A band alumnus and former band parent has come home to direct the band he was once a part of as Robert Hinds becomes the new head band director. Hinds, a 1991 graduate, came to the school after 12 years directing in Hereford.
“Having been a student/assistant director/ and now head director of the Sandie Band I have a unique perspective,” Hinds said, “My goal has always been that my students try to reach their potential. If you do that, then the sky’s the limit.”
This year’s halftime show will be different from past years. This setlist consists of music from Metallica’s Enter Sandman, Simon/ Garfunkel’s Sound Of Silence, Bartok’s Concerto For Orchestra, Loes’ This Little Light of Mine, and Evanescence’s My Immortal. The band put in hard work and determination with over three hundred plus hours of practice. This year is a competition year where the band will compete to attend the State Marching Competition with their show.
“This year’s show is called ‘Where There Is Shadow There Must Be Light; so it is talking about the transition between in darkness you can still find the beauty, and the light will always come through, expose the darkness and take victory over it,” drum major, Seth Meason said.
Hinds along with drum majors Meason, Sophie Young, and Rylee Tucker feel optimistic that this marching season will continue its high standard and also create a positive culture where students learn to make great decisions.
Our sophomore and freshman classes haven’t had experience marching in a show this difficult, so a lot of pressure is put on them because new marchers make up over half of our band,” Young said.
The band will compete in the High Plains Marching contest Oct 2 in preparation for the Area Marching Contest on Oct. 16. To prepare for competition, practice schedules have doubled to improve the show.
“Past making things look good you want to perform to wrap them in and bring the audience into a world you are creating,” Meason said. “It’s more than just playing notes and marching, it’s about involving the people watching it and really just making sure that we are touching lives,”
