When you hear that marching band is a sport, your probably wondering how in the world is that a sport? Well I thought the same way, but soon after joining band I realized that band not only pushes you physically, but mentally as well. Those challenges taught me that hard work and teamwork results in success. I learned the value of hard work by working hard in band. Two weeks ago the Westlake High School Marching Band went on our first competition of the season, we didn’t make finals. To be honest I wasn’t surprised, our mindset was off, we goofed around, and some people didn’t put in a lot of effort. After that competition we really opened our eyes and started to take things seriously, people started to work faster and harder. Our next competition, we got first. Marching band also stretches your mental ability to focus on more than one thing at once. Picture this: you’re on the field …show more content…
performing to a stadium of people, while performing you must be aware of your foot timing, position on the field, posture, technique, step size, tempo, volume, and rhythms. In order to accomplish this to near perfection you must work hard. During a show, if even the littlest thing is off, you stick out drastically. To me, I don’t mind the challenge; it motivates me to try even harder. The band is like my second family; we have a special bond.
A Band is more than just some people working together; it’s like a sports team, a combination of unique people who are stronger together than apart. The biggest obstacle is sounding and looking as one. To accomplish this we must all contribute equally and help each other achieve a higher potential. In the picture, we are standing together with our arms around each other; this symbolizes support from each other. We’re also in the same attire, our goal is to look the same as the next person so we can look as one. When there’s unity in a band there’s strength and when there’s teamwork, great things can be achieved. Marching Band’s become a huge part of who I am; I’ve dedicated my time in effort into it. People underestimate band, they laugh and scoff when we call it a sport but I know that band is about hard work, dedication, and cooperation. Marching Band is like one big machine, when all parts are working together it runs smoothly, but when one part of the machine stops working then the whole machine stops
working.
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 teaches life skills. Where independent thinking is the model in most academic classrooms, teamwork is essential in band. Band students learn to work with and for each other. The three R’s in band include Respect, Responsibility, & Reliability. Our students learn to appreciate one another for their individual talents and their contributions to the organization as a whole. They learn positive social skills –the most important factor in our program –where we teach such qualities as confidence, pride, and self esteem; all values that will serve these young people well throughout the course of their life. Citizenship, team motivational skills/leadership skills, time management, organization skills, dependability, and honesty are instilled into band members. Band teaches students to face challenges and strive to reach higher and higher goals.
...join so long ago I never really knew I 'd end up here doing what I do. It seems like the common theme for me is seeing something and saying “I can 't do that” then pursuing it until I can. One of my fondest memories is watching someone at the percussion concert play a marimba solo when I was in sixth grade and just looking over at Justin molder and laughing saying “wow I can 't do that” now I do that all the time. I didn 't think I could ever be the leader of a group like this it seemed like too much for me, but now after watching and being in this program and seeing where it could go and what I can do, I want to help take it there. I feel great about next year no matter what happens but I 'm ready to step up, I 'm ready take on whatever I have to to make this year the best year yet. Not just for me but for us all every last one of us in this great family I call home.
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.
During practices in the summer you’re out there for as short as three hours and as long as eleven hours running and marching around in scorching heat. Not only are we doing that, but we are holding or wearing heavy instruments. In the summer, we have what is called band camp and this camp usually last for two full weeks and about eleven hours a day depending on the school. I’m not here to discriminate against other sports, but if golf and bowling should be considered sports than so should marching band. Personally going into my first season of marching band I weighed over two hundred pounds and by the end of my second season I weighed only a hundred and twenty-five pounds. Meaning I lost over seventy-five pounds just by being in marching band. This clearly demonstrates how physically intense marching band can
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.
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.
Band is an elective given in elementary schools through college schools around the world. Many schools come together and compete with one another. School bands also perform at football games, basketball games, and in parades. Most school marching bands are accompanied by a color guard, a group of performers, who add a visual interpretation to the music by using props, flags and rifles. A school marching band apparel includes a military type of style, the school's colors, along with the school's name and mascot. It is important to have band as an elective in schools because it helps kids display their emotions and maybe for some it is a hobby. Band directors have said that having band helps young emotional development, helps contribute to a more intellectual culture, builds teamwork and self confidence. It is hard to imagine being in this amazing class and coming upon these out of the box stereotypes and misconceptions of being a nerd, lazy or unathletic. These stereotypes and misconception mainly come from basically movies, shows and books things that are being aired. For example, a kid show, spongebob, kids from ages three to twelve are watching these shows maybe even teens and adults. A spongebob episode fifteen, season two is titled “band geeks”, putting this low degrading name on the group of kids performing at football games with instruments
Where I learned how to become a leader through the leadership ensemble within the marching band. Where in my senior and fourth year of marching competitively, I became the Drum Major, and earned the Best Drum Major Award at the Roxbury Marching Band Classic Competition. From marching band I progressed into jazz music, where I became the lead alto saxophonist in the top jazz band at my school during my junior and senior year. I was also one of three saxophonists in the top band at my school. I picked up the clarinet, the flute, and the soprano saxophone on my way through high school, and have played all three as well in my performing ensembles. I played in the pit orchestra of the theater production of “All Shook Up”, and was the principal saxophonist at my high school. Too be short, I am very involved in all things music in the past and currently. Band and music have been a place for me to rely on, something that brings me joy when sad. Allows me to express myself through sounds and through instruments. It is truly a talent and a hobby that I hope to continue through college and through life because of the joy it brought me and creative outlet it was throughout my
It gave me memories, opportunities, my best friends, and the best group of seventy or more people I could have ever hoped for. Without band I would not have gone on to any of the leadership positions I acquired, would not have met my best friends from my hometown or at college, and I would not have accomplished nearly as much as I have. It gave me confidence, respect, and discipline, qualities I am very grateful to have. Above all else, it gave me music. The ability to play an instrument is something I will never lose, and a talent which allows me to express my emotions and thoughts in a less forthright manner. I firmly believe that the marching band is the soundtrack to every student’s high school career, whether they are in band or not. Because with every football game, pep rally, and national anthem they hear, a family of band nerds sat in a room for hours each week perfecting it. No high school experience is complete without the band marching on at half time, or crowds of people cheering along to the fight song or alma mater. Marching band is the kind of activity that changes you in ways you do not realize until much later when you look back on the experience. Even if you were not involved in the band- it still affects you somehow. Because it is more than music and awkward
Marching band is a very broad field to participate in. High school and college band both have specific criteria they have to meet during marching season. But what are the differences and likenesses between high school and college band? In high school band, there is one show to perform and there are many long, grueling hours spent perfecting and fine tuning it. The show is not only for halftime spectating at football games, but also band festival and regional contests. High school band has a more stern outlook because the entire season is spent working for placement, whether it be superior or not. Some bands have a more difficult time working considering obstacles such as size. Bands can range anywhere from only thirty to two hundred. With upperclassmen
I quickly learned at a very young age the value of hard work. Both of my parents had worked hard to achieve their dreams of a nice home, cars, and financial stability. Their working hard not only paid off financially, but they taught my two brothers and I, that working hard was imperative to life. I was given a set of chores and an allowance every week, which taught me responsibility and how to manage money. I also realized that cooperation goes hand in hand with hard work. My brothers and I would help each other with our chores from time to time. I did not know that cooperation works on a larger scale in the workplace, that sometimes one needs help to achieve their ultimate goal.
From my experience of playing with an orchestra and also a band, I have boosted my team skills, perseverance, responsibility, interaction, and stage fright, all of which are important aspects of being successful in life. While being a part of a band or orchestra, it 's essential that you learn to cooperate with those around you in order to make beautiful music together. The time and effort that it takes in order to learn how to play an instrument teach the qualities of patience and perseverance that almost every musician possesses. Responsibility is also taught while maintaining your instrument in working condition or such as remembering to get to your performance, rehearsals, and making it on time to practice. Being a part of this musical community can also greatly affect anyone 's social skills. Being surrounded by many other musicians who share the same interests as you, makes it easy for a person to open up and create strong