About 180 musicians from 40 area high schools will perform as part of the 63rd annual Northwest Iowa Honor Band Festival at Morningside College at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7, in Eppley Auditorium.

About 180 musicians from 40 area high schools will perform as part of the 63rd annual Northwest Iowa Honor Band Festival at Morningside College at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7, in Eppley Auditorium, 3625 Garretson Ave.

Participants were selected from the 331 students who auditioned in November.

The festival will feature two bands of equal size and instrumentation. The bands will rehearse throughout the day preparing music selected by the guest conductors, Jerry Luckhardt and Dr. Frank Tracz.

Luckhardt is director of graduate studies and associate director of the School of Music at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, where he conducts the Symphonic Band, Chamber Winds and Contemporary Music Ensemble. He also is a professor of conducting and coordinates all aspects of the undergraduate conducting curriculum. Luckhardt has appeared as a guest conductor and clinician with ensembles throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia. 

Tracz is a professor of music and director of bands at Kansas State University. At K-State, he coordinates undergraduate and graduate conducting activities, teaches classes in music education and administers and guides all aspects of the K-State band program. He has served as an adjudicator, clinician and guest conductor for all-state and honor bands across the nation, as well as in Canada and Singapore.

Tickets for the evening concert will be available at the door. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for students. The festival is sponsored by the Northwest Iowa Bandmasters Association, a group of band directors from 15 Northwest Iowa counties.