The Lindale High School Band is splitting into four bands for the 2013-2014 concert season due to a growing population.

“Everybody will have to pull their weight,” head drum major Dylan Bacon said. “Everybody has to play their part. If they have to learn it, then more time spent on their horn will make them better musicians.”

This split is a Lindale High School first and many are on board with the change.

“I like it because it gives us a chance to have a smaller band,” freshman band member, Kaitlyn Dockery said. “It’s easier to practice with a smaller band because you don’t have as many people in there being loud and disruptive.”

To determine this split, students had to prepare for a chair test. A chair test is when members in a given section play the same music for a recorder to be judged by the directors.  They are then placed into the designated band accordingly.

“I practiced my butt off,” drum major Cheyenne Moore said when asked how she prepared for chair tests. “Literally, I practiced every day for forty-five minutes or more.”

The concert bands play the same music;  if too many students in these bands are ineligible to attend contest, they will combine and Lindale will take three bands to contest as opposed to four, according to Concert Band Blue director Casey Johnson. Despite what band a member may be in, everyone is shooting for the same goal.

“I want to get Sweepstakes at UIL Contest,” Moore said.