Mount Pleasant Magazine Nov/Dec 2018

48 www.MountPleasantMagazine.com | www.ILoveMountPleasant.com | www.BestofMP.com B uilding a nationally recognized musical powerhouse at the high school level doesn’t happen overnight. The accolades are numerous for the award- winning Wando High School band, but, with arts funding limitations, it has taken a combination of strong feeder middle schools, dynamic leadership, dedicated community support and vigorous fundraising to help create and maintain a culture of success. You may have heard about some of Wando’s myriad of band honors: 11-time South Carolina State Champions; 54 All-State band members last year (the next-highest school had 24); 114 All-Region band members (also tops in the state); and nine students in the All-State Jazz Band (the second-closest school had five). More than 260 students participate in band at Wando, and each is involved in the marching band in some capacity, whether it’s music, props or electronics. But Wando is much more than just a marching band; it integrates different elements of music such as concert bands, jazz bands, symphonic bands and chamber groups and ensembles that play engaging concert performances throughout the year. Consistency at the helm has helped propel the WHS band to even greater heights. WHS Band Director Bobby Lambert and Associate Directors Lanie Radecke and Jeff Handel have collaborated at Wando now for five years. “We’re really proud of the team we’ve assembled,” said Lambert. That team starts with the directors of the middle school band programs feeding Wando, a critical component contributing to its long-term success. Jeff Scott at Cario, Mason Mumford at Moultrie and Nicholas Nafpliotis at Laing are the respective band BY COLIN MCCANDLESS The Anatomy of a Winner Wando Band Puts Mount Pleasant on the Musical Map