Meadow Bridge Regional School Band excels in band performances, prepares for long-awaited new room
MEADOW BRIDGE, WV (WVNS) – After years of holding classes without a traditional band room, the Meadow Bridge Regional School Band will finally have their new classroom any day now.
Mercer County Schools makes Teacher Appreciation Week extra special
The Meadow Bridge Regional School Band has grown rapidly over the past eight years. Currently, the band consists of 99 members – 69 middle schoolers and 30 high schoolers.
They went from an old shop room to a boys' locker room, and most recently they held classes in a custodial closet right next to the gym.
Construction has been going on at the school, with the addition of a new state-of-the-art band room in the works.
Band Director Dr. Travis Friddle told 59News, despite their current situation, his high school band got a 1 (the best possible score) at the Spring Festival For Performance Evaluation and Assessment, or, as they call it, Ratings. Dr. Riddle's middle schoolers had it even tougher, as they were limited to only one practice before ratings. They received a 2.
'It honestly brought tears to my eyes because I look back at the struggles of it and I have said this to my students, 'I am here for one reason, and it is the kids.' If it were not for them, there would be no way to survive this. There would have been no way. They are very good kids. They really are. This school is very unique,' said Dr. Friddle.
Some longtime band members like senior Alec Thomas have endured all the changes with Dr. Riddle. Thomas' dedication to music and the program has opened new doors for him. He will be attending Marshall University for their music education program next fall.
'It has been hard. It's been long, but it is definitely worth it just to see the end of it. Just the nice, very nice band room that we have [is amazing]. To know that the students that I have played with for the past seven years have actually get to experience [it is even better],' said Thomas.
Meadow Bridge Regional School Band prepares to take on football season and more, against all odds
Dr. Friddle explained this new band room will have acoustical tiles surrounding the room, the floor is wood and will have a partition wall that leads into a multipurpose room – which can hold 200 people. He plans on using the room for band concerts in the future as well.
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