Students in Rock Band programs at Red Deer middle schools will perform a live show next week.
The "Appetite for Instruction" concert will feature performances from students in the Eastview Middle School Rock Band program, the inter-school After School Rock Band, and the Rock Band North program, which encompasses Normandeau School, G.H. Dawe School and Glendale School.
The event will serve as a fundraiser for the middle-school Rock Band programs and will be held at Bo's Bar and Stage from 6-8 p.m. on Tuesday, June 10.
"The kids are super stoked. This is the first time they'll get the chance to play that stage. It's an awesome opportunity for them," said Dan Barton, who runs the program with Kelly Henry and Greg Boulay.
"Every student that walks into (a Rock Band program) is trying to find where they belong, so they can have an opportunity to grow. We've seen the camaraderie and everybody joining together through their love and passion for music. Their interests are anything from old schools '50s and '60s, to Beatles, to new pop, to things coming from movies and video games. We love tapping into all of it."
About 15 years ago, Greg Boulay started a rock band club for students at Glendale School, where he was a teacher. He began teaching at Eastview School, where he also launched a rock band club.
"It was kind of tagging onto the music program at Eastview. There would be five or six kids in the club (each year) and they'd play a couple songs at a year-end concert," explained Barton.
"Coming off of COVID, I ran into Greg at (the musical instrument store) Long and McQuade. I had seen some of his work with students because friends of mine had kids in the club. I told him I wanted to get involved and he welcomed me with open arms."
They teamed up with Kelly Henry, who was the new music instructor at Eastview. The three then began building the program together.
"The feedback we got in the first year was really awesome. We really jumped into it whole-heartedly the following year and it got a lot bigger — we had about 25 kids at Eastview participating," said Barton.
The three decided they wanted to provide a similar opportunity to students outside of that school as well.
"We started an outreach program for any kid in the city, regardless of what school board they were under," said Barton.
"They were more than welcome to come and be part of this program. ... We started putting on bigger shows. We brought on full-on professional (audio) and light setups."
Red Deer Public Schools saw the success of the Eastview Middle School Rock Band and inter-school After School Rock Band programs and helped launch the Rock Band North program this past year.
"We went into the schools, told the kids what it was about and hope they'd show up. The numbers we saw were awesome — we had 30 kids right off the bat. From there, we had to look at where we were going to put our roots in so we could build this program," said Barton.
"We're building actual classes. The Rock Band program at Eastview is now an actual class where students can be graded."
Bands from each program will perform at the June 10 show at Bo's Bar and Stage. To buy tickets to the fundraiser show, visit bosbar.com/shows.
