Frank Augustus Miller Middle School Percussion is continuing preparations for competition in the WGASC (Winterguard Association of Southern California). The group won first place in the PSJHC (Percussion Scholastic Junior High Concert) division, beating other schools from all over the area.
The group, consisting of 20 students, is under the direction of Band Director Susan Olsen and percussion instructors Pete Sapadin and Nathan Huxtable. They learned and performed “J Jekyll and Hyde,” based on the Victorian-era novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, “The Mysterious Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” Students participating in Miller’s Percussion group must attend weekly clinics and pass an audition to display mastery of fundamental percussion techniques and exercises to be admitted to the percussion line.
Miller Percussion rehearses twice a week from January through April. Their next performance will be a showcase in the multipurpose room at Miller Middle School on Wednesday, April 10. This free event will also feature performances by a non-competition percussion line of students from Miller, a competition drumline, and color guard teams from Martin Luther King High School and Miller. The team is confident in a good showing at the WGASC finals on April 27.
Dale Kinnear, candidate for Riverside Unified School District Board Trustee and current RUSD Board President, answers questions about why he is running for re-election.
