AWhiteland Community High School music teacher is in the running to win one of the highest accolades in the music industry — a Grammy Award.
Pete Sampson learned earlier this month that he is one of 25 music teachers nationwide to be named a semifinalist for the 2020 Grammy Music Educator Award, and he is the only Hoosier up for the prestigious recognition.
Sampson has been a music teacher for 21 years. He has spent the past 12 years at Whiteland, leading a band program that has almost doubled in size since he started working at the school.
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When Sampson started working at Whiteland, the school’s music program had 130 students in two jazz bands and two concert bands. The program, which now boasts 240 students, has grown to four jazz bands, three jazz combination bands and as many as four concert bands.
Sampson attributes his success in music education to making sure his students learn and appreciate music instead of being perfectionists, he said.
“I think, over the years, I’ve grown and am much more focused on the big picture as much as making sure kids get a great experience learning about music and being excellent at what they do,” Sampson said. “It’s not necessarily every little thing being absolutely perfect. It’s making sure kids walk away having a great appreciation of music and consider it a part of who they are even if they don’t pursue it (as a career).”
Sampson tries to ensure his students have a well-balanced music education by encouraging them to play in different bands, such as jazz band, concert band, winter band and pep band, he said.
Some of Sampson’s students have never played an instrument before, while others have been playing for seven years or longer and play in the All-State Honor Band, he said.
“The great thing about music is it’s for everybody,” Sampson said. “We don’t turn down anyone who wants to be in the program as long as they want to be a part of what we do fully.”
During his time at Whiteland, Sampson’s band students have made their talents known across the country.
Six years ago, Whiteland band students took a trip to New York City to perform at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. Last school year, three of Sampson’s students played in the Indiana All-State Honor Band, the most in school history, he said. And earlier this year, students competed at the Bands of America competition at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Students have also performed at the Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade and will perform at Walt Disney World in March, he said.
The 10 finalists for the music educator award will be named in December. If Sampson wins, he will be flown to Los Angeles in January to receive the award during Grammy week. The winner will also attend the Grammy Awards, according to a Grammy Museum and Recording Academy news release.
Along with naming Sampson a semifinalist, the Grammy Museum awarded Sampson $500. The organization also provided an additional $500 for Whiteland Community High School’s music program to pay for various band activities, including trips to band competitions. One such competition is the Indiana State School Music Association semi-state competition on Saturday, which the school’s marching band will play in. If the band finishes in the top 10, it will advance to the state finals, Sampson said.
If Sampson is a finalist, both he and the school will receive additional $500 grants, the news release said.
