Strike up the band: Bulldogs tune up for unique marching season

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  • Sunshots by Grayson Williams — Hart County High School band captain Adam Walters, right, helps Caleb Reed, left with his music during the second day of band camp on Tuesday.
    Sunshots by Grayson Williams — Hart County High School band captain Adam Walters, right, helps Caleb Reed, left with his music during the second day of band camp on Tuesday.
  • The trumpets section practices their music at band camp on Tuesday at Hart County High Schol.
    The trumpets section practices their music at band camp on Tuesday at Hart County High Schol.
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"Stranger Things” is a fitting show for the type of year 2020 has been — and band director Alan Tolbert agrees as the band begins its less-than-normal camp.

The music from the popular Netflix show is what the Hart County High School Marching Band has been practicing as they started pre-camp this week in anticipation of band camp next week. 

The 80’s rock-themed music is what the band will be performing this year, if sports and extracurricular activities are permitted once again after they were scrapped in March due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 

Tolbert said he picked the music because he likes to have four different types of shows over four years so the students are exposed to different types of music.

“It was time for a rock show,” Tolbert said.

Around 110 to 115 students are participating in the band program this year, Tolbert said, but those numbers won’t be finalized until the school knows how many students will be participating in the virtual learning options. 

Under the plans approved by the Hart County Board of Education Monday night, students who choose the virtual learning option will be allowed to participate in extracurriculars. However, band is co-curricular, Tolbert said, meaning the instrumentalists take a music class along with extracurricular band activities and students won’t be able to take a virtual band class, unless that policy is changed.

The band, like sports, is currently limited to groups of 50 people, which means the band is broken up into groups for the camp.

Tolbert said extra safety precautions are being taken. Students are now taking their instruments home and sanitizing them their self after use.

“It’s just going to be a much shorter camp and the whole band’s not going to be together,” Tolbert said. “We don’t know when we’ll be able to come together.”

The band’s usual “Sneak-a-Peek” show, typically at the end of camp is cancelled, Tolbert said.