Taryn Sahli waited outside her performance room with her mother and her instrument, as students who saw her with the contrabassoon slowed and pointed.

The room filled to standing-room only in anticipation of her performance, and Sahli leaned into her mother's ear to say: "You remember how much I was shaking before? I'm going to be shaking three times as much."

On Wednesday, the 17-year-old Stevens High School senior was the first student ever to play a four-foot contrabassoon at the Region Eight Solo and Ensemble contest.

The rare instrument, on loan to her for the day, may be the only one in the state.

"It's a great opportunity for me to play and more people to know about it," said Sahli, who has competed at the event before - but never with a contrabassoon. "Nobody really knows what it is."

The South Dakota High School Activities Association event drew 17 South Dakota schools to the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center and Central High School on Wednesday, where more than 900 vocal and wind- and brass-instrument entries were judged.

The contrabassoon is twice as long as a regular bassoon and curves around on itself several times, ending with its bell facing the ground. What sets the instrument apart, besides its size, is its ability to produce deep, grumbling notes in a low octave.

Steve Dalton, whose instrument Sahli played, is owner of Dalton Winds & Brass Repair of Keystone and a contrabassoon player in the Black Hills Symphony Orchestra.

He likens the low notes to an idling Harley motorcycle.

"You almost feel it more than you hear it," he said. "You can hear the vibrations in your teeth, in your fillings."

Dalton said the instrument can reach a double low B flat, making it the lowest playing instrument in most orchestras. It is also one of the most expensive, Stevens band director Don Downs said.

A typical trumpet or trombone can cost $2,000; a top-of-the-line saxophone climbs into the $3,000 to $4,000 range, and a contrabassoon can carry a price tag of $25,000.

The one in Sahli's hands Wednesday was custom-made for Dalton and shipped to the United States from Germany. Sahli was at Dalton's shop last year while he was working on her regular bassoon, and she spied the expensive instrument, which had been in Dalton's possession for only a few weeks. He let her try it.

"Her eyes got real big and saucery," he said, and she has since been coming to the shop to practice a couple of times a week.

"It's a once-in-a lifetime experience," he said, which is one of the reasons he lets her use the instrument. "If there is another in South Dakota, I'd be surprised. If there's two, I'd be astounded."

There's not a chance he would ever let anyone borrow it.

"It's not for rent, not for use," he said. "I couldn't afford to replace it."

Sahli is an exception to the rule.

"She's struck me as attentive and pays attention to detail," he said. Plus, she will leave for college soon, and there is a good chance that she won't find a contrabassoon to play.

"Most universities can't afford them," Dalton said.

Sahli is grateful Dalton shared with her.

"He has a lot of trust. … I think he's a great guy, and I appreciate him," she said.

When it was her turn to play Wednesday, Sahli entered the room, cued the pianist and played the instrument, gently tapping her right knee to keep time. The piano faded out two thirds of the way through and Sahli smoothly played the low notes of "Variations of a Theme of Robert Schumann."

When the piano re-entered, Sahli ended her solo with one final, low blow and blushed when the roomful of spectators sounded their approval.

"That was really good," said Cassie Rickertsen, a 15-year-old French horn player from Stevens. "It made my day."

Contact Kayla Gahagan at 394-8410 or Kayla.gahagan@rapidcityjournal.com