Grace Kuhl, daughter of Jason and Marie Kuhl, will be attending Olney Central College on a music scholarship where she will perform in 3 different groups. Rock band, community band, and concert band. “For rock band I will most likely be singing, but there is also the possibility of me playing the drums as well. For community and concert bands, I will be playing various percussion instruments.”
Grace has also participated in marching band all 4 years, beta club, Spanish, math, and science clubs, scholastic bowl, and math team.
What made you decide this school was the best fit for you? – OCC is close to home, and their student community is very tight-knit. Both of my parents went there as well, so my family feels very confident in the education I’ll be getting. Every person from OCC, whether it be staff or students, have all been very welcoming and friendly, which really sticks to that family feel.
How do you feel NCHS has prepared you for this next step in life? – I’ve learned through my 4 years that the only way to truly make yourself stand out and be noticed is not only to put yourself out there, but to live up to what you say as well. Some of the most successful people in our school are the ones who stick to what they believe, no matter what it is. Another thing is that it’s ok to ask for help when you need it. Nobody has it all figured out overnight, and nobody expects us to have it all figured out like that either.
What are at least two life lessons you have learned from your musical time at NCHS? – 1. Always expect the unexpected. Two years in a row, my instrument has broken in some form or another at U of I, the biggest competition of the entire season. Both times, Mr. Ridlen thought on his feet and came up with some sort of way to temporarily fix it until the end of the performance. And I can’t even count the number of other things that have gone wrong behind the scenes that Mr. Ridlen has fixed on the spot. He’s taught those of us in pit that even if we think our strings are good, we need to have an extra set ready on competition days just in case something happens, because you never truly know what can and will happen!
2. Always work hard, but make sure to have some fun along the way. While band camps may be hot and tiring, we’ve always had fun instructors that truly love what they do to guide us through them. And during sound checks, Mr. Ridlen likes to prank us sometimes by replacing the pre-show with the scream at the beginning of James Brown’s “I feel good.” Yes, we put in a lot of hot and tiring hours for band, but I bet that if you asked any of the Marching Eagles, they’d say that it’s totally been fun.
How have your instructors and/or directors helped prepare you to perform at a collegiate level? – When I told Mr. Ridlen that I was looking at auditioning for band at OCC, he was very supportive and helped me decide what kind of pieces I should prepare for the audition. And even before that, he’s let me hang out in the band room during lunch to listen to our concert band or practice stuff that I’ve been working on. With the Marching Eagles, there’s always been a culture of not only growth as a band, but as individuals too. But it doesn’t just come from Mr. Ridlen and Mr. Finely, it comes from the other students in our sections, from the students in other sections, and from their families as well. Everyone supports everyone in band!
What will you miss the most next year about not being a Newton Eagle? – I think the biggest thing I will miss is marching season. I’ve always enjoyed getting to go to different schools for a day to perform. And I have a lot of awesome memories from the bus rides as well.
As for other things to say – I’d like to thank everyone who has been there for me and supported me through the last 4 years!
