On a Saturday morning in late July, a diverse group of musicians gather at the Lake City Community School.
They are here for their second band practice.
Their first practice was on Friday evening after many of them traveled hundreds of miles to get to this remote town.
They range in age from teenagers to octogenarians. Some are professional musicians. Others are hobbyist players. Several even play in a high school marching band.
Dr. Brett Keating, the conductor of the Lake City Stinger Band, is leading the group for the third year.
He conducts professionally across Colorado, the United States, and even internationally. Keating is also a music professor.
“Summer is my time when I'm not teaching university so it’s kind of my chance to take on these project ensembles,” he said. “They are always a lot of fun and I love doing it. And, I’m lucky that people ask me to do it.”
Keating and the musicians in the Lake City Stinger Band volunteer their time to make it happen.
The band was started as a local group in late 1990s, but as demographics in the tiny town—population about 400—changed there weren’t enough local musicians to keep it going. So, the band had to evolve.
About a decade ago, organizers invited musicians from out of town to come join the band for an intensive few days of practice, followed by a community concert.
Yvonne McChesney, a 65-year-old alto saxophone player from Montrose, answered that call. This is her tenth time playing in the Stinger Band.
“I’m kind of like the champion in the Montrose Community Band to get people to come,” McChesney said. “We bring the saxophones.”
Violet Farmer plays the French horn in the Loveland Concert Band. This is the 23-year-old’s second time participating in the Stinger Band. Her former teacher got her involved.
“My French horn teacher when I was in elementary, middle school, and high school is actually in the trumpet section,” Farmer said.
For Farmer this is also a family affair. Her mom also plays in the Stinger Band.
“She plays the flute,” she said “It’s a lot of fun. We can talk about the music and practice together.”
76-year-old Gary Miller is a tubist. He plays the tuba in the Silverton Brass Band, the Valley Sympathy in Montrose, and the Brass Quintet in Grand Junction. He started playing with the Stinger Band a decade ago.
He is glad to see some young people playing in the Stinger Band this year as it is dominated by older musicians.
“I love to see the younger people play,” Miller said “We have some young people here in Lake City this weekend. I love it. I hope they continue. School bands are declining in the United States and we need to encourage these guys to continue playing.”
Rylee Berry plays percussion in the Gunnison High School Marching Band. This is his first time playing in the Land City Stinger Band. At 17-years-old, he’s one the youngest members.
“I think it’s pretty awesome being able to be around people with so much experience and being able to learn from them,” he said.
Berry and the other musicians in the Stinger Band have a total of four practices before the show performance on Sunday.
Conductor Keating runs a tight and fast-paced practice. It’s necessary to prepare the band in such a short amount of time. He said the band will play a variety of music for the performance.
“This concert is really kind of inspired by landscapes so it’s music inspired particularly by different American landscapes and is kind of a celebration of Americana,” Keating said.
People are filing into the gymnasium of the local school as members of the Stinger Band prepare their instruments for their concert.
The first song they played is "America the Beautiful".
The band also plays a march called “Monarch,” a new composition written by Dr. Ben Justis of Western Colorado University. It’s named after and inspired by the terrain of Monarch Pass outside of Gunnison.
In total, the Stinger Band played nine songs ending the concert with one titled "Red Rock Mountain".
The band received a standing ovation.
Audience member Mike DeHuff, a Lake City resident, said he was moved by the performance.
“It was the best I’ve seen in I don’t know how long,” DeHuff said. "It makes me want to cry. It was so good.”
His wife Patsie DeHuff felt the same way.
“It is amazing though,” she said. “I was just really impressed. The first song they played brought tears to my eyes. They played it so well.”
Conductor Keating said the band performed brilliantly.
“The musicians just channeled it and played with all their heart,” he said. “If you would’ve heard us Friday night to today, it’s night and day. Night and day difference.”
Keating said he plans to conduct the Lake City Stinger Band next year and also hopes to see more people attend the free concert.
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