Brett Mitchell marks milestone anniversary of conducting debut with multimedia release
Brett Mitchell with the combined bands at Lynnwood High School after his conducting debut on October 12, 1995.
LYNNWOOD, Wash. - Brett Mitchell made his conducting debut 25 years ago today on October 12, 1995.
As a 16-year-old junior at Lynnwood High School in a northern suburb of Seattle, Mr. Mitchell created and then conducted the premiere performance of an arrangement of Bruce Healey’s music from Fantasmic!, a nighttime show at Disneyland and Walt Disney World that premiered in 1992.
Watch Lesley Moffat, Director of Bands and Orchestra at Lynnwood High School from 1992 to 2002, introduce Mr. Mitchell’s debut:
The Performance
For the first time ever, to commemorate this anniversary, Mr. Mitchell is releasing complete footage of his debut:
Capturing the Moment
Mitchell’s writer’s notebook from 1995-96
The journal entry describing Mitchell’s conducting debut
Mr. Mitchell captured the experience of his debut several days later in his writer’s notebook:
As all three bands set up together, I waited backstage. After a while, I had to go sit down on the stairs because my knees were shaking so badly! Then Mrs. Moffat introduced me: “Never in 8 years of teaching have I asked a student to conduct, but because your students have done their jobs and Brett is so capable, I’m very proud to turn the baton over to our own arranger, Brett Mitchell.”
When I walked onstage, everybody—even the band—was clapping. WOW! Then I went over to the left side of the podium, just like we rehearsed, and stood there until everybody (the band) was watching. Then I stepped up onto the podium, lifted my arms, and gave the pickup. Everything after that (not to give a cliché) was a blur… I gave the last note and held my arms up. As soon as my arms went down, the whole audience started applauding. I motioned for the band to stand up, and when I turned around to bow, the whole audience was standing!! A standing ovation! Man. Mrs. Moffat was crying and came to give me a hug… I won’t ever forget that.
Interview with Lesley Moffat (2020)
Nearly 30 years after becoming her student in 7th grade band, Mr. Mitchell recently sat down for a Zoom conversation with Mrs. Moffat, who was his band director at both Alderwood Middle School (1991-92) and Lynnwood High School (1993-97). In the conversation below, they discuss Mr. Mitchell’s 1995 conducting debut, Mrs. Moffat’s three-plus decades as an educator, and what music education looks like in times of COVID.
Brett Mitchell interviews Lesley Moffat, his middle and high school band director in the 1990s.
Meeting Bruce Healey
Bruce Healey and Brett Mitchell in Hollywood, CA (Sep 2019)
Nearly 25 years after arranging Fantasmic!, Mr. Mitchell met composer Bruce Healey—now retired from Disney—while in Southern California for his debut with the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl in September 2019.
A manuscript folio of Fantasmic! autographed by composer Bruce Healey