Another Day of Band

Today was another day of band.  Not band camp, but still band.  School hasn't been out for two weeks, and we were already back at the place.  It was raining, so we only spent a few minutes outside, and then we relocated a few times and worked basics in the gym.  After that, we practiced music for the rest of the time.  Warm up music, the fight song, and the national anthem.

In basics, we were doing new move sets (A, B, C, D, E, F.)  We had done A, B, C, and D before.  Move E is marching forward, left, back, and right, and move F is the opposite of that.  The transitions were a little new.  We hadn't officially done transitions last year.  I couldn't get them in the minute that they were explained.  The girl who can be perceived as mean told me to keep going even though I had messed up.

My section leader told me if that girl ever becomes to overbearing to tell her, and she'll go talk to her.  This girl tries to help, but gets frustrated and can't explain things to me in a way that clicks.  She's one of the girls that made me want to cry last year.

The band seemed to have really shrank from last year, and my band director needs baritones.  He was looking for woodwind players to switch, but my reasoning against it was I struggled with marching enough with a light instrument I know how to play.  One upperclassman who can be bossy and sometimes perceived as downright mean when she gets frustrated told me I should switch.  I explained my reasoning.  She said I would die on baritone in a tone I felt was snide.

The Beginning of The 2011 Marching Band Season

Today was the first practice or event for marching band. My first impression was that the band has really shrunk. People were prrobably on vacation or other places. There weren't that many freshmen, and no freshman flautists.  It was so strange not having the seniors that already graduated and new, incoming freshmen.

We were in basics block, sort of going over what we do and doing a little bit. It was easier than it was last year, since I knew a little bit more of what I was doing. It felt so unfamilier to me at the beginning, since I hadn't marched in basics block in a long time.  It was all relatively basic, just stretching and some simple direction changes.  Things started to gradually come back. 

After that, we went over warm ups.  We haven't looked at any of the actual music or learned any sets yet.  I'm so glad I have a little bit better of an idea of what I'm doing.  It was kind of boring having my band director go over basic marching technique, but he kind of had to for the freshmen.

It's weird for me, not having last season's drum major.  I have to reajust to the heat.  We weren't really moving that much, but I was getting really hot. 

I'm hoping this season will be easier than lasts!