Redskins have high hopes for largest group in years
COSHOCTON – Coshocton High School will be putting a much larger marching band on the field this year.
“We have 56 members and I think that’s the biggest band we’ve had since 1999,” said Band Director Barry Hardesty. “There aren’t many seniors, but the upperclassmen we do have are very helpful. They don’t just wait for the other students to catch up. They are there helping them.”
He also feels the band is really well balanced and progressed well during band camp.
“We have a lot of new kids, but there is experience down the line,” Hardesty said. “On the fourth day of camp we were already putting our fourth song on the field and that is ahead of schedule for us.”
Senior Sara Dobson is ready to get the season started.
“I like working with everyone and I love music,” she said. “I also like the way we are sounding. I think we are going to do really well this year.”
Like Hardesty, Dobson also was excited with how the band progressed during camp.
“We got a lot on the field,” she said. “This was the furthest we got on day four since I started.”
Coshocton Junior High students also can be part of the band by invitation and one of those lucky students is Jett Soungpradith.
“I always wanted to be in the marching band,” said the eighth grader. “I really like playing the drums and learning new cool songs.”
This year’s show is called Sir. Elton John.
“It sounded like it would be fun and challenging,” Hardesty said. “I also thought the parents would enjoy it because they could connect to the music.”
He is looking forward to putting the show in front of judges, especially at Philo and River View.
“We do a double header the day we go to River View and that is always fun,” Hardesty said. “I think we are going to do great this year.
Soungpradith also has high hopes for his first year with the band.
“We are going to do really good with our performances,” he said. “We just need to keep working on our marching and keeping rhythm.”
The Redskins will perform: Saturday afternoon, Sept. 14, at Philo; Saturday afternoon, Oct. 12, at Maysville; Saturday morning, Oct. 19, at River View and in the afternoon at Meadowbrook; and Saturday afternoon, Oct. 26, at New Philadelphia.
josie@coshoctoncountybeacon.com
Category: Clubs & Organizations
