World-Famous Cowboy Band hosts second annual High School Band Day

(ABILENE, Texas)–This past Saturday was a busy one on the Hardin-Simmons University campus. While a pre-game preview and the first tailgate of the year excited current and potential student alike, the World-Famous Cowboy Band hosted a group of high schoolers from around the Big Country for HSU’s second annual High School Band Day. A total of 62 students registered for the event, but several more attended who did not fill out the registration forms.

Students learned the famous HSU Cow-step and performed the dance with the Cowboy Band during halftime of HSU’s first home football game in 2019.

Students came from all around to play with the World-Famous Cowboy Band. The largest group present, consisting of 30 students, was from Anson High School. Also represented were Abilene High School and Cooper High School from Abilene, as well as schools from Hawley, Merkel, Wink, Hutto, and Eastland. One student even traveled from Houston to participate in this exciting new band tradition.

“We started this event last year as a way to get students on our campus and familiar with what our band does,” says HSU director of bands, Bill Harden. “Last year we had 53 students that showed up to go with the 53 students we had in the band, so we doubled our numbers for that event,” he explains.

The Cowboy Band remains a family affair, through both the passing of tradition from one generation to the next and the relationships that the program has solidified. One of the three attending high school band teachers at the 2018 High School Band Day was a Cowboy Band ex who passed the Cowboy Band legacy to his son, who now plays in the ensemble.

At 1 p.m. on Sept. 14, attending high schoolers met at the Cowboy Band Hall to register and take part in a short playing rehearsal and a marching rehearsal. During their rehearsals, the students learned the famous Cow-step, which they performed with the Cowboy Band during half time. Attendees not only played with the band at the tailgate but also played throughout the football game. Each student received a purple t-shirt resembling the western shirts worn by members of the Cowboy Band to wear during their performances and to take home.

HSU would like to thank all the high school students who thoroughly entertained the football game crowd this past weekend.