Keeping the beat

CASEY RESSLER

Valley Life editor

A Wasilla girl is hitting all the right notes - and receiving national acclaim in the process.

Katelynn Heasley was recently selected to attend Interlochen Center for the Arts, a prestigious arts summer camp in Michigan, based on her talent as a percussionist. Only 16, Heasley has struck her way to the top of the local music scene, and is hoping her future plans include playing for "The President's Own" U.S. Marine Corps band.

Heasley plays a wide range of percussion instruments, from drum sets to marimba and timpani. She got started when she was 7.

"My parents made me play the piano, but in fourth-grade, I tried the drums and thought it was cool," Heasley said. "I loved it, and I decided I wanted to go to college and get my degree in music."

She has come a long way since first picking up the drumsticks.

"When she first started, she had to be done with practice before Mommy came home from work," her mother, Joy, said with a chuckle. "But now, it is so rhythmic and soothing, I can go upstairs and fall right asleep to it."

Heasley puts in long hours - she practices between 20 and 24 hours every week, and that doesn't include performances.

She has been a member of the Mat-Su College Community Band, and she plays regularly with the Rhythm of Life group, with the Mat-Su Covenant Church Worship Team and the University of Alaska Anchorage Percussion Ensemble, and this week, she will be competing at the state music festival.

Bill Pagarran leads the Rhythm of Life and Carry the Cure group, which is a suicide prevention team that uses music and percussion in presentations to school groups. Heasley said he has been a big influence in her musical career.

"He has been so good for KT," her father, Butch, said. "Of all the teachers she has had, he has definitely had the biggest impact on her."

Heasley pointed out that of the eight percussionists honored during last weekend's regional band competition, six take private lessons from Pagarran.

The next step in Heasley's musical career is the six-week Interlochen camp, where she will be receiving private lessons from some of the top musicians in the country. She had to audition for a spot at the camp, which wasn't an easy process.

"You have to mail them a CD, and I worked on it all semester. I had sore arms from playing so much getting ready for it," Heasley said.

While the instruction received at the camp is reason enough to go, there is another benefit to attending Interlochen - meeting people and establishing connections.

"Networking with people in the music world is so important," her father, Butch, said. "People just don't come up to Alaska to see these young musicians."

Heasley said it could be the ticket to a college scholarship.

"It's a good opportunity to meet a lot of people who can help you in the future," she said.

Heasley's father said the camp is one of the top in the country.

"Interlochen is for kids what Julliard is to adults," Butch Heasley said.

Eventually, Heasley wants to join the U.S. Marine Corps.

There are 12 field bands associated with the Marines, but she said she really wants to play for "The President's Own," which is the top Marine Corps band in the country. The band plays around the world. It includes several members who have master's degrees in music.

"And there's always teaching," Heasley said. "At some point, every musician teaches."

To help Heasley fund her trip to Interlochen, she will be playing in "an evening of fine music and outrageous desserts" on May 13.

From 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Heasley will be performing, as will a host of other young musicians.

All money raised through the concert will help Heasley cover the cost of attending the arts camp this summer.

For more information, interested people may contact the Heasleys at 357-1953.