Fine Arts - Rex Mill Middle School

About the Orchestra

The Rex Mill STEM Magnet Middle School Orchestra focuses on learning and perfecting the skill of performing an instrument (violin, viola, cello, bass) while applying creative thinking to STEM projects and igniting students’ imagination and creativity through the arts. Participating in orchestra at Rex Mill also enhances a student’s flexibility, adaptability, productivity, responsibility, and innovation. All of these skills are required for a successful career in any field of study. If you have ever seen a movie, you have heard an orchestra. It's the most beautiful sound mimicking the human voice and has been used for all of human history to convey all range of emotions.

The Rex Mill STEAM Orchestra! 6th graders have several string instruments from which to choose. Information is sent home concerning free instrument rental or purchase. After 9 weeks, all students will perform their first concert for all the fine arts parents. No experience is necessary. We take trips outside of school for performances with other students and STEAM-related field trips.

The 7th Grade Atlanta Sound Orchestra!! Students who continue on in 7th grade orchestra will receive a wealth of educational benefits. In addition to obtaining life long skills needed to become a music performer or consumer, the student learns skills needed for every facet of life. Teamwork, dedication, self-discipline, and responsibility prepare them for a successful future in any STEM profession.

The RMMS 8th Grade Orchestra has received much recognition by earning superior ratings at the annual LGPE every year since Mr. Fredricks became the director! Research demonstrates that music students are the strongest academically and score higher on the SAT than other students. Most colleges and universities look for well-rounded students who experience more than just academic excellence. The Rex Mill 8th Grade Orchestra has succeeded in sending students to every Clayton County High School Magnet Program, AllState Orchestra, District Honor Orchestra, and Clayton State University Orchestra. They have also received superior ratings for 7 consecutive years at Large Group Performance Evaluation.

Director

BRIAN FREDRICKS

Brian Fredricks has lived, performed music, and taught music in the Atlanta metropolitan
area since high school. He holds an Educational Specialist Degree in P-12 Instructional
Technology (4.0 GPA) and a Master of Music Education (4.0 GPA) from the University of
Georgia (UGA). He earned his B.M. in Music Education from Kennesaw State University
Summa Cum Laude with a 3.9 GPA. At KSU, he studied violin under Professor Helen Kim, a
graduate of the Julliard School in New York.
At age 13, Mr. Fredricks served as the concertmaster of the Macland Presbyterian Church
Orchestra in Powder Springs, Georgia, performed in the 2006 and 2009 Georgia Music
Educators Association conventions in Savannah, Georgia, and in 2007 performed in the
Orchestras of America National Concert Festival in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2007 he earned the
Eagle Scout Rank at Saint Catherine of Siena in Kennesaw, Georgia. He was a founding member
of the Georgia Youth Symphony Orchestra, the largest youth orchestra program in the
southeastern United States. He also performed at the 2010 College Orchestra Director’s
Association National Conference. In January 2011, he performed at the Central Conservatory in

Eds Instructional Technology P-12
Beijing, China as well as in Xian, China with the Kennesaw State University Symphony
Orchestra in which he served as principal second violin. Elected in Spring 2011, Mr. Fredricks
served as a leading officer in the American String Teachers Association chapter at KSU. He’s
had the honor of performing in the ASTA National Conference held in Kansas City, Missouri in
2011 and Atlanta, Georgia in 2012.
Mr. Fredricks premiered works by Grant Harville and collaborated with violinist Peter
Zazofsky and Joseph Lin, first violinist of the Julliard String Quartet, several guest soloists from
the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Charles Neidich, Professor of Clarinet at Julliard, and Albert
Laszlo, Professor of Bass at Julliard. He has participated in master classes with Eighth Blackbird,
a Grammy award-winning contemporary string quartet. Mr. Fredricks professionally arranges
music for orchestra, string quartet, and everything in-between to ensembles around Atlanta. He
has provided his talents for multiple ensembles performing in the Atlanta area, including
Enceladus, a progressive rock touring group, and Enterprise Partner Group, a business affiliate of
Microsoft. In 2010, Brian Fredricks (violinist) and his wife Kaitlin Fredricks (cellist) founded
The Atlanta Sound Quartet, an Atlanta-based group which performs for over 100 events per year,
including corporate events, parties, and weddings.

Mr. Fredricks served as the founding Orchestra Director of the Bartow Youth Symphony
which hosts classes for dozens of elementary- and middle school-aged students including
symphony, orchestra, recording class, Suzuki violin class, and chorus. He became Orchestra
Director at East Cobb Middle School in 2012 with 120 students and organized several concerts,
field trips, and community events per year. In 2016, Mr. Fredricks joined Bunche Middle School
as Orchestra Director in their 10-million-dollar renovated facility. Under his direction, Bunche
became the only Title I school represented in the 2018 Atlanta Heritage Festival at the Georgia
Aquarium. Mr. Fredricks also spearheaded the creation of Fine Arts IB curriculum for Bunche to
earn International Baccalaureate (IB School) Certification. In 2017, Brian and Kaitlin’s Atlanta
Sound Quartet was chosen to perform in the pilot episode of CW’s “Dynasty.” Brian also
authored and published several books about the Fredricks family history, the Burton family
history, his Graduate-Degree Portfolio, and a scholarly Judeo-Christian book (Brian is an
enthusiastic amateur Biblical scholar). In 2018, Mr. Fredricks took over the esteemed orchestra
program at Rex Mill STEM Magnet Middle School where he began advocating for school-wide
certification in Science, Technology, Engineering, Fine Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM). Brian
helped Rex Mill earn National Magnet Board Recognition as well as Clayton County’s Best
Communities for Music Education National Recognition issued by the National Association of
Music Merchants (NAMM) Foundation. In 2023, Mr. Fredricks became the Positive Behavioral
Interventions and Supports (PBIS) Lead Coach of Rex Mill Middle School and began managing
the development of the PBIS product book, collaborating with the District Coordinator while
ensuring equal distribution of roles in the PBIS team, and overseeing the development of the
school-wide PBIS Action Plan.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KN0K5BX6wAVsMlRLCA2F4UvZh5oYflyV/view?usp=sharing

brian.fredricks@clayton.k12.ga.us