[Iabs-talk] [acb-l] blind band will be rose parade's first

[Kelly Doty]

This should be interesting. BTW, Macy McClain, who is mentioned at the end 
of the article, is certainly known to Federationists.

Kelly
----- Original Message ----- 

From: "Dave Wright" <gymnastdave at sbcglobal.net>
To: "NFB of Illinois Mailing List" <il-talk at nfbnet.org>; "National 
Association of Blind Students mailing list" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>; "Illinois 
Association of Blind Students List" <iabs-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, October 21, 2008 10:28 PM
Subject: [Iabs-talk] [acb-l] blind band will be rose parade's first


> This is kind of interesting...
>
> [acb-l] blind band will be rose parade's first
>
>
> Blind band will be Rose Parade's first
> Tuesday,  October 21, 2008 3:12 AM
> By Jennifer Smith Richards
>
> THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
>
> Members of the Ohio State School for the Blind marching band react to news
> that their band has been invited to the 2010 Tournament of Roses Parade. 
> The
> entire student body was in the gym when the surprise announcement was 
> heard.
>
> The band's trip to Pasadena, Calif., will cost about $1,500 per person.
> Donations can be sent to the Ohio State School for the Blind
> Parent-Teacher-Staff Organization, 5220 N. High St., Columbus 43214
> The entire student body had been herded into the gym to sing The
> Star-Spangled Banner, which was video- recorded for a school project.
>
> That was pretty cool, in itself -- several of the roughly 120 students at
> the Ohio State School for the Blind have perfect pitch, so it wasn't your
> average school-choir rendition.
>
> What happened next was even cooler: Music director Carol Agler's cell 
> phone
> rang and the crowd went quiet. She held the microphone to the phone's
> earpiece as a man, calling from California, invited the school's marching
> band to join the 2010 Rose Parade.
>
> You'd have thought Paris Hilton or the Jonas Brothers had just walked 
> in --
> that's how loud the screaming was.
>
> "Congratulations, and we look forward to seeing you all," said Gary Di-
> Sano, the parade's president in 2010.
>
> The Rose Parade, which features flowers-only floats and takes place in
> Pasadena, Calif., each New Year's Day, has never hosted a blind marching
> band. In fact, Agler said she doesn't know of another one in the country.
>
> Right now, there are only 17 band members, plus about as many sighted
> marching assistants who help them stay in formation.
>
> "I think this will generate more kids in the band," said Agler, who
> co-directs the band with another teacher, Dan Kelley. They've got a year 
> to
> whip the band into shape and to raise money for the cross-country trip.
>
> Band members likely will practice marching on the school's campus and even
> on one of the gym's treadmills. The parade route is about 6 miles and will
> take about two hours to march, a grind the band isn't used to.
>
> "I'm nervous, but I'm excited, too. It's gonna be hard, but we're gonna 
> get
> through it," said Bria Goshay, a 15-year-old snare drummer from Columbus.
>
> The band was formed in 2005 and played its first full season with about 20
> members in 2006. Its uniforms are castoffs from another high school that 
> got
> new ones.
>
> During a regular season, the band plays for an audience a handful of 
> times:
> at deaf-school football games, at a Dublin high-school pregame show, at 
> the
> Ohio State University Skull Session in St. John Arena. The band recently
> marched in a Circleville Pumpkin Show parade.
>
> Twenty-one bands from across the country have been booked for the Rose
> Parade, said music committee chairwoman Stacy Houser. Two others,
> Pickerington Central High School and Ohio University, are from Ohio.
>
> "A blind marching band is such an incredibly unique thing," she said. 
> "We're
> hoping it'll be an inspiration throughout the country."
>
> Bands are chosen using several criteria, including marching and musical
> ability, uniqueness and overall talent.
>
> Macy McClain, who plays the flute and piccolo in the band, likened the 
> honor
> to being on American Idol.
>
> "Except you don't have to stand in line," she said.
>
> jsmithrichards at dispatch.com
>
> Multimedia
>  a.. A look back: View an audio slide show from 2006 about the Ohio State
> School for the Blind band
>
>
> Best Regards:
> David Wright
>
> Email: dwrigh6 at uic.edu
> Mobile: 832-518-0707
>
> http://www.knfbreader.com
> _______________________________________________
> Iabs-talk mailing list
> Iabs-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/iabs-talk
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> Iabs-talk:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/iabs-talk/kelly%40dls.net
>