Personal Essay: Marching Band

When the question is brought up, “What does band mean to you?” I immediately think of the responsibility, hard work, and dedication and band has given me the chance to learn and strengthen. In addition to these life skills are many others, such as leadership, teamwork, and friendship. The Force has made more than just a difference in my high school career, it has impacted my life and has provided me with skills that will follow me throughout my life. Band means to supporting each other as we work through the hard times and grow closer as a family. Band means working hard and taking on responsibility for yourself. It also means being dependable, that people can count on you and your ability to achieve the unthinkable.

I spend a large amount of time helping out, sorting and copying music, and doing other things that are needed. I have dedicated almost all of my time to band this year, whether that be marching band, concert ensembles, Grand View Wind Ensemble, jazz band, or the honor bands I did this year. I changed my outlook on our program and knew it was the program I wanted to be the most involved in throughout high school.

The band program means a lot to me because it has helped me become more outgoing and friendly to people. It has also helped me gain much more of an interest towards all things music. When I was a kid I always wanted to be a teacher, but I never knew what I wanted to teach. When I joined band and attended different music classes, I became interested in something that meant little to me at the time. During my time in band it became much more clear to me that I wanted to pursue music education. The band program means a lot to me because it made me who I am today and I hope to help someone find themselves through music like I

All of this contributed to me joining the marching band, beginning in eighth grade, which has taken over my life now, in the best way possible and given me a defined place. It’s nice to be a part of something like

“Roll those feet! Keep those toes high! Square your shoulders! Keep the tempo moving!” This can be heard by directors, in most marching band rehearsals, as the band is racing around the field while playing mentally demanding music. Competitive marching band, the highlight of some high schoolers’ fall season, is defined by Merriam-Webster as “a group of musicians who play instruments while marching together at a parade or sports event” (“Marching Band”). In comparison a sport is defined as “a contest or game in which people do certain physical activities according to a specific set of rules and compete against each other” (“Sports”). High school competition band is where a band practices from July to November to prepare one show to be

Dictonary.com defines a sport as “an athletic activity requiring skill or physical prowess and often of a competitive nature”. Based on this definition, marching band is technically a sport. Marching band is an activity that requires a lot of skill. It may look easy to play music while “walking” on a field but it is more than that. Most bands require the music to be memorized, the marchers have to be aware of what is going on around them, keep their instruments at a certain spot while playing, and sometimes even do visuals that instructors put in. While I was in high school, my marching band would start practices in May to teach the new members how to march because it is important to keep the upper body still so the music does not sound choppy. My high school is one that is very competitive. While I was in the marching band there, we won our largest

I have been actively participating in the school band for five years. While most of my fellow classmates have dropped out of band, I have stuck with it because, I know band teaches me valuable

You have to get to school earlier than most other teachers, stay late for marching band practice and then have football games on Fridays. There are competitions on weekends.Organization is very important. Being able to enter the band into competitions, making sure every member has a uniform, and getting a bus for games and competitions are all useful. Fixing instruments is good to know how to do. Going to rehearsals of other bands and seeing how they work can help you, direct bands. A love of music is very essential (How to Become a Marching Band

As with most kids, I was a bit nervous about my transition from middle school to high school. One advantage I had was that I participated in band in middle school and planned to be in the band in high school. The Round Rock High School band has a history of excellence and I was looking forward to being a part of that organization. This was an extraordinary time and I looked forward to being a part of the band with great anticipation. Being a part of an organization such as this makes the transition to high school seem much easier and it seemed I had a ready-made group of friends that I could rely on and ask questions of if necessary. After all, the Round Rock High School Band has over 300 members.

When an individual thinks about a demanding sport, more than likely their first response would be football, basketball, or something of that nature. A sport involves physical exertion and skill in which a single person or team compete in a competition for entertainment. Contradictory to what an average person would think, marching band is just as much a sport than football or basketball. Marching band is a sport because of all the competitions, the physical exercise, and the discipline it takes to be in a marching band.

Lastly, being in band has made a great impact in my life because, I love it, I love music, and I enjoy being in something bigger than myself. I love the feel when each individual comes together to be part of something bigger than oneself. My main example would be marching band, due to all the individuals that it takes to make an entire show. Over two hundred and fifty individuals are asked to do various of tasks but at the end it is all worth it because, after every show or performance each individual will put all they have onto that field. Not only do I enjoy being in something bigger than myself but I also have a passion for music. Ever since I was little I was always interested in music and I wanted to play an instrument so when I got into

Marching band has had a great impact in my life, it helped me ease into high school a lot quicker. I had many upperclassmen to support me and help me through whatever I needed. The section leaders and marching specialists helped me so much. They especially helped

I started band in the 6th grade, I honestly thought that I wasn’t going to make it to my senior year, but here I am a senior in band. I am not forced to be in band I can get out at anytime anyday, but I choose not to. It is hard when you are marching and it feels like 100+ degrees. You feel like you want to pass out, but you just have to suck it up and be tough. Throughout the years I have been in band I have created friendships. I have my closest friends in band. I have created many memories in band that will last a lifetime, that I will share one day with my kids. I do not know what I would do without band. Getting in band has been the best decision I have ever made. Band has been the highlight of my high school years. One of the scariest moments I have experienced in band was when we messed up at U.I.L. contest, I was terrified I did not want us to make a 2, it all happened so fast. It was time to get our results, we made a 1, I was so happy. The judges said that if you were to close your eyes and listening to us, you would not know we messed up. We never stopped playing and we recovered so fast, we were so matured when this happened. Band takes up

Band -Band is the best subject because we get to be loud and play are instruments, it's probably the best instrument in the class.

Music equals life, or the saying goes. I feel if I had dropped out of band I would have missed out on a great experience. The ability to play music is something that will live on in you for the rest of your life. Unlike playing a sport you can't ever get worn out or injured and lose the talent. All through school I played sports from baseball to soccer, sure it was fun but it was never my calling, but just being able to play music for a live audience is a feeling that is so amazing there are not enough