For the third year in a row, the Seaside High School Symphonic Band has finished in the top three places at the Oregon 4A State Band Championships.

This year, the band took third place in the competition held May 8 at the La Sells Stewart Center on the Oregon State University Campus. Ten bands competed in the annual contest.

I am so proud of these kids, said music teacher and band director Terry Dahlgren. They exceed my expectations every year; they are truly amazing.

This is the eighth trip the Seaside High School band has made to the state championships in the past 10 years.

Complicated process

The road to the championships is very complicated, Dahlgren said. The process begins in March and includes the district and league contests, where bands perform to earn points.

The league winner automatically qualifies for the state championships. Other bands can earn points for eligibility to be in the tape pool and possibly be selected to perform at OSU.

Band directors must choose one piece of music from a list put together by the Oregon Band Directors Association and choose three more to perform. The entire musical program must be between 18 and 20 minutes.

During the state championship performance, the band is even judged on the time it takes to get on and off the stage, which can be difficult for Seasides 75-member band.

After the bands perform for the judges, they sight read, playing a piece of music after only seven minutes to review the musical score without their instruments.

Dahlgren begins planning the seasons music during the summer, and his focus is not on qualifying for the state competition, but on putting together a program that is good for the kids.

Although it is an honor to qualify for the state championships, Dahlgren said, it is not the focus of the schools music program.

I focus on music that not only fits the guidelines but that the kids will enjoy, get them working together and challenge us. I make it clear to the kids that we are not playing for the judges; we are playing to learn, he said.

Early start

The band programs success begins in the sixth grade, when students first learn to play their instruments. Nearly half of the sixth-grade class at Broadway Middle School participates in band, where Dahlgren teaches music and directs the band.

Although the sixth-graders start out with simple music, by late October they are playing real band music. Dahlgren works with all of the students daily and with each section of the band separately once a week. The process lasts through the eighth grade.

The time I spend working with the various sections is invaluable, because I can focus on individual players, he said. The sectional time is the key to the program.

In high school, the students are prepared to play with the high school band. Between 15 and 20 percent of the high school student body is active in the band during any given year.

Members of the symphonic band also participate in pep band, performing at football and basketball contests. The pep band was a key element in the schools winning the sportsmanship award at last years 4A boys state basketball championships.

Band members can also join the jazz band, which has special performances and rehearses four days a week before school.

The band members, Dahlgren said, are diverse and well rounded; they support and encourage each other.

Music for life

As a young man growing up in St. Peter, Minn. Dahlgren played violin and trombone before settling on the trumpet. As a teenager, he performed and competed with an adult drum and bugle corps, an experience he described as life changing.

Those experiences, along with being exposed to professional musicians, convinced him that music was something he was going to do for a long time.

He studied music at the University of Minnesota where he learned to play various instruments and began teaching in 1989.

In 1991, he and his wife honeymooned in Cannon Beach, and they fell in love with the area. They moved here in 2002 when the teaching position became open.

The Seaside School District has always made the arts a priority. It makes all the difference and it shows, Dahlgren said.

Winning traditions

At this years band championships at OSU, the students observed several traditions. After introducing the individual directors, band members cheered loudly. In a display of support, when Dahlgren was introduced, the Seaside band stood and made a silent salute, followed by cheers of Dahl-gren, Dahl-gren!

Students danced up and down the aisles while the bands awaited the results and the OSU marimba band entertained the crowd.

When the results were finally announced, several Seaside band members clung to each other, hoping Seasides name wasnt called too soon.

Cheers went up when the band learned of its third-place finish, and Dahlgren and the senior band members went to the stage to accept their trophy.

North Bend High School placed second.

Ridgeview High School won the championship, and the Seaside High School band members jumped to their feet in a standing ovation. The applause was truly music to the ears.