Southwestern Michigan College’s sixth annual Clinic Day Feb. 20 featured five area high school bands and 200 musicians critiqued by Oakland University Assistant Professor of Music Dr. Pam Klena.

The critiques polish March Southwestern Michigan Band and Orchestra Association (SWMBOA) festival programs.

SMC Director of Bands Mark Hollandsworth’s Symphonic Band and Jazz Ensemble each performed two numbers to cap the morning before a pizza lunch.

Hollandsworth’s musicians road-tested selections for “Among Us,” the winter concert at 7 p.m. Feb. 27 highlighting living composers.

SMC’s band previewed “Remembering,” rehearsed Feb. 17 with LeAndre Benton.

While Benton lives in the Dallas area, SMC spent an hour virtually that afternoon as he evaluated their performance, worked with soloists and sections and related his career as a performer, composer, educator, principal and Division I basketball referee.

Feb. 27’s concert also culminates the 2026 SMC Low Brass Clinic Day for guest high school participants.

Visiting bands Feb. 20 included: Dowagiac Union High School Concert Band, directed by Benjamin VanRoekel, 2019 SMC graduate; Bridgman High School Concert Band, directed by Cliff Reppart, with Skylar Pullins, instructional aide; Watervliet High School Band, directed by Jennifer Hollandsworth, with Eleanor Joyce, student teacher; Coloma High School Band, directed by Marc Hartman; and Covert High School Band, directed by Nicole Bell.

Dowagiac and Coloma both performed David Shaffer’s “Fire Dance.”

Clinic Day, introduced on Valentine’s Day in 2020 and canceled by COVID-19 in 2021, resumed in 2022 in the theatre of the Dale A. Lyons Building on the Dowagiac campus. It is co-sponsored with Quinlan and Fabish Music Co., Stevensville.

Each band receives a similar experience of an hour on stage, playing three festival selections, with the remaining time devoted to tips from the animated Klena, who sprinkles in topical references, such as, “You’re either Bad Bunny the melody or the bushes in the background” of the Super Bowl halftime show.

From band to band, Klena prods them to produce more air support, especially on slower, quieter passages.

“I would argue you take in more air for slower pieces, which can be extremely impactful and breathtakingly beautiful if you give slow pieces a chance.”

Her origins are in low brass — trumpet, euphonium, tuba and trombone.

Klena conducts the Oakland University Symphonic Band, teaches instrumental music education methods courses and graduate conducting and supervises student teachers.

She holds the Doctorate of Musical Arts degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Klena earned her Master of Music degree from Central Michigan University.

Klena received the Bachelor of Music Education degree from Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn.

During her time at Lee, she traveled internationally, promoting music education and leading master classes in countries such as Jordan, Brazil and Kenya.

She is the current president of Women Band Directors International (WBDI), an international organization for women band directors promoting women, providing support and community and mentoring women in the band field.

She also was a founding member of a local beginning band program that afforded fifth-grade band students with free private lessons taught by college students. 

Prior to her graduate studies, Klena was the Director of Bands at Trinity Christian School in Sharpsburg, Ga. She taught beginning, middle and high school band, general music courses and conducted school musicals. She participated in the Georgia All-State Band.