And the beat goes on. Almost a year after losing a band director and many band members mid-season, the Ferriday High School band has a new leader and about 100 excited faces.

And Kendall Damon knows he has plenty to live up to. Former band director Carl Dangerfield left behind 30-plus years with the school and a fleet of trophies. &uot;There is tradition here,&uot; Damon said. &uot;There were rules and goals set, and I don’t want to change that. And I know we have to be ready for the show and for Battle of the Bands.&uot;

Damon, who majored in music education at Grambling State, said he’s already seen improvement among the band members at this week’s band camp.

&uot;We’ve been here three days, and from the first day we are shaping up,&uot; he said. &uot;The most important thing about music is to get started off right, preparation. It’s a process. You teach fundamentals and build on it.&uot;

Band camp Wednesday started at 7 a.m. for Damon and ended after meeting with each section of instruments and the drum majors at 5:30 p.m. The students have spent seven hours each day this week at the school learning skills. &uot;He teaches us different things,&uot; said sixth-grader April Harris, who has been in the band for six years. &uot;It’s going to be better this year.&uot;

Several band members said they like working with Damon, 24, because he is young. &uot;He’s fun,&uot; junior Courtney Taylor said. &uot;He knows about us.&uot;

For Damon, a native of Lafayette, the Ferriday job is a big step. &uot;I didn’t think I’d move so fast,&uot; he said. &uot;I thought I’d start at a middle school, but I’ll take it as it comes. This is what I’ve always wanted.&uot;

Damon knows one of his goals is redeveloping interest in the FHS band that disappeared when the last director left. At one point the band averaged about 170 members. Now that number is just around 100.

&uot;We are going to keep growing,&uot; Damon said. &uot;I’m going to keep taking them. It is already bigger than it was last year.&uot;

Mylekia Townsend, an eighth-grader, said she was excited about marching season. &uot;I’m in the band because I’ve been watching people in the band for a lot of years and they encouraged me,&uot; she said.

Former band member Calvin Thomas, currently a member of the Grambling band who came back to help with band camp, said he thought Damon would be good for the band. &uot;The children are very excited to have him,&uot; Thomas said. &uot;They feed off him because of his age, because he’s young.&uot;

At the end of the day with instruments tucked away in cubby holes along the wall, Damon still spends time encouraging his student leaders. But that’s a part of the job he knew would be there. &uot;We are not only teaching band, we are teaching life.&uot;