Strike Up The Bands Musical And Physical Precision The Ultimate Goal

Halt eight, left slide 24, mark time 12, forward 16.

As I prepare to join 200 other band members, I mentally review the marching moves I will have to make while I play memorized music and synchronize myself with the drums.

Marching bands perform for musical and physical precision, just as a football team must play well and entertain its fans. We must have uniformity: all band members doing the right thing - or at least convincingly faking it.

From spending two weeks of summer in band camp learning the show, to practicing regularly after school and spending 10 hours on weekends polishing it, we have extensive practice to reflect upon before executing a no more than 12-minute marching show.

Unlike many sports, where a few strong players can make a team win, marching band relies upon every participant.

Every year, our marching instructor reminds us of the “booger in the punch bowl:” A few weak marchers can ruin the entire band’s performance the same way an ugly little wad of unknown substance can keep people from drinking from a bowl of punch. This potent image runs through my mind before each performance.

There’s the fear of making an obvious mistake. If a mistake happens, it’s important to act quickly. Once, a baritone player marched forward when the rest of the band marched backward. Thinking quickly, he played his second baritone part as a solo, and nobody noticed it wasn’t supposed to be that way.

This is the fourth year I’ve participated in the Ferris Marching Band, and after marching in the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, a lot of eyes (450 million pairs, give or take a few) have focused on me. That’s incentive to do my best. Since doing my best entails an eternity of practice, I must really be dedicated to marching band.

Monks of the Middle Ages burned themselves with branding irons, fasted for days on end, and then ate whatever vermin didn’t die of the plague, but found redemption by keeping literacy alive.

In marching band, I have gotten full-body sunburns, trudged through 8 inches of snow, stood in below freezing weather, braved thunderstorms, and withstood 40 mph wind gusts, but found redemption by having fun, finding plenty of structure in my life, seeing exotic places and helping fill the trophy case.

And I thought walking and chewing gum was a challenge.

xxxx