PETOSKEY — The Petoskey Steel Drum Band’s busy summer schedule will be even more exciting this year when they travel to Philadelphia to take part in the Salute to Independence 250th – USA Celebration Parade.
The parade includes entries from every state in the country, and the steel drum band will be representing Michigan on the national stage.
“It’s pretty cool, pretty exciting,” said band director Duane Willson. “We’ve performed at Mardi Gras in New Orleans every other year and we’ve been 14 times, so we’re not shy to a big stage, but this will be new to us because we’ve never been to the East Coast before. Hopefully, we’ll start getting a little bit known out there and who knows what the next opportunity might lead to. It’s a pretty awesome honor to be representing the state of Michigan.”
Building on a legacy
The steel drum band was first formed at Petoskey High School 30 years ago by previous director Barry Bennett.
“Our 30th year coincides with the 100th year of the (Traverse City) Cherry Festival and the 250th of the signing of the Declaration of Independence,” Willson said. “It’s kind of a crazy year for us.”
The band has grown both in size and popularity over time.
“When Barry started it a long time ago, we didn’t have as many drums as we have now,” Willson said. “We didn’t have as many students as we have now. Those numbers have ebbed and flowed and it constantly changes. I would say we’re unique in that we do play all summer. There are other schools that have some steel drums but I don’t know of any that have the double deck bus like we have that travels as extensively as we do.”
Petoskey students can start learning how to play steel drums in the sixth grade, and by the time they get to high school they can usually play five or six songs.
“Their freshman year they get a bunch of charts and then we kind of just keep it rolling,” Willson said.
Their setlist varies slightly from year to year based on what parades are on their schedule, but Willson said they play “everything from Jimmy Buffett to ‘Ants Marching’ by the Dave Matthews Band to Béla Fleck and the Flecktones.”
“It’s a pretty eclectic group of tunes,” he said. “We even play some Shakira, and ‘Hot Hot Hot’ by Buster Poindexter. It’s anything from pop to really all kinds of genres in between.”
There are 40 students in the band this year, and many of them balance band time with athletics, theater, clubs, student leadership and other school activities.
“The kids are super talented. They work extremely hard,” Willson said. “They’re involved in a ton of stuff and they’re really good at what they do.”
A busy summer
The steel drum band will be playing all over Michigan this summer, with parades, park concerts, private shows and more already on their schedule.
“It’s everything from we’ll go up to the U.P. as far away as Manistique and then this next weekend we’ll be down in Holland at the Tulip Festival,” Willson said. “That’s kind of as far away in Michigan as we get, but we’ll do the Traverse City Cherry Festival, we’ve got the Gaylord Alpenfest parades. We’re headed out to the Semiquincentennial parade in Philadelphia, which is really exciting.”
For the students, getting to travel and perform for big crowds is always fun.
“I really like performing for the crowds because it’s super interactive,” said junior Courtney Howard. “You get to see a bunch of people and you feed off of their energy, so if you give them energy they’re going to give it right back. It’s like you’re enjoying this special moment with the people who enjoy hearing you.”
“We don’t get to just spread joy to people in Petoskey but we get to go all the way to New Orleans and now Philadelphia,” added junior Inanna Story.
The Philadelphia parade just might be their biggest performance yet. The band has already received recognition and congratulations from state leaders.
“It’s been neat to let people know about it and I’ve received a letter from the governor congratulating us,” Willson said. “We’ve been put in the Congressional Record, which has been cool. (U.S. Rep. Jack) Bergman put us in that to recognize us. (State) Rep. Parker Fairbairn sent congratulatory notes to all the kids. That’s been really cool to see that community support.”
The trip will also be jam-packed with educational opportunities for the students.
“We’re not just going out to Philadelphia to play the parade, we’re actually stopping at Gettysburg on the way out and doing a battlefield tour of that so the kids can experience that and see that part of our history,” Willson said.
They’ll also be seeing Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, homes where Betsy Ross, Ben Franklin and George Washington lived, and even climbing the Rocky Steps at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
“It’s a ton of stuff and we’re super excited about it,” Willson said. “The kids are really pumped. We’ve got a lot of parents coming out chaperoning. We’re actually taking two buses because we had so many parents that wanted to go, which is cool and great.”
Juniors Howard and Story said they are looking forward to the brand new experience.
“I think it’s incredibly important right now to come together and it’s going to be super cool to see everybody from all over the country,” Story said.
“I’m really looking forward to not only seeing the history of Philadelphia but representing Michigan because this is a big deal for us,” Howard added. “We’re only 14-18 years old and we’re representing the whole state. It’s going to be an eye-opening opportunity for all of the students in the program.”
They’re going to need to stick to a tight schedule, however, since the Philadelphia parade is on July 3 and the band plans to be back in Petoskey in time to play in the Fourth of July parade.
“It’s going to be a quick turnaround, but it’s like I told the kids, if we could celebrate it out there with them we need to be able to celebrate here with our hometown that’s going to support us on this journey,” Willson said.
The band is currently raising funds to help finance the trip.
“We’re trying to fundraise $80,000 to get out there and I found a donor who is willing to match anything up to $40,000 to get us to that and we’re very close,” Willson said, adding that donations are coming in from all around the country from past band members, residents and fans.
“It’s truly a community effort and just speaks to what a broad audience the steel drum band has and that we’ve been able to attract throughout the years,” Willson said. “I couldn’t be prouder of the legacy that we’re continuing for Mr. Bennett.”
To make a donation, send a check to Petoskey Bands at 801 Northmen Drive. The Petoskey Band Boosters is a nonprofit and donations are tax deductible. For more information, visit petoskeysteeldrumband.org or email dwillson@northmen.org.
— Contact Jillian Fellows at jfellows@petoskeynews.com.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey Steel Drum Band to represent Michigan at Philadelphia’s America 250 parade
Reporting by Jillian Fellows, The Petoskey News-Review / The Petoskey News-Review
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