Since the district’s comeback after distance learning two years ago, the CHS Band has said goodbye to previous band directors. But for this 2023-2024 school year, instead of saying goodbye, we’re saying ‘nice to meet you’ to our new Band Director, Aron Campbell.
Though he’s new to Colton, he’s not new to the job. Campbell has been teaching for 16 years as a band director for a few different schools in Southern California.
He went to school at Cal State Fullerton as a music major, primarily playing the trumpet.
Music performance is his true passion. However, if you were to ask him what his plans were for after college, it’s guaranteed that he would not have said becoming a teacher.
During college, Campbell’s wife was expecting a baby. He had to prioritize taking care of a family. A consistent paycheck from music education was enticing to him for financial stability.
“Being a professional musician is a hit or miss. And usually, the ones that make it big are just the few and far in between.” Campbell explained, “You know, especially a trumpet player like Wynton Marsalis, he’s like the top-ranked trumpet player in the world. I wasn’t gonna make it there.”
Following college, Campbell started his career as a band teacher at West Middle School in Downey while also balancing his job at Disneyland.
He worked for attractions, guest control, and custodial, then finally ended up as a musician through his last four years out of 10 as one of the Toy Soldiers in the Disneyland Christmas Parade.
His time at West Middle School was rough, to say the least. The situation there was more stressful than he had expected. He resigned after one year.
“I was like, done. I literally cried all the way home.” Campbell says. “And I just told my wife ‘I don’t know how to do this…’ but she was supportive of me in any way I wanted to go.”
Campbell tried again, in hopes that his next teaching experience would not be as bad as the previous.
“I took a deep breath, took a couple months, and just started reapplying. Moreno Valley gave me the call the week before school started, and the rest is history. I almost wasn’t gonna keep going after that. I was like ‘If this is how teaching is.. F that.’ I was done, but yeah.”
Between then and now Campbell had worked at more than 3 high schools before landing the job here at CHS. A good handful of schools, but Campbell stayed at Moreno Valley High for 8 and a half years. It was difficult to say goodbye.
“I couldn’t even say the first word before I just started crying like a baby. … It was tough.“
Over the years Campbell has grown to really love teaching even more at each school and understands how difficult it can be for a band to transition between Band Directors. Both from his personal experience as a student and a director.
Campbell hopes to continue the previous Band Director’s work of building the music program to greater heights, and to find a new permanent home here in Colton as a Yellowjacket.
