On Tuesday, Nov 14. OHS held its first All Band concert in the new Wenger Performing Arts center. The Huskies Band played first, followed by Varsity Band and Concert Band. All bands play under the direction of Mr. Peter Guenther. Guenther has worked as a band teacher for 31 years, with a total of 22 years here in Owatonna.
With the new building, many things have changed for the OHS music department, students have the opportunity to have more space for practicing and storing instruments. In the old building, the band room had no windows Mr. Guenther said, “It felt like a dungeon, there might as well be zombies hanging around.” Studies have shown that students have better learning rates when accessing natural light. With windows in the new band room the OHS hopes to provide a better learning environment for its music department.
The Owatonna Orchestra has been preparing for their first concerts of the year. On Monday, Nov 20. there will be a Huskies and Varsity Orchestra concert. Both orchestras play under director Ms. Sandra Justice. The orchestra has been building skills along the way to transform how the music sounds from the first time they play up until they perform it on the stage. This year, the orchestra received the Meritorious School Orchestra Award. The award is voted on by the Minnesota String Teachers Association. Ms. Justice said, “It’s a huge honor. It recognizes a district versus an individual.” In addition to the first concert, there will be another concert including the carolers, concert choir and symphony orchestra. At the concert, James VanDemark will also be performing. VanDemark is an Owatonna graduate and bass instructor from Eastman School of Music.
Owatonna’s Huskies and Varsity choirs will also be performing at the concert on Nov 20. The choir director is Ms. Paula Asmus. She is looking forward to watching students perform in the new space. Ms. Asmus said, “I think it will be fun to showcase to our community that we’re in a new building, but the tradition of the Owatonna music program is just as strong as it’s ever been.” The music department looks to grow with the new school and maintain its culture of excellence built in the old high school.
