Camp songs take a twist

Anyone who has ever been put through the rigors of a marching band camp might expect to come to school for two weeks for many hours of practice a day and then go home to rest.

Students in West Valley High School’s marching band get a slightly different experience. For the last three years, band director Jim Loucks has taken his students to Camp White in Post Falls for the first week of the two-week camp. The tradition started when parents approached Loucks with the idea. Many thought an actual camp experience would add to band camp.

“It’s been a huge success,” Loucks said.

The young musicians wake at 6:30 a.m. and are on the field by 8 a.m., practicing until noon. Students break for lunch, then return to rehearsal by 1 p.m. They get a break during the heat of the day between 3:30 and 5 p.m. to swim in the river, and then practice until 8 p.m.

“We put in a long day,” Loucks said.

West Valley is preparing for four competitions this year in the Tri-Cities, Yakima, Everett and Auburn.

He said that last year, the band placed in the top two or three of their AA division, and he added that it was probably the band’s best year.

This year, Loucks said, “we hope to do better.”

West Valley’s band is playing selections from “Pirates of the Caribbean.”

“The kids love it,” he said.

The six girls in West Valley’s color guard attend camp as well.

Marching bands throughout Spokane County are having similar camping experiences this month.

At 9 a.m. last Thursday, the band room at Cheney High School was full of noise and students – many warming up their instruments, some chatting with friends, many laughing and joking.

They are there for an intense two weeks of learning how to stand straight, march and play their instruments at the same time, and to learn an 8 1/2-minute halftime show.

That 8 1/2 minutes will be the focus for the band students this fall. Not only do they perform their show at football games, but they compete in their own right. Last year, the Cheney marching band took first place in the A division at the Pacific Northwest Marching Band Championships at Joe Albi Stadium.

This year, the Cheney marching band will travel to the Tri-Cities, Spokane and Yakima. The band saves money by staying in schools and sleeping on gymnasium floors.

“Good times,” said Stephanie Schaub, a junior who plays the clarinet.

It’s hard work. By 9:35 a.m. the girls in the Cheney color guard and the students who play wind instruments were setting up on the football field in their opening position. The students who perform in the front percussion ensemble – also called “the pit” – were rolling out their marimbas, vibraphones, timpani, chimes, gongs and other things you can hit with a stick.

Out on the field, director Mike Suhling speaks in a sort of code. He tells them to move 20, 20, 48. This tells the students how many moves to do before they stop. They may go through the same two or three moves several times until they become automatic before they add another. Since the students are so spread out on the field, Suhling speaks into a microphone, and he gets help from band assistants Rich Sonnemaker and Jon Smith.

“Dress that set,” Suhling tells the band when they stop. The students look at where they are standing in relation to those around them to see if they are in the right spot. Then they make the proper corrections.

“We’re ahead of where we were last year,” said Emily Clark, one of the band’s two drum majors. Clark and Nick Stevens not only direct the musicians on the field, but act as leaders off the field.

“I like how everyone comes to us, everyone trusts us with whatever (they need),” Clark said.

After a noon lunch break, the students break into sections to work on their music. The color guard gets some time to practice as well.

For the students, band camp isn’t just about hard work and intense practice. They get to know one another and to bond.

“Everyone here is cool,” said Andrew Walmsley, a junior who plays the alto saxophone at Cheney High School. “Everyone’s just kind of like family here.”