(From left) Freshmen Molly Sposito and Haillee Brown, along with eighth grader Andrew Sjogren, use Friday's day off school March 5 to practice the lead steel pan drums for the upcoming “Night of Jazz, Pop and Steel” performance. Through ambient lighting and weeks of practice, young St. Ignace musicians will transform the tent area of Kewadin Casino into a jazz club . The biggest fundraising event of the year for the St. Ignace music department is its “Night of Jazz, Pop, and Steel,” which is entering its sixth year and will feature high school jazz and steel drum bands in addition to MAC Percussion groups, the St. Ignace Children's Choir, a dance troupe, and the Harbor Springs Jazz Band. This year's event is Saturday, March 13, from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

“We do tons of fundraisers, but they are usually only going toward specific things,” said Jason Byma, band director at St. Ignace Area Schools. “We only have three fundraisers per year that go into our activity fund, allowing us to buy general equipment, including instruments. This is the largest of those three .”

Jessica Bentley and Jeffry Misner snip tickets for the St. Ignace Music Department's biggest fundraiser of the year. Mr. Misner will play alto sax in the “Night of Jazz, Pop and Steel,” starting 5:30 p.m. this Saturday, March 13. “I know it's a big program,” he said. “It's going to be interesting to see all the new things.” Ms. Bentley will play saxophone and perform in the MAC percussion band, LaSalle High School's music appreciation class. This group uses various junk items to make music, she said. Tickets cover the cost of the catered meal, while the bulk of the funds raised comes from table sponsorships.

“Businesses and supporting groups decorate the tables and sell seats to either their own members or have me sell them,” Mr. Byma said. “Some groups get really creative and extravagant. They'll choose themes that either have something to do with their business or nothing at all to do with it, like Mardi Gras or Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”

In previous years, each table had a centerpiece that was either elegant, funny, or creative. The band director anticipates more of the same.

This event started as the “Night of Jazz” and continues to be about the music, and it offers opportunity for the community to witness the commitment of the players, who are sharpening their skills, challenged by the pieces they perform.

“They'll get a chance to see what these kids are doing on their own time and to support an elective which the students are proving they value,” Mr. Byma said. “It really tells me something that I have more rehearsals outside of the school day than during it. We're also very fortunate that we have a music program which is growing in numbers and support, while other schools are doing their best just to maintain their music programs.”

Band students show up an hour before school starts to fill the early morning hours with music.

Mr. Byma said he is privileged to watch them grow and improve from year to year. Like the students, this night of music has grown and improved.

“The first year was very smallscale in the LaSalle High School gymnasium,” Mr. Byma said. “It was an hour long and only had appetizers. Each year, people kept suggesting we should make it larger.”

Last year, the event was moved to the casino to accommodate nearly 450 ticket holders, and the “Night of Jazz” evolved into the “Night of Jazz, Pop, and Steel,” acknowledging all the musical styles gathered under one roof.

“We outgrew the max capacity for the gym,” Mr. Byma said. “Our time in that venue was really cool because, for an evening, we were able to make people forget they were in a gym.”

This transformation involved draping black coverings over the bleachers, turning the lights down low and encouraging a laid-back atmosphere. A similarly casual formula will be used at this year's performance, with the audience hushed only during the opening performance.

“The children's choir goes first, because it's easier to get people to be quiet and listen to them at the beginning,” the band director said.

After that, members of the crowd will have few restrictions.

“People are expected to be chatting, socializing, and laughing, with us in the background,” Mr. Byma said. “Since it's not a formal event, people can move around and talk to one another.”

“It's less stress for us and it creates more floor activity for the casino because they bundle packages with the admission,” Mr. Byma said. “Parents linger around afterward and enjoy the gaming facilities.”

Mr. Byma strives to offer something new every year.

“Everyone's suggestions have been taken to heart and molded this event into what it is today,” he said. “Students wanted events like this, so we created them.”

Junior saxophone player Jessica Bentley, who performed in last year's concert as a vocalist, appreciates the opportunity this show provides.

“I'm pumped,” she said of this weekend's upcoming performance. “This will be my first time ever playing a saxophone doing jazz music. This year, I think it's going to be better than last year. We are incorporating more variety. The pieces are going to be more complex and intricate. Standards keep raising each year.”

This year's jazz band will play more pop music, while the jazz lab will play more traditional jazz tunes. The steel drum band will perform contemporary songs such as “Under the Sea,” from Disney's Little Mermaid; Sara Bareilles' “Love Song,” and a student-created arrangement of Journey's “Don't Stop Believing.”

Freshman Wyatt Orm devoted several weekends to come up with the latter piece.

“It's a great song for steel band,” he said. “Everybody immediately knows what it is.”

The St. Ignace Children's Choir and Harbor Springs Jazz Band will perform crowd favorites such as “New York, New York” and “Hip to be Square,” respectively.

Table sponsorship is $100 for businesses or groups who were previous sponsors and $150 for new sponsors. Organizers are accepting sponsorships right up until the event.

Reserved tickets are $18 per person and $126 for a table of eight. Individual tickets are $20 at the door.