The Nebraska Intercollegiate Band, which rehearses and performs as part of the Nebraska State Bandmasters Association (NSBA) spring conference March 3-5 in Lincoln, Nebraska, includes 13 Hastings College students this year. The ensemble features more than 100 students from colleges and universities across Nebraska. Students are selected to be part of the band by nomination of a director and the needs of the ensemble.
The conductor for this year’s band is Dr. Michael Mapp, director of bands and conducting at New Mexico State University (NMSU), a position he’s held since 2017. He joined NMSU after serving as director of bands at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas.
The band is performing the world premiere of “Suspended in a Sunbeam” by Joni Greene. The piece follows the story of the James Webb Telescope, which launched in 2021. It is titled after a line in Carl Sagan’s “Pale Blue Dot” book, which is also the title of a photograph of earth taken by Voyager I in 1990.
The concert begins at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, March 5, in a ballroom at the Graduate Lincoln (141 N 9th Street, Lincoln), and is free and open to the public.
“The Intercollegiate Band gives Hastings College music students an opportunity to interact and network with more than 100 other talented students from across the state, and work with clinicians to improve their skills and musical experience,” said Dr. Louie Eckhardt, Hastings College assistant professor of music and director of bands. Eckhardt is also the coordinator for the Intercollegiate Band.
Hastings College band students participating in the 2022 Intercollegiate Band include:
- Courtney Beave of Hastings, Nebraska, flute/piccolo
- Joseph Campbell of Columbus, Nebraska, bass clarinet
- Jake Darling of Omaha, Nebraska, trumpet
- Alana DeBellis of Hastings, Nebraska, clarinet
- Samantha Gapp of Grand Island, Nebraska, horn
- Kendall Greene of Colorado Springs, Colorado, alto sax
- Ben Howie of Hastings, Nebraska, percussion
- Karl Ludwig of La Junta, Colorado, tenor sax
- Avery McKennan of Fort Calhoun, Nebraska, oboe
- Maria Pytlik of Brainard, Nebraska, trumpet
- Erick Rodriguez of Grand Island, Nebraska, alto sax
- Kierra Spurgeon of Omaha, Nebraska, percussion
- Sarah Sutton of Cheyenne, Wyoming, bari sax
Hastings College is a four-year residential college that focuses on student academic and extracurricular achievement. Hastings’ student-centered initiatives include providing books, an iPad and a two-week study away experience at no additional cost. A block-style semester schedule allows professors and students to focus on fewer classes at a time and promotes hands-on experiences. Discover more at hastings.edu.
