Marching to the beat

Published 11:44 pm Monday, July 31, 2006

They’ve been practicing some days from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

At times, the scrolling marquee at Murray County High School has read 100 degrees.

But the 125 students in the high school band keep marching on in the summer heat as they prepare for this year’s show.

The band performs at football halftime shows, as well as at festivals and other events throughout the year.

With the first football game set for Sept. 1 at Northwest Whitfield High School, band students have been working hard to be ready. The first home game is against Dalton on Sept. 8.

“This year will be the best show,” said Katherine Joga, a senior and assistant drum major. “I’m really trying to push them. I like the selection of music this year.”

The band will perform “Fire Dance,” “Hoedown” and “Sing, Sing, Sing” — all with a somewhat jazz feel.

“We’ve got a hard show this year,” said band director Mike Weaver. “All the songs are fairly long. The tendency is going back toward longer and more elaborate songs. There are so many contrasts in the three songs. They cover a variety of techniques.”

Assistant band director John Adams, who is the band teacher at Bagley Middle School, said students have to have “stamina” for this year’s show to work.

“All three songs are pretty upbeat,” Adams said. “It’s going to be a powerful show.”

Weaver believes this year’s band members can handle it.

“They’re up there” in talent, he said. “I’m real pleased with the talent level this year.”

The band has more freshmen than usual this year, Adams said.

“But it’s a high talent year,” he said. “We’ve got some strong leadership this year. The drum majors are showing real leadership.” Mitch McCarsky is the drum major.

The 12-hour practices for a week during band camp helped the students learn the music and the steps. Students spend most of the morning until about 11 marching, then go in for lunch and sectional practices, before returning to the field about 6 p.m. to march for three more hours. Students spend the hottest part of the day out of the hot weather.

After school begins band members will practice after school until 6 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday, and on Thursday evenings for three hours.

Joga says the practice is worth it.

“I want to improve to win a ‘best in class’ or a ‘best in show’ in a festival this year,” she said. “Marching band teaches you discipline. You can apply the skills you learned while in band in other places.”

Freshman pit percussion player Ethan Smith is looking forward to his first year with the band.

“It’s totally different” than middle school, Smith said. “It’s a lot more involved. There’s a lot more time you have to take for it. The music is tougher than it was in middle school.”

He said another difference is that in high school there are several people working with the band, from Weaver to the assistant directors to the section leaders.

“In middle school you had one director that worked with the whole band,” Smith said. “Here you get more one-on-one with section leaders.”

Weaver said he couldn’t pull together the show and practices without the help of the parents, some of whom have donated water.