By Heather Ruenz
Staff Writer
Members of the Elkhorn Area High School Marching Band recently embarked on a magical journey when they were selected to perform at Disney World in Florida.
Sarah Wuttke, the instrumental music teacher at Elkhorn Area middle and high schools, said they submitted a video audition of a marching performance.
“They accepted us so we marched in the Magic Kingdom. Six bands performed that day,” she said.
The band members were also treated to a half-day workshop that Wuttke said was a very neat experience for her and the students.
“It was with a professional musician from Disney and she gave them a book of music to sight read from. There was also a recording technician so we got to hear how it sounded, make adjustments and do it again,” she explained.
At the end of the workshop, she said, the band worked on a Moana track to go with animation.
“We used headsets with what they called click tracks – to stay on tempo and on time – and then got to watch and listen with the animation. It was really cool,” Wuttke said.
Because the trip was three days and the workshop and parade were each a half-day, there was still ample time to be a kid – for the 76 students and 11 chaperones.
Wuttke said there was only enough time for three parks (Disney World offers four) so she had the students choose their top three and tallied the votes.
“We went to Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom. So we did not do Epcot this trip,” she said.
The EAHS marching band applied in May, and this trip is something it does every four years so each band student gets to attend while in high school.
They got to choose the music for the parade and it was fitting for the venue.
“We played ‘Fantasmic,’ the music they use at Disney for the light show each night,” Wuttke said.
