First joint brass class festival of four different schools from the region at the Johannes-Brenz-Gemeinschaftsschule
On Tuesday evening, the hall of the Johannes-Brenz-Gemeinschaftsschule became a meeting place for music: at the first brass class festival, young musicians from different schools in the region came together to showcase their skills under the motto “Music brings us together – we make the stage ring out”. The main aim was to give the pupils a stage on which to present what they had learned. Taking part were the Eichendorffschule Crailsheim, the Evangelisches Schulzentrum Michelbach, the Lupold-von-Bebenburg-Schule Rot am See and the brass class of the Johannes-Brenz-Gemeinschaftsschule Schwäbisch Hall.
With a varied and entertaining programme, the participating groups showed how diverse musical learning in schools can be today. Each school first performed its own set and brought its musical strengths to the stage. The highlight of the concert was the finale, in which all one hundred children played together. “The audience was over the moon, and for the musicians it was a wonderful experience,” says Friedrich Mück after the evening.
The Johannes-Brenz-Gemeinschaftsschule Schwäbisch Hall was the host of the evening. Under the direction of Friedrich Mück, the school’s own brass class also performed for the audience. For the school, the festival was not just a concert evening but also a sign of how important making music together can be in school life. Year 5 of the Johannes-Brenz-Gemeinschaftsschule ran the refreshment stand, so the guests were well looked after too.
The guests from Crailsheim, Michelbach and Rot am See also gave impressive insights into their musical work. The Eichendorffschule Crailsheim can look back on a long tradition: its first brass class was founded as early as the 2011/2012 school year. Since then, the musical provision has become an established part of school life. Each year, almost 100 pupils in Years 5 to 10 play in the brass classes there. The musical direction is shared by Sandra Freisinger and Luise Schönek. A special highlight of the year there is traditionally the concert “Rocking around the Christmas Tree”, which is prepared during intensive brass days at the Geislinger Mühle.
The Lupold-von-Bebenburg-Schule Rot am See also brought along a brass class tradition that is still young but already firmly established. At the start of the 2022/2023 school year, the first brass class was founded there under the direction of Stephan Tissen. Since then, the offer has grown into an important part of school life. In the 2025/2026 school year, the brass class even led to the creation of a school orchestra. The project is carried out in cooperation with the Musikverein Rot am See. In recent months, the pupils have accompanied, among other things, Stolperstein laying ceremonies, Christmas concerts on the Rathausplatz, school theatre productions, a children’s concert, the Ascension Day service and confirmations in Rot am See.
The Evangelisches Schulzentrum Michelbach was represented by a band made up of around 20 pupils from Years 6 and 7. The group has been playing together in this line-up for about a year under the direction of Anne Böhme and has already gained stage experience at the school centre’s large musical production. The mix of instruments is particularly appealing: there is everything from flute and piano to cello, and around half of the children play a brass instrument and come from the Brass Academy.
For the pupils, the evening was an important opportunity to present what they had worked on in lessons and rehearsals. Many of them gained valuable stage experience. The conclusion of the evening was as simple as it was convincing: music brings together schools, children, teachers, parents and the region – or in the words of Friedrich Mück: “It was incredibly hot, but it was really cool, really, really good.”
