May 19, 2011 - At 5 o'clock on Thursday morning, Leonard High School band members started creeping into the band hall. As they wandered around in their sleepless state, they did manage to load the trailer and get on the bus.

By the time they arrived in Branson everyone was wide awake and ready to take care of business. The Leonard High School Concert Band was opening for The Legends show in the Dick Clark American Bandstand Theatre. After a sound check and run through, they were ready to take to the stage.

The audience was fantastic, and the band even had some groupies show up from Leonard. The band put on an awesome performance. Following the performance, it was time to kick back and enjoy the rest of the trip, starting with The Legends show.

The next morning there was a little time for shopping before boarding the Lake Queen riverboat for a tour of Lake Taneycomo. Later that evening, the group enjoyed a trip to the Dixie Stampede.

On Saturday morning, the musicians enjoyed a train ride through the Ozarks on the Branson Scenic Railroad, a 1950's-era passenger train with coach cars and a dining car. The scenery was spectacular. The train ride was followed up with a lunch stop at Lambert's Cafe, which is "home of the throwed rolls". Everyone in the group enjoyed catching a hot roll thrown by one of the waiters. Then it was time to load the bus for the ride home.

The trip was enjoyed by all 25 members of the band, two band directors, and five chaperones.

Oh yeah, the band also brought home a huge trophy. Stop by the band's trophy case at Leonard High School to see it. The inscription reads, "Leonard High School Wind Ensemble for the Outstanding Performance at the Legends in Concert Show in Branson, Mo."