SOUTHERN PINES, N.C. – U.S. Army paratroopers assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division All-American Band and Chorus performed nine songs at Pinecrest High School in Southern Pines, North Carolina, Oct. 2, 2018.
“Students got to learn concert behavior as an audience member, which is part of our North Carolina Music Essential Standards, said Luke Arno, a music teacher and the event organizer. “They got to experience musical concepts that they learned in class.”
With the school’s auditorium filled with approximately 1,200 fifth graders from Moore Country, the Division’s band members in the brass and woodwind quintet also educated the children on a few instruments in between songs.
Arno believed that bringing the All-American Band was an effective way to familiarize the children with concepts they have learned in music class such as harmony, rhythm and dynamics.
“Many of the Moore County children are children of military families,” he said. “It is not unusual for them to see fatigues. This exposed them to a different side of the Army.”
Having taught in Moore County for nearly five years, Arno emphasized the significance of experiencing music at an early age instead of waiting until adulthood.
“It really leaves an impression at this age,” the native of Southern Pines, North Carolina, said. “I remember when I was in elementary school going to concerts. It excited me.”
For the students who love music, the event may have sparked the idea of being a professional musician in a different setting, he said.
Throughout the year, The 82nd Abn. Div. Band shared their passion for music with potential future Division paratroopers.
“During the months of March and April, we went out to schools to perform,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Nicole Daley, the noncommissioned officer in charge of 82nd Abn. Div. brass quintet. “It was nice to give back to the next generation.”
The experienced trumpet player fondly remembered how she felt about music as an adolescent.
“Playing for kids is awesome, because I remember being that kid,” the native of Tampa, Florida, said. “The band became my home in middle and high school.”
This event showed the children that there are various ways to pursue music as a professional career.
Daley began playing instruments at the age of eight and now has two bachelor degrees and one master’s degree in music. Now she’s able to serve her country while doing what she loves.
It’s the best of both worlds for me to be able to fulfill that kind of dream, she said.
She compared the concept of children learning how to play an instrument to the concept of children learning how to read and write.
“If you expose them to hearing this music now, it won’t seem out of the blue when they attend a school where they can play it,” she said.
Samuel Cockman, a fifth grader from Southern Pines, North Carolina, thought the 82nd Abn. Div. Band and Chorus gave an impressive performance. He left the auditorium excited and intends to learn to play an instrument.
They were very good and I liked the drums, he said.
The members of the 82nd Abn. Div. Band plan to perform for fifth graders in Moore County annually.