Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Band To Play The Blues This Fall

G-Town plays the blues will be the theme for this year's Gurdon Go-Devil Marching Band.

Alan Wimberly, director of the band, told the Gurdon Rotary Club, at its regular meeting Thursday, July 9, the band will be playing such tunes as "Night Train," "What I'd Say," and "Minnie the Mooch."

The band will begin practicing for the halftime performances and contests on Aug. 3. "I hope it cools off by then," Wimberly said.

He informed the Rotarians Anita Cabe, with the Horace C. Cabe Foundation, gave the band some great news on a grant the band had applied for. "This community does a lot for the band," Wimberly said. More than $1,000 was raised at the band auction with the help of the Rotary Club.

The band also took a trip to Six Flags over Texas with help from the booster club and band members. They also visited Hurricane Harbor water park.

A total of 48 went and, Wimberly said, as they were leaving the hotel, he was told they'd never seen such a well behaved group of young people who were so neat and clean. "It shows we raise them good in Gurdon," he said.

Wimberly talked about an article he read in "Parade" magazine entitled "Will Piano Lessons Make A Child Smarter?"

Children have the highest learning skills from birth to age 10. These skills slow somewhat after that.

According to the article, though, music will help children with their higher learning skills skills used in physics and mathematics because the same facilities are needed for them (music, math and sciences).

In a study using mice, the group hearing no music at all could complete the maze they were place in within 10 minutes.

The control group hearing classical music was able to complete the task in as little as 90 seconds.

Control group number three was fed a steady diet of the heavy metal group Anthrax. The Rotarians chuckled when learning these mice needed 30 minutes to find their way around the maze.

While music enhances learning, Wimberly said, the main reason children should be involved in music programs is because it's a satisfying experience, makes them feel better and helps them learn discipline.