Marching band is more than a half-time show during a football game. 

There is a much grander story that can be portrayed through Marching bands performances. 

Mr. Bradshaw, the band teacher, described marching band as, “An athletic pageantry of the arts. It is artistic and athletic performed on a football field and it contains music, visual motion, story telling, costumes, different props and things to help convey a message or a story.”

The use of movement and music allows for a story to be created in spectators’ minds with the strength from the brass, flare of the wood winds, the drumline pushing the power, and the color guard painting with their flags. 

All these factors are shown in the seasons that marching band performs in.

Marching band takes place in three different seasons and does different things for those seasons. 

During summer the band performs in parades that last from the end of June to the end of July. 

In the Fall, the competitions start up in the middle of September till the 1st weekend of November.

For the Winter season the sub group drumline and color guard competes from the end of January to the beginning of April.

These seasons allow for different parts of the band to show off their skills and give them time to prepare for the next season. The Marching band likes to incorporate the new and experienced members together which allows them to create bonds that last for years. These bonds help the team to execute the performance perfectly and draw power from the songs that they choose.

The songs that the marching band performs are usually set by certain expectations but are open to any suggestions. For competitions they follow a more traditional standard and pick from the songs most commonly used. In their shows they pick from a wider variety and for this year’s show, “Re-imagined”, they based it on one song entirely.

This show used the song “Imagine” by John Lennon and “Mad World” performed by Tears for Fears. The main point of the show was reimagining our place in the world and how we can be better as a whole. Marching band is the necessary medium to portray such a meaningful concept with a lasting effect.

All in all marching band is about being able to express passion through methodical movements and extravagant music.