It's band rehearsal at the Windham, New Hampshire, high school and band director Jared Cassedy expects a lot from each one of his 87 students.
The band played on stage at Carnegie Hall last April, and this year, Cassedy accepted the Grammy Award for outstanding music educator.
He says it's this piece of hardware that gives him the platform to defend the importance of arts and music in schools.
The UNH grad who grew up in Salem, New Hampshire, says he never could've imagined that one day he would sit a few rows back form the Grammy stage at the Nokia Theater in LA. But to these kids, it only makes sense that Cassedy would be rubbing elbows with celebrities, because in Windham he's a role model for his students.
The Winndham High School band is one of only 17 ensembles chosen out of hundreds across the country to perform the the Music for All Festival in Indianapolis this Friday. So what's next? Cassedy says there are big plans but you'll have to wait and see.
