Baton Rouge Concert Band

The Baton Rouge Concert Band (BRCB) is a non-profit community organization dedicated to the cultural enrichment and entertainment of the Greater Baton Rouge area. The BRCB was founded by Vernon Taranto, Sr., who was its lead conductor from its inception in 1976 until 2002. The band has been providing entertainment to the community and performing at civic functions since 1977. Mr. Taranto retired in 2002 after 50 years of conducting, including 25 years with the BRCB. The band is grateful for Mr. Taranto’s contribution and strives to continue the legacy he built.

The BRCB is an entirely “volunteer” community band who are paid only by their love of music. We are presently under the musical direction of Sheily Bell, Conductor, and Daniel Modenbach, Assistant Conductor. The band is composed of approximately sixty local musicians who bring their time and talents in order to provide a wide variety of enjoyable music to the community. Our dedicated musicians are excellent artistic performers from all walks of life including music teachers, educators, doctors, lawyers, chemists, engineers, technicians, computer specialists, retirees, college students, homemakers and more. BRCB currently rehearses every Tuesday evening at Dutchtown High School in Ascension Parish, Louisiana.

The band regularly holds free concerts during the Spring and Fall of each year as well as for Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Christmas holidays. The band also occasionally performs at various community events throughout the year upon request. The BRCB repertoire includes a large range of music for all ages and tastes, including marches, Broadway and Hollywood tunes, pop music, big band, rock, jazz, classical orchestrations, and traditional and modern band compositions. The band has also led to the formation of several small ensembles who further contribute to the local music community, including a brass ensemble and saxophone quartet.

Following the COVID pandemic in 2020, we reassessed how and where we presented our free concerts. The changing demographics of our population led us to partner with the East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library where we now hold a majority of concerts outside in the main plaza area. This venue provides a more family-friendly atmosphere for our audience with better parking and accessibility to the community resulting in significantly larger attendance. Also, since 2022 we have begun live streaming our concerts online.

As a "volunteer" community band, the BRCB welcomes any support (both applause and financial) that can be provided. BRCB graciously acknowledges major financial support received in past years from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Louisiana Division of the Arts, and the Union Pacific Foundation.

Baton Rouge Concert Band Conductor

Sheily D. Bell

Sheily D. Bell is a product of Louisiana public schools and holds multiple degrees in music education from LSU. She has been a music educator for 51 years and is currently Director of Bands at Dutchtown High School. The band program has been under Sheily’s direction since the school opened in 2002. Under her leadership the program has acquired numerous honors and accolades. Previous to her tenure at Dutchtown, Sheily was director at East Ascension and St. Amant High School where her bands were consistently the recipient of superior ratings.

Sheily has been honored with numerous validations of her teaching ability. She was named LBA Bandmaster of the Year in 1994, Phi Beta Mu Bandmaster of the year in 1993 & 2023, as well as Outstanding Band Director of the Year by the SCRMC. Her marching band was recently named The Grand Champion Marching band at the Louisiana Marching Showcase.

Sheily Bell’s bands have received superior ratings at both the district, state, and national levels in marching, concert, and sight-reading adjudication. In addition, her bands have earned top honors at music festivals in Florida, Texas, Tennessee, New York City, Pennsylvania and Illinois. Her high school bands also perform at numerous community and civic events in the Baton Rouge metropolitan area. This past fall her Marching band was awarded Grand Champion of Louisiana State Marching Showcase for Band.

Sheily is a member of NAFME, LMEA, NBA, District IV Honor Band Association Secretary, Phi Beta Mu, ACB, and LAE, LMAA. Sheily is also a member and state chairperson of ASBDA.

Sheily’s desire to teach and bestow musical knowledge on others does not end with high school graduation. Sheily has been a teacher and mentor to numerous young music educators and has helped guide the careers of numerous young directors. Sheily has been a music instructor at River Parish Community College and is also the director of the Baton Rouge Community Band, an adult concert band consisting of amateur and professional musicians from the Baton Rouge area. Under Sheily’s leadership the Baton Rouge Community Band performs at numerous concerts and civic events. Additionally, the BRCB has been selected to perform three times at the Association of Concert Bands' national convention, in Lafayette, Louisiana, Pensacola, Florida, and Houston, Texas. In 2023, her Band was invited to perform at Music for All National festival in Indianapolis, In.

In 2005, Sheily was inducted as a laureate in the prestigious John Philip Sousa Foundation, an honor bestowed only after meeting rigorous criteria. This award is given to a maximum of ten high school band directors a year.

As further proof of the respect held by her peers of her abilities as a teacher and musician, Sheily was awarded the Herbert L. and Jean Schultz Mentor Ideal Award, a nationally recognized award given to teachers of teachers that is given by The Association of Concert Bands.

Sheily was married to the late Pat Bell Sr. for 47 years, is the mother of two grown sons, and grandmother to five grandchildren, the eldest of which was a proud member of Sheily’s Dutchtown High School Band and the LSU Tiger Marching Band.

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