Alta’s marching band placed 3rd in their first competition in Herriman last Saturday, September 28. They do so many amazing things on the field, but have you ever thought about what the Alta band and orchestra leaders actually do? There is so much more to these important leaders than you might think. 

 Each person in the band council plays an important part as there are quite a few positions  in the council. Lizzy Shelley explains her part as the historian. 

“Music is huge, and if we don’t have the right music, or we don’t have the right amount, or like someone lost their music or it gets damaged…. So basically we have to make sure that’s organized so we can use it again and again,” Lizzy Shelley said. “So it’s crucial to keep the library up to date and all organized.” 

 Not only that but because music is expensive, they must preserve all the music they’ve paid for in certain places throughout the library so instrumental students have other pieces to play in the future.

Being a part of leadership can also require positive energy throughout one’s personality. Many join the band council to express their love and joy for music and their instruments. Most of the council is also there to encourage and share their passion for music with all students throughout the school. As president of the orchestra, Aria Kentner helps out everyone else in the council where they require it.

 “I wanted to be the president ever since I was a freshman here… I love it so much…Orchestra is really like my whole life,” Aria says. “The people are amazing and I just wanna help expose as many people to orchestra as I can.” 

Elena Kent, the band president, has responsibilities of helping out the council with posters for socials and other events, making announcements in general and on social media, and designing logos and merch.

It’s always best to try out for roles you’re interested in, you never know what kind of outcome you will get. “I just applied for fun and I got it, and I was very surprised… I felt very underqualified,” Elena Kent says.

Since all the individuals in the band council vary, they each get to carry out all their ideas to get more than one opinion on their current plan. The council is responsible for ensuring something is precise because Shabs doesn’t have much input on their ideas.  

“Shabs is there to buy stuff and help us out occasionally,” Shelley said. “For the opening social, it was like, ‘‘Okay what do we want to do, what’s our plan?”

The council is the mastermind behind all planned events. They come up with ideas to give each instrumental student the best experience with all kinds of events they plan throughout the school year.  

The council as a whole knows and understands what it’s like to join a group full of responsibilities but, they also know that it was totally worth it. They have gained much knowledge and comprehension from their experience in leadership. They have learned lifelong skills and many other abilities including teamwork and great leadership qualities.

 “Even if you think you aren’t fully ready for it, I would definitely recommend it.  It’s kind of those leaps of faith, so even if you’re like “I don’t think I’m ready” like, you can really grow into it,” Shelley said. “It’ll push you…. It helps you be more extroverted, it helps you be more organized like, there’s a lot and you have this good group of people who are willing to support you… you’ve got Shabs and the rest of the band council members who are always there to help push you… So… it’s amazing.”