With over 500 students enrolled in music programs this year, band and orchestra are two of the most popular activities at Seven Lakes. The directors, who are in charge of a little over 250 students each, are tasked with organizing hundreds of students and ensuring the quality of every single performance.
“Here at Seven Lakes [we] are very motivated to do our very, very best,” orchestra director Desiree Overree said. “I have learned to do things early, do things right, and do it right the first time—that’s something that follows me everywhere.”
As three-time State Champions, the orchestra has a legacy that both students and directors wish to defend. Yet, despite being nationally- and state-ranked, the orchestra still strives to continue improving, with plans to invite guest conductors in September and continue the Master Works joint-program with choir and band.
“I can’t say that it’s a perfect system,” Overree said. “But I think it’s structured very, very well because we’ve been nationally and state ranked for a long time now and people come to our campus to see what happens in the classroom.”
This year, the student leadership team chose the theme of “resonance,” combining the message of human connection and collaboration.
“We are striving to try and make our students realize—or help our students realize—that every individual contribution contributes to the whole,” Overree said.
For band director John Mays, these contributions stem from not only the students’ drive but also through an intentional instillation of musical passion. May’s own high school band director was “like a father figure to a lot of people,” a legacy that he wishes to pass down to the next generation.
“I wanted the opportunity to give back in the way that my band director had done,” Mays said. “We are very, very lucky and fortunate with the students that we get to have before us every day.”
The band program also has a demanding year, with a season that revolves around marching band until mid-November. For Mays, this part of the school year is crucial because it lays the groundwork for the rest of the program.
“Our makeup for the fall semester is pretty much heavily driven around the marching band season,” Mays said. “That’s pretty much what everybody is doing through the middle part of November.”
After the marching band season, students fully dedicate themselves to preparing for the Holiday Extravaganza concert in December. Band members also focus on solo and ensemble performances in February, as well as regional and state auditions that begin in December.
“Whether it’s 50 people in the stands or 1000 people in the stands, they have a job to do and their job is to reach out and to connect to the audience,” Mays said. “Just having that drive and that commitment to persevere through those moments is [such] a valuable lesson for musicians.”
For both directors, Mays and Overree, this season is more about trophies and concerts, it is a season to spend time balancing tradition with new challenges while creating a culture of perseverance with all students involved, allowing Seven Lakes music programs to set high expectations in years to come.
