By Jade Allen, staff writer

The 2017 County Band was held on Feb. 3-4 at Allegheny College in the Shafer Auditorium. Students attended rehearsal all day on Feb. 3 and on Feb. 4 there was a short run-through followed by a banquet prior to the concert. This concert has been held annually for the past 34 years for all high school musicians in Crawford County. The participants include: Saegertown High School, Maplewood High School, Cambridge Springs High School, Meadville Area Senior High, Cochranton High School, Conneaut Area Senior High, and Titusville High School.

Saegertown sent several musicians this year: seniors Jesse Stewart, Logan Krasa, Sydney Kightlinger, Jade Allen, junior Hannah Myers, and freshmen Carson Jones, Oliver Smith, and Sam Shelenberger. They were accompanied by Cambridge Springs High School music director Mr. Jeff Beltz, due to Mrs. Susan James medical leave.

This year’s musical selections were: “The Star-Spangled Banner,” “Moravian Dance,” “Highlights from Into the Woods,” “Silvercrest,” “Sheltering Sky,” “Within These Hallowed Halls,” and “Phoenix.” The concert was directed by Dr. Lowell Hepler, the music professor at Allegheny College. Every year a band director from one of the high schools directs a piece, and this year’s guest conductor was Titusville band director Mr. Jeff Herwig, who led the band in “Moravian Dance.”

Kightlinger, who last attended the festival as a freshman, returned this year on saxophone. “It was a wonderful experience. The people I sat next to were exceptionally talented. It’s always nice to play with people who have the same passion as you.”