

Maryland Winds musicians, who play bassoon, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, piano, harp and more, will regularly visit Posner’s classes to work with students. In addition, students from the school’s feeder pattern will be able to attend Maryland Winds performances at the high school for free, according to Timothy Holtan, the ensemble’s conductor and artistic director. Other tickets will be available to the general public for a fee.

Like most nonprofits, Maryland Winds’ income is derived from grants, donations, corporate and concert sponsorships, and ticket sales, Holtan said.

Guilford Park students will also have the opportunity to play alongside the professional musicians during performances.

“Music is the vehicle and it becomes a passion,” Holtan said. “But as an educator, it’s our job not to introduce music just for people as a lifelong hobby or interest but make it possible for those who want to continue to pursue music” to do so.

Posner is a saxophonist, and though band instructors are given training in all instruments, it’s also helpful to have musicians who specialize in a certain instrument to teach each section of band students. Posner readily admits he “doesn’t have anywhere near all the answers” when a student asks a specific question about an instrument. Having Maryland Winds come in and meet with the students helps them develop a deeper understanding and allows for more detailed feedback, he said.

“There is something to be said for ‘music is music.’ There is a phrase that can be made, whether you’re singing, or playing saxophone,” Posner said. “But how that’s done from a physical and pedagogical standpoint on each instrument is very different.”

Holtan said the ensemble’s musicians will start by helping students with fundamentals, and then check in on their progress throughout the year. He also plans to work with the students before each of the four Maryland Winds’ concerts, where students will play alongside professional musicians. The goal is to have the students leading in the final concert, with the ensemble members only augmenting their music, Holtan said.

Guilford Park High School, which opened for students last August in Jessup, is still developing its identity as a school, said Megan Hartten, a music resource teacher with the county and vice president of Maryland Winds’ board of directors. The ensemble’s presence will help the school develop a strong band program, she added.

While the artists-in-residence status is new this fall, the ensemble has partnered with the school system since 2018 and has traveled to different high schools for rehearsals and performances with students, Hartten said. But because of all the traveling, Hartten said, it became difficult for musicians to build relationships with students. Guilford Park High School acting as the ensemble’s “home base” solves that.

“There’s only so much you can do in a one-off experience,” Hartten said. “The sky is the limit with this partnership in terms of what students can learn.”

Students will also be able to learn from the professional musicians on a deeper level when they play together, Posner said.

When he was a kid, he played side-by-side with a Navy band, and it helped him develop his skills as well as gain a mentor, Posner said.

Maryland Winds will perform “Time Unfolding” at Guilford Park High School on Sept. 29 at 3 p.m. The performance will use projections and music to highlight discoveries NASA has made using the James Webb Telescope, according to Holtan.

For more information, visit marylandwinds.com.