On Thursday, March 15, in the auditorium, The Griffith High School and Middle School band spring band concert and featured performances from the beginning band, concert band, and symphonic band, as well as several solo performances.

   These three bands each performed three songs, ranging from upbeat instrumentals to slow melodies. The symphonic band played John Philip Sousa’s “Black Horse Troop”, a gigantic anthem of brass instruments. The concert band played a fire themed set, with songs such as “Afterburn”, by Brian Balmages, and “Fire Dance”, by Soon Hee Newbold. The beginning band performed more simple, yet classic songs like “Ode to Joy”.

   Aaron Alexander directed every one of the three bands, making sure that every student is ready for the concert. “When choosing the types of lessons I teach in our band classrooms, I think of it as an hourglass. The further we are away from a concert, we focus more on skills and concepts that help us read, listen to, and understand music. As we get closer to a concert, we focus more on how musicians interpret and perform the music of our concerts,” Alexander said.

   The concert and beginning bands consist of a mixture of high school and middle school students. The symphonic band, however, consists entirely of high schoolers who have been in the band program for upwards of 3+ years. Many of these students performed solo or group songs at Indiana State School Music Association (ISSMA) which celebrates the musical abilities of many students involved in band programs. Junior Ryan Dudlicek, who played a solo during the concert, said, “Mr. Alexander asked me to play it in the concert which is pretty cool because it gave me an opportunity to play in front of more people, I worked really hard on it.”

  These students have a final band concert of the 2018-19 year on Thursday, May 16, and will once again show the improvement of students old and new to the band program.