Pierce Attends Mid-State Conference Band
by Taylor Compton
Twenty selected students from the Pierce High band visited Wayne State College on Monday, March 9, for the annual Mid-State Conference band.
Battle Creek, Boone Central, Crofton, Hartington Cedar Catholic, Guardian Angels Central Catholic, Norfolk Catholic, O’Neill, and Wayne were the eight other schools that also attended the conference band. During the Mid-State conference band, the bands split into two groups. One group consisting of 9th-10th grade students and the other consisting of 11th-12th grade students. Each group went into a rehearsal room and rehearsed for hours before performing their concerts that evening.
The freshmen and sophomore group performed first. They played a selection of four songs including, “Canto” by Francis McBeth, “Journey Through the Void” by Tim Fisher, “Siegfried’s Super Sensational Circus March” by David Meyer, and “Will Drum for Food” by Carl Strommen. Their band director was Bradley Weber, a percussion and drumline teacher at Wayne State College.
Next, the junior and senior group performed. They also played a selection of four songs including, “Crossroads” by Michael Oare, “Nathan Hale Trilogy” by James Curnow, “Nostalgia” by Rossano Galante, and “Moscow, 1941” by Brian Balmages. Their band director was Dr. John LaCongnata, director of bands at the University of South Dakota.
Senior Klarissa Norris said that the conference band went great by saying, ”Conference band is always a great experience. It’s an amazing opportunity to collaborate with other musicians from other schools around us and get to create some wonderful music throughout the day.”
Members who went to the conference band included Caydan Retzlaff, Alexus Sindelar, Taylor Compton, Dalton Delka, Ethan Dohmen, Chloey Cederburg, Sarah Fenton, Aundrea Huber, Callie Arnold, Makinzie Parsons, Zachary Price, Ren Gleason, Madisyn Hamm, Christopher Efta, Klarissa Norris, Sarah Miller, Mark Ventieicher, Kyler Peters, Mason Sindelar, and Jaden Jones.
Pierce band director Michael Sindt commented on the day by saying, “It is nice to turn off the scoreboard and get together in a non-competitive situation to work on the common goal of making music.”