As its season comes to a close, the Brown County High School marching band is reflecting on the memories made this year and what the future holds.
At the beginning of the season, ten inexperienced students entered the ranks, all of them quickly learning how to march, and some even learning how to play completely new instruments.
Last year there were ten students in marching band — nine on the field, one conducting. This year on the field there were 19 and a conductor.
Matthew Finley is the director of bands at Brown County High School and Middle School. He attributed the growth in numbers to better conditions following COVID-19 and the formal participation of eighth graders.
He added that the band is getting back into its rhythm after the pandemic, and making the band itself a little more visible.
“Last year things were kind of stabilizing and now there’s the conditions where things can kind of grow a little bit,” he said.
Despite the influx of new, young students, the group has been performing well in competitions. They earned third place in competitions at both Columbus North High School and Greenwood Community High School.
The band’s highest score of the season was at ISSMA Scholastic Prelims, which took place on Oct. 8 at Whiteland Community High School.
Finley says this year’s score was the closest they have been to earning an ISSMA gold rating. They needed a score of 53 for a gold rating and scored 50.6.
The band had to take things a little slower than they did in previous years, Finley said, to onboard the new members and help them to understand the routine.
Many of the students started playing in seventh grade, so newer members have only been familiar with their instruments for a year.
“It asks a lot out of them. They stepped up to the plate for sure, on all factors,” Finely said.
Zachary Reed, a senior on saxophone, agreed they progressed slower than in previous years, but that was to be expected.
“Definitely the section leaders were more needed than they were last year,” Reed said.
“‘Section leaders’ last year was a nice decorative thing and this year was, ‘Oh, I actually need to wrangle these folks,’ because half of them had never been in marching band before.”
Reed said his final season had a big impact on the band.
“I definitely think my section, especially first timers, came out of this slightly changed as a person and definitely better at playing and marching.”
Dylan Taylor, a senior and the section leader of the drumline, said everyone in the drumline worked together.
“We were all together as a group pushing forward, learning new techniques on an instrument,” Taylor said.
Taylor had not joined marching band until his senior year because he thought it would be too complicated and overload his schedule.
“I really wish I did now,” he said.
“I feel like it was a lot less (intense) than it would have been and I would have had so much fun if I had done it the other three years, and I’m really upset that I did not.”
Cohen Farmer, who fell in love with percussion in sixth grade and is now a freshman playing bass drum, said joining the marching band was an interesting experience.
“From not marching at all and then going into it and doing that well, it was definitely a fun season,” he said.
Cadence Cox, a sophomore on the quads, said the group faced some challenges with learning the music when the season started.
“Band camp was very difficult especially for percussion to own up to the challenge of the music and what we were being given,” he said.
“I got pretty frustrated with it, so I stayed up the second to last night of band camp and I did it until I knew it, until I knew I was comfortable with it. I was very tired the next day.”
Even though the season tested them, all the students reflected positively on their year.
Taylor said he learned a lot of new techniques and that he came out overall a better person.
Both seniors said marching band was something they wanted to keep pursuing after they graduate high school.
Taylor said he wants to go to Indiana University and potentially join the university’s marching band, the Hoosier 100.
“Even if it’s unlikely, it’s something I’d love doing.”
Reed said he has exclusively applied to colleges with a marching band.
“It’s something I look forward to in college, and I’ve been thinking of ways to march better before then. It seems like a great, fun experience.”
The students shared many fond memories of their season, all centered around utilizing teamwork to overcome obstacles.
Through this process within practice rooms, on the high school parking lot and football fields during games and competitions, strong relationships were forged.
“That’s why I did marching band,” Taylor said.
“Not just to improve my skills, not just to try something new. This group of people is practically family at this point.”
The students and Finley agreed the best performance was on Oct. 14 at the Eagles vs. Edgewood football game, which was also senior night.
After watching the band rehearse many times for the performance, Finley said he was able to sit back and enjoy the band’s hard work.
“I knew as soon as we got a little bit into (the last performance) it was going to be the best one,” he said.
“It was good to see that and all the validation of all the work you’ve put into it culminating. For me it was that moment.”
