HUMPHREY — The strains of “Enter Sandman” drift down the hall. People enter the classroom to “Star Wars Main Title.”
Whatever the kids want to play, Christopher Secuya is all for it.
Secuya, music teacher at St. Francis School, is sharing his love of music to students who may not have known they could carry a note until they met him.
Secuya came to Humphrey from the Philippines in 2022 with his wife, Tita, and their children, Jnn Eliand and John Benedict.
Since then a music program that included only vocal groups is now rockin’ out.
Secuya is teaching instruments to most grade levels and has started a Rock ’N’ Soul Band featuring guitars and drums.
“I hear it was only vocal music, and because of the (coronavirus) pandemic, it stopped, all music stopped,” he said. “Then when they came back, they could only do vocal music. My forte is instrumental, I can also do vocal music, so I presented to them that I could have a concert band.”
He said the administration has been supportive and purchased instruments, so he could introduce students to them.
“When I first started, I was testing the water, giving them fun songs to get them started,” he said.
Turns out students had the music in them. Secuya said they embraced learning to play instruments, which is what he was hoping for.
“They’re having fun, and I want it like that,” he said. “At first I was like, ‘How am I going to approach the kids?’
“What I did the first few weeks was just play them songs, demonstrating it by playing the piano, playing the guitar,” Secuya said. “What I said to them was what kind of music do you like. Is it rock? They said yes ... so I demonstrated it for them, that’s the starting point.”
In college in the Philippines, Secuya played in two bands, a piano player for a party band and guitar player for a hard rock band. When he wasn’t in class, he was practicing and playing gigs. He also played the cello in a string quartet and learned brass instruments.
“I learned those instruments out of curiosity,” he said.
He attended the University of Cebu, majoring in secondary education. He graduated from college in 2000 and then taught the next eight years in a Benedictine school, then at Our Lady of Fatima, both in Minglanilla.
A friend told him to start applying for teaching positions in the United States, and he was hired at St. Francis.
He found that curiosity in students who, he said, had no experience playing before.
“I think when they finally got to play their first song, like when I played my first song, I never stopped practicing music. Most of them ... they come in during their free time just to practice,” he said.
The music program is from kindergarten to 12th grade, progressing from just vocals to recorder, percussion, wind instruments, guitars, drums and vocals in the Rock ’N’ Soul band.
The band gets together every day and has played for the community Veterans Day program. It will perform again for the public in the May spring concert.
He said the band has progressed well, and he hopes in six to eight months, the band will be able to play five to six songs.
The fact more kids are taking music is a testament to Secuya bringing out that love of music. He said when he started at St. Francis, students took music classes, but now it has more than doubled.
There are music classes students take, the concert band and Rock ’N’ Soul, meaning music is touching a lot more students now than before he arrived. His largest class is 37 students, which is the concert band, who play instruments and sing.
“I was really surprised,” he said of how many students are interested in music. “They hadn’t had instrumental music, maybe that’s a factor, but students have accepted this program wholeheartedly, the passion is there. I know this is a sports school, but who knows, maybe in the future it’ll be a sports and music school.”
Secuya said he hopes students appreciate music through learning how to play it.
“I’m using the Japanese approach, which is the Suzuki Method, which is engagement, then listen and repetition. It works with them. They know who to interact with the other sections, it’s interaction between me, the bass player and the other players, and they feel it. That’s the road I’m leading them to realize I’m not the only one playing here, everybody’s playing and the instruments are equally important, and they get it, they get it now. It’s the rewarding part of being a music teacher,” he said.
“My heart is filled with gratitude for people who has supported the music program, especially (principal) Mrs. (Jennifer) Dunn. She believes in me, and for all the teachers,” Secuya said.
