New Director for New Horizons Band, First Concert Open to the Public

Karla Killinger

“It’s the dawning of a New Horizon for Karla Killinger as she accepts the director position of New Horizons Band of Des Moines. This band has been performing for the past 20 years, sponsored by Rieman Music and under the baton of Ron Reickmann. Karla is honored to join this fine group.”

Ron Reickmann decked out for a Christmas concert.

So begins a Facebook posting by the band. “The idea for this New Horizons Band came from the New Horizons International Music Organization. New Horizons originated in 1991 in Rochester, NY, under the lead of Dr. Roy Ernst of Eastman School of Music. The motto of New Horizons is Music for Life. The benefits of participating in music are many. It offers intellectual challenge, socialization within a group, participation in events and continued learning.

Concert with a western theme.“There are more than 200 New Horizons musical organizations throughout the world. There are no tryouts or auditions, with ‘your best is good enough’. The band was designed to include those with little musical experience and those who stashed their instruments in their closets for ten to fifty years..“The Des Moines players are band directors, music teachers, doctors, lawyers, pharmacists, nurses, pastors, air traffic controllers, and many other professions.”—–Karla Killinger, a retired band and art teacher, is a third generation music educator. Her father was Karl Killinger..The first New Horizons Band Holiday Concert of the season is open to the public. This free concert is Thursday, November 30, 2023 @ 6:30PM at Immanuel United Methodist Church, 2900-49th Street, Des Moines..My husband, Guy Kidney, a retired air traffic controller, had played trumpet (and sometime flugelhorn) with the Des Moines New Horizons Band for a dozen years. They play mostly for retirement homes, Christmas concerts and spring concerts..An earlier story about the Des Moines group.