GCCC Director of Bands Named KBA Outstanding Young Bandmaster

Courtesy of Garden City Community College

Garden City, KS — Garden City Community College Director of Bands, Casey Hands, has been named the 2019 Outstanding Young Bandmaster by the Kansas Bandmaster’s Association (KBA). The award will be presented to Mr. Hands at the KBA Convention in Wichita on July 19. The Outstanding Young Bandmaster award is presented annually by the KBA and the International Bandmasters Fraternity, Phi Beta Mu. The award is distinguished by its presentation to a bandmaster who has taught for fewer than seven years.

About GCCC Band Director, Casey Hands:

Casey Hands began his teaching career at Garden City Community College in the fall of 2013, as the Athletic Band Director. He moved into the Director of Bands position in July of 2015, and since that time, has made some major improvements to the band and music programs at GCCC, not the least of which was Casey’s instrumental role in proposing and developing the only marching band at the community college level in Kansas. GCCC’s marching band made its debut, under Casey’s direction, in the fall of 2016, and has grown exponentially since that time. Casey recently completed his Master’s degree in Music at Fort Hays State University, and holds a graduate certificate in Teaching and Learning in Music from Kansas State University.

Casey will deliver a speech at the KBA Convention to accept his award. He plans to send a message that includes some advice for success in any undertaking. “When you try to do everything by yourself, you almost always fail,” Casey said. “For me, it is not an award that just I have won, because I have always had people backing me up and helping me, and I think that what makes you successful and able to accomplish things like this and do things like this is if you are always willing to take help when it is offered and always willing to work with people.” Casey was nominated for the KBA award by his former high school band instructor and active KBA member, Paul White.

About the KBA and the Outstanding Young Bandmaster’s Award

The Kansas Bandmaster’s Association is a state-wide organization for anyone interested in band, and its members represent educators and band enthusiasts from both the K-12 and collegiate levels. Each year, the organization partners with Phi Beta Mu, an international bandmasters’ fraternity, to honor an Outstanding Young Bandmaster in Kansas, through a nomination process. For the past three years, a bandmaster from western Kansas has been named as a recipient for the award.

For more information about KBA, visit www.kansasbandmasters.com