The beat goes on for GCHS senior Gavin Rodgers

Officially, Gavin Rodgers started drumming in the sixth grade.

Unofficially, he’s been banging and clanging since he was a young child.

“We had this old family video of me with a little drum set I got when I was 5 years old,” the Glenwood Community High School senior recalled. “You can hear some people in the background saying, ‘When are you going to stop hitting that thing?’”

Rodgers outgrew that childhood drum set, but remained intrigued by the thought of playing the instrument while attending his brother Taylor’s concerts. Taylor plays the trumpet.

“Every kid wants to hit stuff and I thought that (drumming) looks cool,” Rodgers said. “When it came to be my turn, I kind of just went for it.”

Indeed he did.

Rodgers starting playing the drum in the sixth grade band and the drum set as a seventh grader. Since then, he’s become one of the school’s most accomplished musicians, earning All Southwest Honor Band honors for six straight years (five years as first chair). He’s a two-time member of the All Southwest Honor Marching Band and this year earned All-State honors as a percussionist. He’s also earned the rare honor of being selected for the Metropolitan Area Youth Jazz Orchestra, an elite ensemble that’s given Rodgers the opportunity to perform in venues like Omaha’s Holland Performing Arts Center and the Strauss Performing Arts Center on the campus of the University of Nebraska-Omaha (UNO).

Rodgers said his talents as a drummer come naturally, sort of.

“I think there’s a level of ability that each specific person has,” he said. “I think I’m lucky enough to have a decent amount of that, but at the same time, we had to log our minutes of practice every day in middle school. I think our requirement was like 250 minutes a week, but I think I ended up logging over 1,000 a week. I would sit there for three or four hours to practice stuff and consistently and constantly just keep hitting things.”

Rodgers, who plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree in music with a minor in business from UNO, said he’s grateful for the instruction he’s received from his teachers and the support and encouragement he’s received from his family over the years.

In addition to playing the drums, Rodgers has taken on the responsibility of mentoring and coaching younger students.
“Every summer, I try to get a couple students in for drum lessons and as much as I can, I try to get over to the middle school for their jazz band rehearsals and help out,” he said. “When I was first learning, I loved having the older guys come over and help me.”

His accomplishments as a musician and his willingness to assist younger students helped earn Rodgers another honor last month – being named the Glenwood Area Chamber of Commerce’s Junior Citizen of the Year.

“It’s a cool award and always nice to get recognized for things, even when you’re not striving to,” Rodgers said. “For me, it’s about self-motivation.”