Meet the Teachers: Mr. Spinelli

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Mr. Spinelli’s official BCA senior portrait. Class of AMST 2007.

Though a recent addition to the faculty, Mr. Spinelli is no stranger to BCA: he was part of the graduating class of AMST 2007!

As our  new music teacher, he directs the school choir and hosts a variety of other music electives, such as Chamber Choir, Music in Society, and Theory.

The Chronicle caught him in the midst of another musical morning for this exclusive interview. From his rockstar status at BCA and advice for current students, to the teachers that inspired him to pursue music, read on to hear it from Mr. Spinelli himself.

You’re a graduate of BCA from the medical academy (AMST). How did you get into music?

I came to this school knowing that I enjoyed music as a hobby, but I really didn’t know what I wanted to be when I grew up. Doc was a huge advocate, and even an arm-twister sometimes, getting me involved in music. He showed me a lot of opportunities: county choir, all-state choir, chamber choir— things that I really didn’t think I was ever going to do.  And he was a huge pusher. He got me involved and helped to keep me involved with things that were enjoyable, like music. The more I took part in these ensembles, the more I enjoyed how high-level music was made.

“I want to be the person that can give somebody, high school kids in the future, this kind of outlet during their school day.”

I figured, “Wow, if this could give somebody an outlet, I want to be the person that can give somebody, high school kids in the future, this kind of outlet during their school day.” And that’s why I went into music education.

Being an alumnus, do you have any advice on how to deal with BCA? And stress?

Enjoy every minute that you have here. No matter how big the workload becomes, no matter how stressful it gets, enjoy it. Every single person in this building cares about what they do. They care about learning, and they care about how other people learn 100 percent of the time. And sometimes, when the workload piles up and people get lost in the minutiae of, “Oh my gosh, I have so many assignments due”, remember that it is only because you’re bettering yourself and learning more about how you think. And it’s not just about what is in front of you academically, but your time management. You’re bettering yourself constantly while you’re here. Every other single person in this school has that same exact thought in their head. Whether they choose to see it, whether they are talking about it out loud, or whether they keep it to themselves, every single person you are around cares about learning.

Enjoy every second that you have here. Enjoy the journey.

What were your favorite parts of BCA during your time here?

I loved choir. I loved the musicals. I got to work with Ms. Pero and Dr. Strum. Choir with Dr. Finley was wonderful. Band and orchestra with Mr. Lemma was wonderful- Mr. Lemma let me sing with the band once. I wasn’t that great of a trumpet player but it was really nice to be able to sing with the concert band. Field day was fun. Assemblies were wonderful. Halloween assemblies, Valentine’s Day assemblies… not every school has a field day or these assemblies where everybody comes and listens to student performances. Senior experience was a wonderful thing; you’re not going to find that in any other school. That was really, really special.

“…You’re around not just students who care, but people who care the same way about learning.”

Also, if you ever had a question, wanted to think deeper about something, or was struggling with something you were learning about in any one of your classes, most teachers left their door open for office hours during free mods and you could ask them anything. That was special, because again, you’re around not just students who care, but people who care the same way about learning. That was very special.

Your least favorite parts?

It’s really hard to think about my least favorite aspects. As a high school kid, I certainly wasn’t a morning person, so getting up and then having a 45 to 50 minute commute to school wasn’t my favorite thing. And the traffic on my way home with all the New York rush hour traffic heading back to western Bergen County wasn’t my favorite thing, but I guess if the traffic is the worst thing I could complain about, then I would say overall high school was a really good experience.

What are your favorite genres of music?

Genres of music? Oh, I don’t know if I have any favorites. I kind of like to dabble in everything; I like to listen to everything. If you hear the girls playing in the background, I’ll listen to Adele. I hear a lot of people singing Adele sometimes, and I try to help them out because Adele doesn’t always use her upper register to the best of her ability and I try to avoid vocal damage high school students. I’m sure as a choir member you’ve heard me say “Make a nice tall vowel and don’t be afraid to use your head voice.” I’ll listen to pop, I’ll listen to punk, I’ll listen to rap, I’ll listen to country, I’ll listen to classical. You name it, I’ll probably listen to it. And any music that doesn’t have a bad or a mean message, I’ll probably listen to. And if the music kind of does have that bad or degrading message, I usually hit the power button on the radio and turn on the news, or listen to something that’s not music. But I’ll listen to everything, anything good.

Mr. Hathaway mentioned that you were a rockstar in high school. Was he serious about that? He said that you had a band.

Oh man… Gosh I’m on voice record, this is so scary. Yeah, that’s true. When I was a sophomore, a group of juniors approached me – two guitarists, one bass player, and a drummer. But a couple of kids approached me and said, “Well, we’re thinking of performing for the Valentine’s Day assembly. Would you join us?” And I said, “Well sure! What song?” And they said, “Guns N’ Roses, Sweet Child of Mine.” And I said, “Yeah, well, I’ll give it a shot.” And so yeah, that was Valentine’s Day sophomore year. I enjoyed that very much. I miss those guys a lot. I think two of them are actually doctors in Israel right now,  the two guitarists, Levin and Zack. Yeah, they were a fun group of guys to work with.

Who is your biggest inspiration in life?

In life? Biggest inspiration in life… There are a lot of people that have been inspiring. That’s a tough question to answer, because I don’t want to shortchange anyone. But I would say a lot of my ancestors— my grandmother, my great uncles, my grandfather, and my parents—- because they are certainly not allergic to hard work and they don’t take anything for granted. And they live very humble lives.

What inspired you to be a teacher?

Hmm.. well, I don’t know. Everybody has potential; some people recognize that easier than others, and if I could do my part, however big or small that is, in helping somebody realize what their potential is—  that’s why I want to be a teacher.

“If I could do my part, however big or small that is, in helping somebody realize what their potential is—  that’s why I want to be a teacher.”

Teachers helped me realize that I could be helpful, so I figured if I could help someone else to be helpful, then that’s a good thing. It’s nice to have a lot of helpful people in your life; it’s nice when people are considerate and empathetic.

Do you like kids? What made you want to teach at the high school level?

I would be happy teaching anywhere, and I’m just very lucky that I got this job. Kids are the future, and it is very important that we raise a future of people who are understanding – people who can appreciate that they’re learning about how to think about things. How to use their brain to understand at one time what was unfamiliar to them. How to think is way more important than what to think about, sometimes. Raising people to be aware of that is what inspired me to be a teacher. At any age, doesn’t have to be just high school, students know that they can use their own gifts to work on their own problems. That’s a very powerful moment of awareness.

What do you do when you get frustrated with a student?

Frustrated with a student? Just get them back on track. Gentle reminders are always a lot nicer to hear than getting yelled at, I think. Gentle reminders are a nice way to guide people, to shepherd people. It’s never good to browbeat someone. It’s nice to shepherd people.

Do you like memes? What are your favorite memes at the moment?

I love memes. I don’t know, anything that can make me chuckle. Anything that I get a laugh out of is a good meme.

Mr. Spinelli truly overflows with enthusiasm for teaching, as we can tell from this interview, and we look forward to seeing all the amazing things that he will do in the future. We wish him in luck in his future musical endeavors. And welcome back to the Academies, Mr. Spinelli!