Marching Band

MARCHING TO MORE

Than Just A Beat

From Friday Night Lights to parades and competitions, Glendales Marching Band is a crowd favorite. What most may not know is that there is more to the music and performances. Ian Anderson (11) said that during the school year, they practice “Every day except for Wednesdays.” With practicing all year long under the directing of Troy Cronkhite, comes the fact that each muscian has spent years mastering their chosen instrument. Audry Gowers (12) said, “I’ve played the trumpet for about seven or eight years now.” Tyle Reed (12), who also plays the trumpet, said, “I have been playing for six years.” The love of music is not the only thing that draws people to the marching band, though. Jaxon Parrish (12) said, “I’ve played percussion since 6th grade, the people there are super nice. It helped me before I came to high school to get to know the people here and what it’s like.” On top of the Marching Band being a supportive group, it is also a team effort. Reed said, “It’s a lot of fun to work with people on a piece of music. It may seem challenging at first, but it gets a lot easier after you do it for a while. It’s worth it… It’s just worth it.”

Marching Band performing

FALCONS LEAD

THE BAND

Marching together requires teamwork and leaders who are willing to step up to the task. When asked who Anderson looks up to on the team, Ian Anderson (12) said, “Our drum majors, I feel like people underestimate the amount of work they put into what they do and how stressful it can be.” This year, Audry Gowers (12) is the Drum Major, and Beckett McTauge (11) is the Parade and Field Drum Major. Together, they worked to lead their team to success. When describing the role, McTauge said, “ The field captain essentially means that I am in charge of making sure everybody is in the correct positions on the field and making sure everyone looks good.” When asked about sharing the stand, Gowers said, “For the majority of the show, I conduct the band for all four movements, but for the third movement, I play a solo on the drum line.” As leaders on the team who are striving to reach new heights, McTauge said, “Our partnership is very fair and I feel like she and I have done a great job executing both of our roles.” Leaving Glendale, Gowers shares, “Doing marching band will actually be the most useful thing you will do in your life. You will make friends for a lifetime.”

Colors On The Field

If you’ve been to a Glendale football game, you have certainly seen the Color Guard. They perform with their colorful flags, extravagant costumes, and coordinated movements. From field to stage, the Color guard also competes with their routines at competitions. Kenzie Tabor (11) said, “We practice every morning at seven am and during band class. We go over technique, rep the choreo, and clean the counts.” Through the numerous hours of practice, the team is working towards performing well at the competition. Tabor said, “There is no feeling like the anticipation of finding out what place you got at that last competition.” When they are not practicing or performing, they are building their team bond and making memories. Tabor said, “You have so much fun, I am best friends with my teammates. I love my team, and I am so proud of every one of them.”