Drum Major (Not That) Rough Draft
When someone asks me what marching band means to me, it’s very difficult to come up with a simple answer that everyone can understand. Marching band means belonging to something bigger and more worthwhile than just a “team”; It means having a stake in something that is a treasured part of both our school and our community. Even if it means going to bed feeling every muscle in my body ache and knowing I may wake up feeling worse, I always look forward to doing it all again the next day (and the next year). Marching band is a challenge that pushes the limits of my physical and emotional endurance in such a way that I can’t wait to come back for more because I know I will be a better person for it.
I love marching band because, while it is so challenging and physically draining, it is also an amazing and rewarding experience. To me, band is more than a class. It’s more than an extracurricular activity or a summer pastime. Band is a way to express who you really are-- a way to find your true character. I’ve met some of the most influential people in my life through band programs, and they’ve helped me shape myself into
…show more content…
someone more appreciative of both individuals and the community as a whole. Those I’ve met in band have become my second family-- individuals that I’ve come to trust and cherish past our shared time spent in band. Another one of the reasons band means so much to me is that some of the life skills learned and refined during the course of band season not only have helped me to succeed in band, but throughout the rest of my everyday life as well. It is because of these passions I have for band that I want to be drum major and expose others to the same blessings I've experienced. I want to be drum major because I want to further the band program and make a positive impact on The Force and those involved with it. Not only this, but being drum major will provide me with an experience that I can take with me for the rest of my life. It is for this reason I refuse to let an outstanding opportunity like this slip through my fingers without trying my best to achieve it. If nothing else, being a member of The Force has taught me the importance of reaching towards high goals. Knowing that I could be in a leading position of a program with such a strong past excites me and makes me eager to get to work. I have confidence I could succeed in the position of drum major because of my past experiences and my work ethic, along with my ability to spot those in need of help and offer them any assistance I can. To me, a large part of being drum major is being able to help others and to set a positive example. I believe that by helping people they will, in turn, begin to reach out to others themselves. With this spirit, there is not a doubt in my mind that The Force will continue to be the same respected group of young individuals. Not only this, but the more we learn to help each other, the closer we get to the goal of a fun and successful year of band. As drum major, my ultimate goal would be to create a hardworking, dedicated atmosphere throughout the band, while still making the activities fun and enjoyable.
I want to be sure that every single individual in The Force knows that they are making a contribution to the program and extending its legacy. Of course, a shiny trophy or a first place title is always nice, but a good show run-through triumphs over the “need” to win. I want to lead the band in run-throughs that make us feel as if placings don’t matter because we’ll know that we gave the best run we possibly could. If we are able to perform with this level of dedication, we’ll be winners no matter what placing or title we are given. This idea is one that has been prevalent throughout my career in band and one I hope to perpetuate within others by leading
them. We often hear the phrase, “In order to be a good leader, you must first lead yourself,” and this past year as a section leader has helped me to better understand what that means. It goes without saying, you must lead by example if you want to get your point across. Others will not be convinced to follow rules if the one asking them to is not abiding by those rules themselves. That being said, I can’t anticipate anyone listening to me if I don’t live up to the same expectations I have for them. This principle, along with others, is one I hope to implement throughout the band and its leadership as drum major. One of the best ways to connect with a person is to first get close to them. For example, an adult, or certainly a teenager, may not be comfortable following orders from someone they’re not familiar with. It is important to befriend other students such that they feel comfortable asking for help or further explanation when they don’t understand. Although you want to be a friend, it is also important to specify when it's time to be friendly and play around and when it is time to set those activities aside to work and be as productive as possible.
Sweat dripping down my face and butterflies fluttering around my stomach as if it was the Garden of Eden, I took in a deep breathe and asked myself: "Why am I so nervous? After all, it is just the most exciting day of my life." When the judges announced for the Parsippany Hills High School Marching Band to commence its show, my mind blanked out and I was on the verge of losing sanity. Giant's Stadium engulfed me, and as I pointed my instrument up to the judges' stand, I gathered my thoughts and placed my mouth into the ice-cold mouthpiece of the contrabass. "Ready or not," I beamed, "here comes the best show you will ever behold." There is no word to describe the feeling I obtain through music. However, there is no word to describe the pain I suffer through in order to be the best in the band either. When I switched my instrument to tuba from flute in seventh grade, little did I know the difference it would make in the four years of high school I was soon to experience. I joined marching band in ninth grade as my ongoing love for music waxed. When my instructor placed the 30 lb. sousaphone on my shoulder on the first day, I lost my balance and would have fallen had my friends not made the effort to catch me. During practices, I always attempted to ease the discomfort as the sousaphone cut through my collar bone, but eventually my shoulder started to agonize and bleed under the pressure. My endurance and my effort to play the best show without complaining about the weight paid off when I received the award for "Rookie of the Year." For the next three seasons of band practice, the ache and toil continued. Whenever the band had practice, followed by a football game and then a competition, my brain would blur from fatigue and my body would scream in agony. Nevertheless, I pointed my toes high in the air as I marched on, passionate about the activity. As a result, my band instructor saw my drive toward music and I was named Quartermaster for my junior year, being trusted with organizing, distributing, and collecting uniforms for all seventy-five members of the band. The responsibility was tremendous. It took a bulk of my time, but the sentiment of knowing that I was an important part of band made it all worthwhile.
Band is family. When your student walks onto campus, he or she is instantly adopted into the strongest society on campus. They will be spending their school days among the top achievers on campus, with fellow students who look out for one another and steer each other away from trouble instead of towards it. Teachers, staff, parents, and volunteers watch over all the kids as if they were their own.
People only have passion for something they enjoy. Marching band needs to become more enjoyable for students. When you watch other bands perform, you can really tell which bands are enjoying themselves because the majority of the time they are better than the ones that just meander around playing their instrument with no real emotion. Now know that I am not saying we should just goof off more and not really do marching band, but we should make the marching show more interactive instead of just marching from one place to another. We should do more stuff like the poses at the beginning of the Batman show or how in the 80’s Show we did that lung thing during Don’t Stop Believing. Students enjoy
My older sister loved the marching band, so I always got dragged to their performances. I could not tell what was so appealing about it all; it consisted of walking on a field while playing instruments and flags being swung in the air. Participating in a marching band was never what I intended nor wanted to do. The idea bored me, but my mom insisted.
It is general consensus that marching band is one of the furthest things from a sport; in fact, most people believe that band is nothing more than a group of nerds that were too unathletic to play sports. Contrary to this popular belief, marching band is much more physically taxing and demanding that many people are aware of. Based on the amount of physical exertion it entails and the similarities with other sports that are present, marching band should most definitely be considered a sport.
Looking around and seeing bright lights and feeling all eyes on you. Hearing both sides of the stadium cheer and shout for their teams and getting nervous during the last few seconds of the second quarter and at the same time being very proud of what the band has accomplished in the brief amount of time it took to learn the pretty intense and complex drill. Then suddenly you get the adrenaline rush that pushes you to perform. Many people would agree that being a drum major is one of the most eminent positions that is held by students who are Being the Drum Major of any band shows that you have the respect and trust of the members of the band and it’s directors. It also shows that you are passionate about what you do, responsible and that
One of the biggest decisions of my high school career came my sophomore year when I decided to try out for the role of drum major in my high school band. This decision was very tough to make due to the fact that I was a sophomore, and although I already had three years of experience under my belt as a band member at Northview High School, I knew that it would be very tough to earn the respect of my peers if I succeeded in becoming drum major. Out of the three years I had spent in the band, the biggest influence on my decision to try out came from my very first marching season, between August and December of 2012. From that year forward, after seeing many areas that the band could improve, watching how underclassmen and middle school band members
A community is a group of people who share something in common whether it be location, interest or a common goal. Communities are what bring people together and that is exactly what happens in marching band. Marching band is a way for people to find their place and make friends. It is very important not only for growth in music, but also for growth in character and friendship. There is only one requirement for marching band and that is to be able to play an instrument and be willing to practice hard. The people who join marching band do not need to have similar like and dislikes, majors, or even anything remotely in common.
Most people assume that being in the band makes you non athletic. A lot of people don’t realize what it takes to be in marching band though. There is a lot of practicing involved in planning a show and getting it as close to perfect as possible. A lot of the time there is more practice involved in marching band than
Percussion has evolved from a small category to a wide variety of simple and technical instruments. Percussion is a category of musical instruments that is played using the hands or with a handheld stick/beater. Percussion started thousands of years ago when people played rhythms on random objects to please their friends and scare their enemy’s. People over the years discovered different ways to hit the objects.
Earlier on I had mentioned that I did not immediately consider myself for this position. One of the items that changed this is learning that the Drum Major is able to march with the band this coming year. I feel that by doing so, I would be viewed as a part of the band, and not just the kid on the podium. This is a very
Being named the Lopez Marching Band Drum major would not be only an enormous accomplishment, but also an honor to be able to contribute to the legacy Lopez has. I may not be strongest player nor the best, but I have the heart and passion for band both in and out the field. Becoming drum major would allow me to repay the band for everything they have provided me with. For three years, the Lopez band has been a second home for me and has helped me grow in every aspect. In 2014, when I came in as a freshman, I was terrified of what lied in front of me; luckily, I was accepted to the Lopez family and they have been there for me through my ups and down. Being drum major would not only allow me to repay my debt, but also
Schools offer a variety of different activities. They can range from many areas from academics to music and arts. Some are widely liked and some by few students. There are many activities to do in school, but a majority of students enjoy Marching Band because they get to learn new music, go to Band Camp, and do performances.One of the reasons why students enjoy Marching Band is that they get to learn new music. Getting new music could be very exciting because they can finally learn something new. It is very exciting when they get it memorized. One a piece of music is memorized, they can then put it with a drill. The drill is the actual marching aspect of it and is a number of commands. Once the music and drill are both memorized and put together,
Despite what many may think, percussion is well known across hundreds of nations all over the world. Percussion has been around for centuries, and it has a very important meaning in the lives of many. It would be safe to assume that Percussion will be around for a long time as well, and play an important part in the lives of many people. Most people see drums as a cool thing to do, others see them as a bunch of irritating noise makers; but do they know the history behind them? So what is percussion? Percussion is a musical instrument played by striking with the hand, a handheld, or a pedal-operated stick or beater (Hudson). There are different groups of percussion instruments, and as time went by, they have immensely evolved from where they started (Zed). So what is percussion, where did it start, and what is it used for?
Music has been affecting society throughout history. Music has been around since the beginning of time. The influence of music on modern society can be easily seen today. It has been proven that music has many influences on humans in positive and negative ways. Music has been proven to alter a person’s mood, and has shown to cause physical responses in many people simultaneously. The mind is able to concentrate better, as the body becomes more relaxed and alert. Technology has greatly affected the musical effect on the brain and the way society views, absorbs, and creates music.