It’s a trip: Skyview band music marathon

Dozens of Skyview High School band students pulled out their instruments this weekend for a 24-hour music marathon.

If you went shopping today at the Salmon Creek or Grand Central Fred Meyer stores or ate at Beaches Restaurant and Bar, you probably saw them. The marathon, a “musicathon,” began at 7 a.m. Saturday as the students took turns playing in small bands at each of those locations in shifts throughout the day.

And the kids won’t stop playing until 11 p.m.

Altogether, the students will have played for 24 hours this weekend by the time they pack up their instruments Sunday evening after another eight straight hours of performing. The goal of the lengthy performance is to raise money for a Memorial Day weekend trip to the Great America theme park near San Francisco, where about 80 students in Skyview’s concert band and wind ensemble will compete in a national music festival.

“What Great America’s setting up for us is a chance for us to perform, a chance for us to get feedback from extremely qualified adjudicators,” said Tim Heichelheim, the school’s band director. “Then, we’re going to try to show them some of the more cultural areas of San Francisco.”

All donations over the weekend will go toward funding the trip, he said. In all, Heichelheim would like to raise $35,000, which would be enough to cover all the costs for each of his students, but he realizes that’s a lofty goal.

“In an ideal world, if we got 35 grand, everybody would get their trip paid for,” Heichelheim said. “We know we probably won’t reach that goal, but as a band, we do everything together, and I don’t want to travel if somebody can’t go.”

By about 5:30 p.m. Saturday, the students had raised roughly $1,000, he said. But Heichelheim was hopeful they’d have a pretty successful run on Sunday.

“It’s a tricky time of year, because everyone’s so busy,” he said. “But it’s also one of the more promising times of the year as far as everyone’s generosity.”

On Sunday, the students will play from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Salmon Creek Fred Meyer and outside Nordstrom at Westfield Vancouver mall.

For more information on the event or how to donate, visit http://www.svbd.org and click on Musicathon Fundraiser.