By MacKenzie Breithaupt
“Get set!” band director Mike Jones shouts to the marching band.
Many students at LHS don’t know exactly what our marching band members do or how hard they work. Sure, they play instruments and march on our football field to catchy tunes, but many students don’t realize the time and effort band members contribute.
As someone who has never been a part of band, I went through an adventure. On Aug. 30, band held its regular 6:30 p.m. Tuesday practice on the LHS football field, and I was there to march.
Walking through the gate, I received strange stares and awkward smirks. Fellow flute player junior Lily Abromeit placed me in a line of flutes diagonal from where she was standing. Before I began marching, one of the two objectives Abromeit instructed was to “follow me.”
Easy enough – until she added to never “get directly behind” her.
I nodded, sure of my knowledge of what to do. But as soon as I heard the words “Get set” from Jones, everything Abromeit just plastered in my brain shattered. Thereafter, I was smack dab behind my partner in crime.
Not 10 minutes into practice, I was sweating. Wearing a T-shirt and shorts, I couldn’t imagine memorizing and marching these steps in the LHS band uniform — unless the temperature outside was negative five.
As I began marching, it was strangely difficult to keep up with everyone around me. Not only was it difficult to remain in the correct position with the other flutes, but I had absolutely no idea where they were going or what I was supposed to be doing. With a less-than-three second lesson with Abromeit about how many steps to take left, backward and then right, I ultimately absorbed nothing but which way my feet were instructed to face.
Even Jones noticed me sticking out.
“Everybody knows where to go and you had no idea,” Jones said later, “and when you don’t have any idea, you stick out. You were in such a place where you were getting in people’s way because you were so close.”
I pity flute player and sophomore Elsa Regan for any confusion I caused while marching. It seemed as though every step I took was in the wrong direction and in place of another band member.
Thankfully Jones sympathized with me.
“We’re going from the normal person who doesn’t know how to march to someone we ask to memorize about eight minutes worth of music and memorize probably about 60 formations in between those,” Jones said.
Being previously involved with dance, I imagine marching band is similar to a dance routine — only double time. The students must learn and memorize the music along with all of the formations. Band members spend about five and half hours practicing every week. I give props to them for all the effort they put toward musically supporting LHS.
“What kind of day is it?” It’s a great day to be a lion.