Elvis Presley, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, and the Greater Latrobe Marching Band are just some of the amazingly talented performers who have recorded in Nashville, Tennessee’s RCA Studio B, home of 1,000 hits. When the marching band went on their band trip to Nashville, Tennessee at the end of March, they had a rare opportunity to record their field show Jesus Christ Superstar onto a professionally recorded CD. “It was a cool experience to be able to record where some cool people have recorded hit songs” said senior band member Ryan Stouffer.
After the thirteen hour drive to the home of country music, the band students enjoyed a fun, educational, and exciting trip where they got to make their mark in Nashville, Tennessee. In addition to performing in the recording studio, the band also performed their show outside of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Their show attracted many people passing by the area who were sure to stop and listen to the students playing. It’s not every day you see a marching band performing Jesus Christ Superstar outside of a museum.
However, since this was the last time the band would play their band show as a group, it was a very emotional moment for some of the seniors. “It was a bittersweet feeling. I loved that we got to perform it in Nashville, but it was sad that it was our last time and it couldn’t be for all of the senior’s parents to see us perform it,” said senior Katti Grosso.
But the band didn’t stop there; they also had the unique opportunity to hear the CD of their show played at the Wildhorse Saloon for everyone to hear. While this happened, the colorguard got the opportunity to perform their part of the show along with the songs, with their flags and all. “I felt really honored that we were given the chance to perform there considering many of the performers have to work hard to get a gig there,” said senior guard member Gia Dominick.
Although this was a great opportunity for the guard girls, they only had 30 minutes to prepare for their performance. Senior colorguard member Megan Levay said, “It was very spur of the moment, and I wasn’t expecting it at all. One minute we were eating, the next we were being told we had to go get dressed and bring our equipment into a restaurant. But it was worth it.”
Other memorable things that the band experienced on their trip included, a self-guided tour of the historic Ryman Auditorium, a tour of the Parthenon, a visit to the Nashville Zoo, dinner at the Hard Rock Café, a show and personal tour of the Grand Ole Opry House, lunch on the General Jackson Showboat, dinner at Miss Jeanne’s Mystery Dinner theatre where the entire band got involved in solving the mystery, and the opportunity to stay in the huge Gaylord Opryland Resort which has its own river running throughout the building.
After visiting all of those amazing places, each band member has their own favorite part about the trip. Sophomore Katie Brinker said she liked, “being with all of my friends and having a blast with them, and getting to experience being in a recording studio and knowing that famous artists have been there too.” Ryan Stouffer said that it was a great senior trip and he enjoyed learning “how country music has progressed throughout the years and how music is a big part of our lives.” Overall the trip was a great success; the band students learned about the history of country music while becoming a part of it themselves.
