Bands march to their own tune at Jackson Band Festival

Chris Starr, director of the Charleston, Mo., High School band, never thought he'd be teaching his students how to play a song by pop star Lady Gaga.

Still, the pop star's "Poker Face" wasn't the only contemporary tune Charleston marching band played for a crowd of more than 800 Tuesday at the Jackson Band Festival.

Starr, whose band was one of eight to perform at Jackson High School, said it was a joint effort between him and the students to choose the songs. They also performed "No Diggity" by Blackstreet, "All Night Long" by Lionel Richie and a song by Santana.

The Marching Cardinals of Woodland High School at Marble Hill, Mo. march uptown in the Jackson Band Festival Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2010 in Jackson. (Fred Lynch)

"Last spring, the kids found a demo recording of new band music," Starr said. "I went searching for similar music. I like all the music we're doing. 'No Diggity' is the one I'm still amazed I liked."

Several of the schools that performed in the exhibition-style festival marched the same path as Charleston and showcased relatively current or poplar music during the field show and parade portion of the festival.

The Meadow Heights High School marching band performed songs by Blink 182 and Sister Sledge, the Jackson freshman marching band performed a song by the Beach Boys and Oak Ridge students performed a medley of pop tunes, such as "Twist and Shout."

"This is a chance for them to see other bands and to see how they perform on a football field," said Judy Sharp, director of the Oak Ridge marching band.

Sharp added that because the Jackson festival had been rained out in 2008 and 2009, many of the students in her band had never ever performed on a football field.

"They're excited," she said. "It's a fun opportunity."

One of the more elaborate performances was put on by Kelly High School of Benton, Mo., whose show was titled "Aliens Among Us."

The group of students played songs from the original "Star Trek" television show and the movie "Space Jam," all while using colorful props, including an alien spaceship as a backdrop.

Keith Kyle, the marching band's director, said choosing this year's theme was a collaboration between him and his students.

"It was between aliens or a circus theme," Kyle said. "We do not have a football program at our school, so doing a field show is a treat for them."

Although there were no regulations on what music bands could play, several directors, including ones from Cape Girardeau Central High School and Chaffee High School, went a more traditional route.

Billy Keys, one of three directors from Central, said his students performed a selection of songs by Russian composer Peter Tchaikovsky.

Alan McFerron, director of the Chaffee band, said his band played "classic orchestral" selections.

"What we do is we choose the music from the last show we did," McFerron said. "We do a different show at each home [football] game."

Although the marching bands spend hours practicing their performances for the Jackson festival, many of them take the same show to competitions throughout the academic year.

The exhibition event in Jackson allows the students to see the other bands' performance styles, while also giving them a chance to perfect their own.

Starr said his students will perform the same music all year long.

"It's a constant process of perfecting, tweaking, adding and adjusting," said Starr, whose school will host its own band festival Saturday.

Because the Kelly High School marching band is in a bit of a restructuring phase after losing a few seniors, the festival was a perfect time to rehearse for upcoming parades and concerts.

"We look at this as a very formal dress rehearsal," Kyle said.

The final performance of the festival included all of the students -- more than 600 of them -- playing a medley of patriotic tunes, honoring veterans and women and men currently serving in the armed forces.

The students played the national anthem and "America the Beautiful."

"We couldn't have asked for better weather," said Jackson High School band director Scott Vangilder. "It's a perfect night; it sounds cliche, but it's a good night."

ehevern@semissourian.com

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