Jonesboro, AR — (JonesboroRightNow.com) — July 23, 2025 — A returning face to the Jonesboro High School band program is focused on maintaining momentum and a strong “family culture” as students prepare for the upcoming school year.

Brice Evans was hired as band director in February, assuming the role previously held by Grant Harbison. Evans said as soon as he signed on, he spent several days shadowing Harbison and learning the basics, including bookkeeping and rehearsals.

“It really was a smooth transition,” he said. “Grant invited me to come to the spring camp. I spent the day with the band program, so he was very helpful in helping me move in and take over.”

Evans has worked in musical education for 29 years, helping with musical education in areas such as Newport and Water Valley, MS.

In 1999, Evans became the band director of Bald Knob High School until 2001. He was also the instrumental music director for Little Rock Central High School from 2010 to 2022.

His most recent role before working with JHS was for West Memphis Public Schools, where he was the district band supervisor and high school band director from 2022 to 2025. Evans had also worked for the school district from 2001 to 2010 as the assistant band director for the high school.

Being a former member of the JHS band himself, Evans said up until that point, he treated band as a hobby, but his band directors at that time, Geoff Carlton and Gary Barton, instilled in him a passion for the field. He said coming back to Jonesboro was returning the favor.

“Jonesboro has a fantastic band program. It is really the gold standard for band programs at least in Northeast Arkansas and across the state. I’ve tried to build programs similar to those, so I was really interested in coming home when the job came open,” he said.

One of the first major tasks Evans has is making sure things go smoothly with this year’s marching band show. He said this year’s theme is “A Cup of Color,” based on different colors of tea. Some examples of featured songs include “Paint It Black” by the Rolling Stones and “Pure Imagination” from the film “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.”

For his first marching season with JHS, Evans said while he wants his band to score well, the most important goal is his students improving individually and having a good performance when they compete. He emphasized he wants a family culture within the program.

“Mr. Harbison and his staff really worked hard to get it to where the students got along and you know, families are going to have arguments from time to time,” he said. “But the camaraderie I’ve witnessed so far is really impressive, and it’s another thing that I’ve really enjoyed in my transition as they’ve established a really good family culture.”

Evans believes an important purpose for any high school band program is being able to serve the community, whether it be through performing at football games or holding concerts throughout the year. It’s one of many traditions he hopes to continue during his time at JHS.

As for what’s next after the marching season, Evans said since the Symphonic Winds earned the title of 2024-2025 6A State Champions at the Arkansas State Concert Competition, they will not be competing for next year’s event. Rather, they’ll be playing as an honor band, playing five pieces instead of the usual three that competitors play.

“I’m planning a challenging concert for that,” he said. “We’re going to show off the students. That’s the big thing we have to work for once we get into the concert season.”

All in all, Evans said he is very excited to be starting his journey with the JHS band and hopes he can keep the momentum that the program has had going.

“We have great instrumentation and great musicians in every section, so I’m really excited to program more of what I would like to do as opposed to what I have to do in order to meet the limitations of the group,” he said.

The JHS marching band will perform on the field at the school’s first home game against Benton. The game will start at 7 p.m. Sept. 26.