Whether being tasked with building a new beginner strings program or wanting to increase recruitment and retention in your current program, the road ahead may seem daunting. Encore Tours’ newest eBook “A Year in the Life of Beginner Strings” provides music directors with the key to unlock your strings program’s potential. eBook author, Ward Dilmore, comes to Encore Tours having been a client for nearly 20 years. This eBook provides a year-long, month-to-month template that Ward developed and tested through 33 years of public school teaching, building a strings program in Wilmington, MA from 12 to over 400 students. It’s based on a sense of purpose that unfolds over ten years, from grades 3 – 12. The secret to success? Define the ten-year path and fill it with traditions that celebrate respect, harmony and community pride. For all of Ward’s tips on how to build a beginning strings program that will not only retain and engage students, but will take your young musicians and your music program to new places, download our new free eBook. DownLoad the Ebook Get even more tips and advice at our Music Educator Resource Center.
November 2, 2026 Encore Tours Venue Spotlight: Vienna’s St. Stephen’s Cathedral Explore St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna: its history, its deep ties to Haydn and Mozart, and what it’s like for your ensemble to perform there. Backstage Blog
October 27, 2026 Encore Tours Music Tour Planning Mistakes: 7 Horror Stories to Avoid Every music director has heard one. The tour where the price went up after families had already paid. The concert where the ensemble outnumbered the audience. Backstage Blog
October 21, 2026 Encore Tours Meet Encore Tours at the 2026 Midwest Clinic Encore Tours is heading to The 80th Midwest Clinic International Band and Orchestra Conference, taking place December 16–18, 2026, at McCormick Place West in Chicago. Backstage Blog