The audience

at Monday night's Board of Education meeting was treated to a special

performance by the Whitewater Middle School band, even though the meeting

room would never hold all the band members and their instruments.

A new professionally

produced video of the school's band program was presented to the board

tool for recruiting rising sixth-graders into the program, getting sponsorships

from local businesses, and just showing the public the accomplishments

of the program.

Melton gave

a great deal of credit to a band parent who he said has considerable expertise

in video production and whose contacts and experience allowed them to

complete a project that normally would have cost $10-20,000 for less than

$500.

The background

music and sharp editing of the opening sequences backed up Melton's claims

of professional production values. The footage included highlights from

several band performances, such as a school football game, a performance

at a middle school gathering at the University of Georgia, and a special

trip to Orlando. Also included were interviews with selected band members

and their parents.

After the board

commended Melton on the project, board member Janet Smola related a story

that she said reflects the overall quality of the Whitewater program.

She played a compact disc that Melton had given her as background music

for a dinner party at her home, and when she asked the guests to identify

the musicians, they guessed a number of widely known adult performance

groups.

"When

I said that it was a group of 11-, 12- and 13-year-olds, they didn't believe

me," she said. "I had to show them the CD."