Marching band is moving to a new rhythm with Nicole Sherlock taking over as the new Instrumental Music Director, replacing former director Phil Barnes. Sherlock has been teaching music for 25 years, and is directing the pit orchestra in addition to marching band.

Sherlock previously taught in Hawaii, and said that the biggest adjustment for her this year is shifting from a block schedule to a schedule with seven classes a day. She said that sponsoring marching band has also been different for her, as she was previously accustomed to teaching marching band as a class, not as an extracurricular as it is at RHS.

As the new director Sherlock aims to rebuild the music program.

“I hope that we can grow the size of the department,” Sherlock said. “We’re trying to work on the transfer from eighth graders to ninth grade, we’re trying to work on not losing so many kids.”

Sherlock also wants to make a push in getting students to continue music from fifth to sixth grade, to get even more students pursuing music in grades higher than elementary school.

The transition from Barnes to Sherlock has gone well because they both have similar teaching styles, Sherlock said. Students quickly adapted to the change and have expressed excitement for the direction of the music program.

“Mrs. Sherlock is a great addition to the Rockville music department,” senior orchestra student Maya Jones said. “She is really dedicated to making the orchestra play to its full potential.”