By Khoi Le, Staff Writer
MUSIC: Championship day for marchers is the day where all their hard work and dedication is shown in their 8-minute show.
The feeling of being praised by hundreds of people is addicting; As marchers in a marching band, we experienced this praise on a daily basis. But despite the daily recognition, the most addicting time in our marching careers is championship day-the day where we face off against 11 other schools and compete for the best score and greatest performance.
For it is on championship day that the season comes to an end and all the hard work put in over the past 6 months finally pays off. As a band, we load up the trailers, board the buses, and after extensive preparations, we’re on our way to another high school.
As your foot steps out of the bus, you can feel a tension in the air that thick enough to trap you like quicksand. You hear sounds of different bands echo and vibrate throughout the air, a metronome clicking in the distance, and cheering from the field as a band similar to you performs their show. Two hours before your performance, together as a group, you warm up your instruments, stretch, and march. An hour before the show, you all walk into a quad surrounded by walls. You all quickly make arcs with your sections and prepare to play music. The drum major waves his arms to which the music follows. The unified sound of the band blends and blasts throughout the quad. Echoes and vibrations shoot off of the walls as our big and warm sound fills the area, letting everybody who hears it know who you are.
Twenty minutes before the show, the band walks towards the field. Passing by bands that wish us luck, bands that eye you down, bands that see you as competition, and bands that welcome you as friends. You pass by bands that fill their area with music and ones that would raise the tension through unified counting and marching.
Minutes before your show, you line up on the side of the football field. Sections wish each other luck for their last performance of the season. Heavy breathing is heard from the anxious freshmen and tears are in seniors’ eyes as they realized this was their last high school show.
The sound of the announcer fills the stadium, “Poly marching band, you have 4 minutes.”
Voices from the band become one as you all chant our band motto “One band, one sound!” The adrenaline kicks in, kids howl and cheer as you walk onto the field in unison.
The cool breeze passes by as you lay on the ground making hand motions such as reaching up the sky and back down to signify waking up from a dream, following the singing that is being played through the speakers. Everybody then dances around the field together, spinning and moving their bodies with the music. The band then freezes together in a plié position, the audience falls quiet. The show has begun.
The announcer continues, “The Southern California Schools Band and Orchestra Association is proud to present the Riverside Poly Proud Heritage Marching Band!” Boom! The band roars, shaking the ground as they play their first note, overwhelming the audience with energy.
After the opener, a fast tempo emerges from the middle of the field. Sounds of saxophones and clarinets pierce the air like knives. The flutes and piccolos join in with their high pitched voices, trading rhythms with the brass’ warm and strong sound. The music increases energy as more instruments join in. The band marched like soldiers, forming blocks and expanding on the field as the second movement reached its climax.
Piano music began to fill the stage, and the ballad began. A flute elegantly joins in with a solo, singing the audience into a dream. Slowly, each woodwind eases in with a counter-melody to the flute. The instruments build on each other as the flute solo comes to an end. A low brass sound emerges as the woodwinds trade rhythms with brass. The sounds come together like puzzle pieces, creating one beautiful melody. The crowd cheers as the guard flow and floats with the dreamy music. Every note and every movement was filled with emotions and memories. The hours spent learning the show have now paid off. At the end of the ballad, the sound of the woodwinds signifies the start of the closer, the ending of the show.
A guard soloist dances in the middle of the field as a saxophone solo follows her movements. The band separates into sections and marches around each other. In the far back, a ship is being built with gigantic sails being put up by a group of marchers. An enormous block forms in front of the ship as the sections join each other for the climax. At this moment, time freezes. The music stops. Everything and everyone has come together like the gears of a clock. Boom! An explosive ensemble sound blasts through the whole field, the sound filled with the blood, sweat, and tears of the musicians. The crowd roars as the band finish their glorious show.
Everything felt right. Having hundreds of people cheer and appreciate your hard work and dedication. It felt great knowing that everyone who leaves this place can always remember the amazing show that we performed. With just 8 minutes, we moved the audience, parents, teachers, and ourselves.