Norwich – As in a scene out of “The Music Man,” as soon as city school officials announced that instrumental music would return to the middle school grades for the first time in five years, 100 students signed up for the band.

Last spring, the Board of Education insisted that the limited school budget bring back instrumental music and world languages – eliminated reluctantly in budget cuts five years ago – this school year.

The newly created Sixth Grade Academy at Teachers' Memorial Middle School made a strong effort to recruit sixth-grade musicians and 80 students signed up. At Kelly Middle School, 20 seventh- and eighth-graders want to pick up an instrument.

Two current music teachers will lead the fledgling program using trombones, clarinets, trumpets, flutes and drum kits held in storage for the past five years. Many of the idle instruments needed repair, and with the strong interest already expressed, more instruments were needed.

“There's been a tremendous response, so we're really excited about it,” said Mark Cook, president of the Norwich Public Schools Educational Foundation.

The foundation was created in 2011 in response to drastic budget cuts that eliminated instrumental music, and has advocated every year to bring it back. The foundation launched an “adopt-a-musician” campaign and raised $4,600 in cash and donations of three clarinets, one flute, one piccolo, two trumpets and some percussion kits.

“We’ve gotten a great response there,” Cook said. “Some of the donors have been through Norwich Public Schools, and they remember playing musical instruments.”

The money is being used to repair and maintain the instruments in the school system’s storage, Cook said.

Superintendent Abby Dolliver met with music teachers last week to determine how to launch a new program. Naturally, she said, teachers and students want to move full steam ahead to form a band and plan ensemble concerts.

But Dolliver cautioned that the program needs some start-up time, with students spending the first semester learning to read music and how to handle and care for instruments. With so many academic pressures on students, Dolliver said instrumental music participants cannot be pulled from regular classes for lessons – a common practice years ago.

Full-time elementary school music teacher Alison Beit will now teach instrumental music one day a week at Teachers’ Memorial and one day at Kelly. Teachers' Memorial music teacher Kyle Gould will add instrumental music to his duties.

Dolliver also hopes to bring in grant-funded classroom interventionists – who work with students in small groups on academic subjects – who are also experienced with musical instruments to assist with the new program.

Instrumental music lessons could start as soon as next week, Dolliver said, although some students might not get their first choice of instrument at first.

“We’re short on a couple flutes, but students can start on clarinets,” Dolliver said. “We have enough of those.”

Cook said the foundation is still seeking cash and instruments for the program. Specifically, the foundation is looking for flutes, clarinets, trumpets, trombones, percussion pads and stands.

To make a tax-deductible donation, send checks made out to “NPS Education Foundation” to NPS Education Foundation, 90 Town St., Norwich, CT 06360. To donate an instrument, contact the foundation a npseducationfoundation@gmail.com.

c.bessette@theday.com

Twitter: @Bessettetheday