JOPLIN, Mo. —
The Joplin High School band in a segment taped Tuesday morning for Katie Couric’s syndicated talk show got to thank singer Barry Manilow for his donation of instruments after the May 2011 tornado.
Band members and Rick Castor, their director, were interviewed by Couric from the auditorium of the high school’s freshman-sophomore temporary campus via Skype, an online video-telephone program, as part of a segment for her show, “Katie.” Manilow was the show’s featured guest.
After the band lost many of its instruments, as well as marching uniforms and sheet music, in the tornado, Manilow himself presented $300,000 worth of instruments to the band in October 2011 on behalf of the Manilow Music Project. The organization’s mission is to highlight the importance of school music programs, and to donate instruments and other materials to them.
Castor said the donated instruments included six upright pianos, one grand piano, flutes, clarinets, trumpets, cornets, an oboe and a bassoon. He told Couric during the show that Manilow’s donation helped give each student an instrument, which in turn actually kept students in the band program.
Manilow said hearing of the band’s success was “very gratifying.”
“It’s good to see everybody, and I’m glad it worked,” he told Couric during the segment.
Taylor Garrett, a senior in the band, plays both the B-flat clarinet and the smaller E-flat clarinet, the latter of which was donated by Manilow.
“We actually didn’t have one before,” she said. “It’s a really good addition. It sounds different; it’s a little higher. It brings a little more diversity to the woodwind section during concert season.”
Garrett said that in the months after the tornado, she and her classmates wondered whether they would have to take a year off from band, as they had lost so much.
“In October, when he (Manilow) donated all the instruments, we kind of felt complete again,” she said.
Senior AnnaLee Cope also plays a Manilow Music Project instrument that is new to the Joplin band: a contrabass clarinet. Before the tornado, she played a contra-alto clarinet and a bass clarinet.
“This is actually a unique experience for me because we didn’t have one of these,” she said. “I’m the first one to play it. I’m really excited.”
Manilow’s donation was just one part of getting the band back on its feet after the tornado, Castor said. Hundreds of donations had poured in from across the country, from individual instruments to small cash donations.
Air date
THE EPISODE OF “KATIE” featuring the Joplin High School band is tentatively scheduled to air on Wednesday, Jan. 23.
Local News
Joplin band thanks Barry Manilow for help during Katie Couric show
- Local News
-
-
Old McDonald County Courthouse to hold grand opening celebration this weekend
As Jean Stratton-Bird made her way into the war memorial room at the Old McDonald County Courthouse on Thursday, she came face to face with the memories of her brother Eldon E. Stratton, who was lost in battle in 1943 during War World II. “He is finally home,” Stratton-Bird said.
-
Murder warrant issued in fatal domestic shooting
Police believe Doyle Handle shot himself after fatally shooting Dena Davenport during a domestic disturbance Thursday night at their residence in Grove. Officers responded to a 6:55 p.m. report of a shooting at the couple’s home on Wood Street on the southwest side of Grove and found Handle, 52, in the front yard with a gunshot wound to his jaw.
-
Local lawmakers review session accomplishments
Joplin area lawmakers cited accomplishments and disappointments in the just-concluded Missouri legislative session during a brunch Friday sponsored by the Neosho Chamber of Commerce. Measures benefiting veterans issues were addressed in the session that ended a week ago, along with work force and labor issues, lawmakers said.
-
Diamond High School band prepares for Liberty Bowl
Classes were winding down last week at Diamond High School, but not for members of the marching band. Instead, they dug out some new music and began their first rehearsals in preparation for their next major appearance — the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, which is scheduled for Dec. 31 in Memphis, Tenn.
-
Area pools ready for plunge; Schifferdecker opening still to be announced
Though this week’s mild temperatures may not signal swim season, most area pools are ready anyway. And, the mercury should rise a little this weekend to help those anxious to dive in. Highs will be in the low 80s today and Sunday. There is a chance for isolated thunderstorms on Monday, but the thermometer should hit 82 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.
-
Joplin School Board decision could take up to two weeks; Turner remains on paid leave
It could take up two weeks for the Joplin Board of Education to decide whether Randy Turner’s teaching contract should be terminated, the school district’s attorney, John Nicholas, said Friday.
-
Joplin insurance agent seeks donations for Moore, Okla.
After losing an office building and her home in the tornado on May 22, 2011, Loretta Bailey is familiar with the destruction that a tornado brings. The 400 households that her insurance agency helped through the aftermath of the tornado also know that loss. \
-
Families, friends invited to honor veterans with flags this weekend
Small lengths of plastic pipe have been installed behind the headstones of veterans graves in Joplin cemeteries so that every veteran will have a flag on Memorial Day.
-
Events, activities planned to honor veterans Monday
No ceremonies are planned at Joplin cemeteries this year or at Mount Hope Cemetery in Webb City, but a number of other events are scheduled in cities around the region.
-
Oklahoma gets far more than its share of disasters
Many states get hit frequently with tornadoes and other natural catastrophes, but Oklahoma is Disaster Central.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Old McDonald County Courthouse to hold grand opening celebration this weekend
