| Gering City Band concert always a crowd-pleaser | |
| July 12, 2012 Doug Harris | |
 Courtesy Photo Gering City Band Director Randy Raines conducts a selection at the Oregon Trail Days concert in 2010. The band is comprised of 65 area musicians. This year’s City Band Concert will be held Friday evening at 8 p.m. at Five Rocks Amphitheater. The concert is free. Music-lovers will enjoy the variety of marches, overtures, show tunes, and movie scores played by the Gering City Band at Five Rocks Amphitheater on Friday evening. The concert will start at 8 p.m. (not the usual 7 p.m. starting time from years past.) “We decided we needed to start the concert a little later,” said band director, Randy Raines. “This way the sun can go down and things will have a chance to cool off a little bit. This is also the same evening as the International Food Fair downtown, and our players like to have a chance to attend that before the concert. Starting a little later will keep the sun out of everyone’s eyes.” Raines, who has conducted the Gering City Band for the past 16 years, said that folks joining together to make music has been a long-held tradition in Gering. “We’ve had a Gering band off and on since the late 1800s,” he said. “I’m not sure how I become director but it seems to come with the territory if you are the band director for the high school. I’m the Gering High band conductor so the Gering Band comes along with that. We have a good time with the annual concert. “Before I was director Dick Moore had the band for several years,” Raines added. “I also know that Don Childs was in charge for many years back in the ‘50s and ‘60s.” The band has 65 musicians who all come from the Valley. “Our age range is between 13 and 83. We have several students from the Gering program and many Scottsbluff students as well. I enjoy that we have returning students too. Some of the players are back from college for the summer and they join up for the Oregon Trail Days show.” Raines said that turnout for the concert is usually very good. “We’ve had up to as many as 800 people,” he said, “and the fewest I’ve seen is around 400-500 people. Everyone seems to have a good time.” When asked if the band had any particular favorite musical numbers they are working on this year Raines said, “I wouldn’t say that we have a specific favorite. We want to offer something for everyone.” The concert is free and the show is expected to last a little over an hour. Read more by Doug Harris |
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