Band Teacher Mr. Lane Composes Original Marching Band Set November 15, 2024 It’s easy for most of us to imagine Mr. Rob Lane directing the marching band at DMC football games, leading the pep band at assemblies, or directing the concert band during its annual Christmas concert. After all, he’s been the High School Instrumental Music Director at DMC for 13 years now. Now, imagine Mr. Lane drilling core samples in an open pit mine, placing elevation markers as part of a geological survey crew, framing houses, and perhaps most interestingly, as a milkman in 1983 as the trade was fading away. After dabbling in these (and a few other) interesting occupations, he decided to go back to college at the age of 28 and graduated with his BA in Music Education from Boise State University. The common thread through his professional and personal life has always been music. “I’ve been around music my entire life,” Mr. Lane said. “My dad was my band director through 8th grade. My parents started me on piano lessons at the age of five, but I spent more time making up little song ideas than learning how to play the piano.” Eventually Mr. Lane settled on the tuba and electric bass as his instruments of choice. He was 12 when he landed his first teaching job, giving lessons to his dad’s fifth grade tuba students. By the time he was a teenager he was writing his own original songs. Some of those songs made it on his 2010 album Rob Lane: Skeletons in the Closet, appropriately titled because his songs had been stored away for so long before they were recorded. Mr. Lane composes an original set for the DMC marching band. Mr. Lane announced his plans to retire at the end of the school year, but not before taking on a new challenge during his last year at DMC. It all had to do with marching band. In years past the marching band set has centered around themes including classical music, James Bond, Pirates of the Caribbean, rock and roll classics, and so forth. A year ago, Mr. Lane shared the idea of creating a show based on his original Christian music with Middle School Instrumental Music Director Mr. Doug Gibson, and they agreed on the idea. It turns out Mr. Lane had some more musical skeletons to pull out of the closet that he wrote 30 years ago when working at New Tribes Bible Institute (now Ethnos360), where he taught Bible classes and directed a traveling choir. Originally conceived as a cantata but never recorded, he rearranged the songs inspired by the book of Revelation for marching band. Mr. Lane said, “The songs are based on praise statements found in Revelation, starting in chapter 4. These statements exemplify what we try to do here at DMC.” The set list includes the following songs: Revelation 4:8 - Holy, Holy, Holy; Revelation 4:11 - Thou Art Worthy; Revelation 5:12 - The Lamb Who Was Slain; Revelation 11:17 - We Give Thee Thanks. Watch the full performance on the DMC YouTube channel. Mr. Lane says his desire and responsibility to minister to students has helped him grow in his own faith. He said, “For whatever reason, God has directed my ministry in equipping areas. Everyone at DMC is functioning from a biblical worldview, so I can overtly teach my faith here. I try to equip students to live their lives for God’s glory. That’s the lens I look through.” What’s Next for Mr. Lane? Mr. Lane plans to spend his retirement in studio space (making music) and shop space (building things). “Some of those songs I started 35 years ago still aren’t recorded. I want them in a place where they aren’t just in my head or stored on a computer. My hope is by recording them, more people can experience them and be blessed by them. Those songs have a great message. Just to stop and think about the potential of heaven is useful,” Mr. Lane said. Mr. Lane also plans to spend more time with his family including his wife Leila, their nine children, and 17 grandchildren. Back