The band instructor was gone for the day, so it was the job of the students to conduct the band.

Allen Chace, then in high school, was chosen to lead the band, although he was hesitant to do it.

Four years later, he finds himself conducting the ISU Wind Ensemble at its final concert of the fall semester.

Chace, Jeff Schmitt and Conner Tipping, all seniors in music education, will be student conductors of a musical piece for their selected band — Chace and Schmitt will conduct the Wind Ensemble, and Tipping the Symphonic Band.

All three come from different conducting backgrounds. Schmitt wasn’t exposed to conducting until college.

Tipping, like Chace, first tried conducting in high school, but he received more experience there — serving as a drum major of the marching band and conducting the chamber choir.

“I think I knew that I wanted to be a conductor years before that, and I had just been waiting for my first real experience,” he said.

Chace said his high school experience was somewhat nerve-wracking at first, but he knew he wanted to continue to learn conducting.

The conducting is part of an independent study. As music education majors, basic and advance classes in it are required.

Michael Golemo, professor and chairman of the department of music and whom Chace and Schmitt have studied with, said the conductor is the leader of the group.

“The conductor must be reacting to the group,” he said. “For them, it is about style, shape, volume, tempo, balance … they must know music by memory.”

Conducting is not easy, the three student conductors said. A conductor’s mind must multitask and be able to pinpoint problems.

“It’s like a large picture,” Schmitt said. “There’s the big picture that includes many things, but you have to be able to go in notice all the details, listening to the group overall, but being able to pinpoint those little details that could be better.”

Chace said a conductor has to know the music, control his or her baton and body movement and know the sound he or she wants the group to emulate.

“It’s not easy, especially starting out,” he said.

Tipping said he has improved since he first conducted. Earlier, he could only focus on his hands and body language — not so much on listening.

“Conducting is a two-way street. The conductor must lead the ensemble, but he also has to be able to listen and react to the group. And, he has to know the score to the point of memorization,” Tipping said. “When I’m conducting now, I am thinking about what gestures I want to make for specific sounds. I’m thinking about which sections I need to cue for different entrances. I’m thinking about the expression I’m showing on my face.”

Chace and Schmitt expected conducting to be more stressful. They said the “top notch” ensemble the two work with has helped them in the music process.

However, students conducting the music groups are also conducting their peers, which can be odd.

“These are people that know more about music than I do,” Schmitt said. “I have to stand up to them, which is really weird in the beginning.” For Chace and Schmitt, Saturday is their last concert. They student-teach next semester and will then graduate.

Tipping will be studying with Golemo in the spring and working with the Wind Ensemble. He has previously worked with James Rodde, professor of music, and Ruth Lin, former orchestra conductor, and studied this semester with Matt Smith, senior lecturer of music, this semester.

ISU Wind Ensemble, Symphonic Band and Concert Band concert

Stephens Auditorium

7:30 p.m. Saturday

$4 for ISU students, $8 for adults

The ISU Concert Band, Symphonic Band and Wind Ensemble will perform. The three bands will perform a variety of holiday and traditional works for band. The bands are conducted by ISU faculty Natalie Steele, lecturer in music; Matthew Smith, lecturer in music; and Michael Golemo, professor of music, and three ISU students. The concert had originally been planned to be held at the Ames City Auditorium.