Band invites community to march for parade

Sundance’s new music teacher invites anyone and everyone of a musical persuasion to march alongside the students during this year’s parade. Marching is a long-held tradition and fair one of the community’s most important events, Teresa Preisner says, as she invites the community to offer their instruments to the cause.

Preisner is a Gillette graduate who has been teaching until recently in Belle Fourche and will take over this fall as the music teacher in Sundance. Her aim is to build the program back up over the next couple of years.

Kicking things off with a parade might be jumping in at the deep end, but that’s just fine with Preisner.

“I’m hoping to do some rebuilding and this is a good way to get it started,” she smiles.

“I’m going to try to ask any alumni who are interested to come back and march with us.”

Not an alumnus but musically inclined? Come along anyway, she says – the hope is to involve as much of the community as possible.

“It is a small community – what a great thing for everybody to be involved in,” she says.

The marching band will be made up of the junior high and high school bands and “all comers”, while previous music teacher Todd Kahler, an old friend of Preisner’s, has also pledged his assistance.

No particular instruments are sought and the music will be chosen according to the make-up of the marching band, though it will definitely include the traditional rendering of the school song.

“I’m just hoping to get a few more people involved and give them a chance to meet me,” Preisner says.

Rehearsal dates will be June 17 and 18 and June 23 and 24 at 3:30 p.m. in the music room at SHS.