Granbury Middle School hires new band director

A new faculty member will soon be climbing aboard the pirate ship at Granbury ISD.

Caitlin Koch will be starting her position as Granbury Middle School’s new head band director beginning this fall.

Koch, 32, previously served as the head band director at Summer Creek Middle School in Crowley ISD, where she taught for 10 years.

Originally from Pennsylvania, Koch moved to Texas in 2009, where she graduated summa cum laude in 2013 with a Bachelor of Music Education from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth.

While at TCU, she studied saxophone with Joe Eckert — TCU’s first full-time professor of saxophone —and performed with the Wind Symphony, Jazz Band, Horned Frog Marching Band, and various saxophone chamber ensembles.

Koch said she first fell in love with band when she saw her older sister, Jen, playing the saxophone.

"I always looked up to her, so when it was my turn to start band at fifth grade in Pennsylvania, I wanted to be a saxophone player and be awesome just like she was,” she explained. “As a kid, I was a pretty good saxophone player. I enjoyed that music was something you could just keep working on and improving on without ever reaching a ceiling. I also love the support that I felt from my band directors throughout school, so I wanted to be a band director to also provide support and inspiration for students now.”

Although saxophone is her favorite instrument to play, Koch said clarinet is her favorite instrument to teach.

“Band is cool because I really like seeing the students develop their own motivation and confidence to grow,” she said. “They start band with no knowledge of how to play an instrument, so it's really fun watching them develop into the young musicians that they can be. I also really like watching the culture of the band hall evolve. You start to see the kids' personalities, strengths, and different leadership skills emerge throughout their time.”

Koch said that her goal as GMS’s new band director is to eventually start a jazz band club.

Outside of teaching and performing, Koch enjoys gardening, practicing yoga, and running. She currently lives in Willow Park with her husband, Troy, and her dog, Lacy.

She is also affiliated with Pi Kappa Lambda and the Texas Music Educators Association.

Koch said she is excited about joining GMS because she’s only heard good things about the students there.

“Everyone I have talked to so far has really fantastic things to say about the kids,” she added. “I hear they're fun to work with and are really receptive to learning, so I just want to jump in and see how great we can be.”