Two people that have a major part in the show, but are not actually playing an instrument are our drum majors. Drum majors are people who stand in front of the band and lead the band throughout their performance. I also had the opportunity to sit down with them one on one and interview them. Some of the things they told me are things people in the crowd or band might not realize about our two drum majors. So here is my interview with them: 

Madison Carter is one of two drum majors and she is a Senior. The thing that made her choose to be a part of the marching band was her friends at her old school, and the person that made her want to try out to be a drum major was Mr. Lee. This is what she said “Marching band. I did it at my old school, and I honestly got into it because of my friends at that school. And then I came here and I had to take a year off because of health issues, and then me getting to know Carson made me want to jump back into it. And then he also influenced me trying out for drum major because I would have never done that if it wouldn’t be for him. So honestly just his influence and his teachings.” She says performing in front of people at football games and competitions is kind of scary, but calming at the same time because you’re not facing the crowd but you know you are being watched. Out of the choice of playing an instrument or being a drum major she would choose being a drum major. I then asked her what is one thing that is most difficult about being a drum major and she said it would be having to keep everyone on time because they have had trouble with that before. She also said it would have to be remembering all the stuff at the same time. Then she said, “Because when you are doing it you have a whole bunch of things going on in your head like, ‘I need to change this tempo after this measure’, and things like that are just a lot to think about at one time.” Then I asked what are some of the responsibilities she has as a drum major, and she said working with the leadership to make sure they are all on the same page, work with Mr. Lee, having to know her music really well, and know everyone else’s parts pretty well to know what everyone is supposed to do. She did add to answer the question, “Honestly just working with everybody and just keeping a safe area. Because that is one of my main things I told Carson when I was doing an interview for drum major, I thought it was very important that everybody felt comfortable coming to practice and that they weren’t scared to come to practice. Hopefully I have been achieving that by just being someone to look up to.” Madison said being a drum major is not an easy job. At first she was more nervous for football games, but since performing at a competition recently it would definitely have to be competitions she is more nervous for. She said it’s that way because there is a lot more pressure on you especially because you are wanting to get a certain thing. And if they didn’t place; like last competition, they got superior, but they didn’t place and that was what they were really upset about. Games are more laid back to her and competitions are more pressuring. Something she wants people to know about the show, the band, and her and Anna (the other drum major) is, “We are all super close. Like outside of the band, me and Anna aren’t as close as I would like to be, but we can have conversations that aren’t about the band and I think that is important. The same with Carson, and pretty much anybody that I talk to outside. And something about the show is that Carson created it. It came from his brain, very cool. It was made for my class; the class of ‘22. So it is kind of personal to me because it was created for the seniors now. I think that is why we get so worked up and emotional when people aren’t getting something. We want this to go as perfect as possible because it’s all really personal. It’s important that it’s personal to all the seniors and especially Carson. He came here, (not when I was here because I came here sophomore year) but he came here everyone else’s Freshman year so it’s kind of like saying bye to all the people he I guess ‘grew up with’”. Then I asked her what her opinion was on if the band gets the attention and appreciation they deserve, as well as the attention and appreciation of the drum majors. This is what she told me, “No. The band specifically. We get some attention, but there is a big difference between softball, football and us. Like you hear them on the intercom every single day and then there’s us. We just got our scores announced from competition, but that’s like one of the first times I have heard us on the intercom. As far as drum majors, I have been discouraged quite a lot because I feel like I am not being listened to sometimes, and it’s kind of annoying. It’s just really hard when you’re supposed to be this big person, but then everybody treats you like a little person.  I have gotten looks when I say stuff, and when I am trying to help. It’s not very fun sometimes just because of that. Lately I have been more encouraged and discouraged, but it’s gotten difficult sometimes to where I didnt even want to come to practice. That really made me upset because my whole point this year was to make people want to come to practice and have fun. Then here I am feeling the opposite of what I was wanting to achieve. I am sure Anna will say something similar because we have both had that issue where people just don’t really see us as who we are. So it kind of takes the whole fact that we are drum majors completely away, and it’s not very fun.” Madison’s favorite section of the show is the second movement. However her favorite part is the big impact in the first movement when the band has their feet apart and she and Anna go into halftime. She said it is a really cool part to see and she feels like the band is actually looking at her because they are stopped. Therefore they don’t have a reason to not look at her. She told me during this part it makes her feel really cool. The final question I asked her was “What does being a part of the band mean to you?”. She then replied with, “I think it would be like a sense of belonging somewhere. Because while I do have those issues about people not listening, people being disrespectful. When I am on the field, in the band room, whatever I feel like I actually am supposed to be there. It’s not like someone who walks into the band room and is not a part of marching band or anything like that. Like people know who I am, people know my name, it’s a nice feeling.”

Anna Moon is the second drum major and she is a junior. She wanted to be a drum major because her sister was in marching band and Anna thought it was fun. She also added this for why she joined marching band, “I always wanted to be a part of marching band just cause it was like the next step into being in high school band and it made you look cool. I also knew that if i didn’t join marching band and was in concert band then I would have missed a big gap in between learning music wise. For drum major it was like the ultimate goal when it came to marching band. I was filling out my application for section leader and I just thought ‘Why not?’. And I didnt expect to do like the whole process and didn’t expect to get it obviously.” Then I asked Anna, “What does being a part of the band mean to you?”. She replied with “That’s a very hard question. Being a part of the band means that I am a part of the second family. Because we get really close over the summer because we are literally spending 13 hours a day, 7 days a week together. I see almost all those people 5 times a week, like 6 or 7 hours a day and we really start to care for each other and it starts to become like a second family.  I think being in band means you’re not alone because there is always someone you can get some information from, always somebody that you can care for.”. For some people they believe being a drum major is easy, however Anna strongly disagrees. She told me she can’t stress enough how much being a drum major really isn’t that easy. She told me that everybody just thinks that drum majors stand up on the podium and wave around their hands, but she said it is so much more than that. Her responsibilities as a drum major are to make sure she’s doing right, following the rules, not setting a bad example, make sure that everybody is marching correctly, know the tempo and know it well, and make sure her conducting pattern is readable. Anna said that the band looks up to her and Madison and if they can’t read their conducting pattern, then it is all a train wreck. Then I asked her with all these responsibilities what is one of the most difficult things of being a drum major. Anna replied, “A lot of people don’t know this but it’s the mental aspect because everybody is counting on you and when the tempo falls apart, yes it could be wind or percussion, but it’s insanely hurtful and stressful whenever people are blaming you (judges or the band). The most difficult thing would definitely have to be how mentally taxing it can be being a drum major.” Out of playing an instrument or being drum major, Anna prefers to be drum major. She explained why she prefers being drum major is because drum majors are held to a higher respect, they have a lot of responsibilities and she likes to help others; as a drum major you have to do that alot. For her the feeling of performing is really hard to remember. All she knows about the feeling she has when performing is that it is exciting, stressful, fun and nerve racking. She is more nervous for competitions than the football games because football games to her are just an extra practice. This is what Anna had to add to that as well, “In the end all the people come there just to see the football team, and halftime is a thing to feel the space while it gives the team a break. I view it as games are closer to a competition setting because you’re in uniform, you have an audience who will cheer you on. But competitions are so much nerve racking because it means so much more. You are judged on it, and you get awards.” I then asked her if she thought games or competitions were more fun and she said “They are both equally fun in their own ways but I feel like competitions are more fun. Everything leading up to the time that you play is stressful, but after you play you just get to watch a lot of bands and they’re really cool. You also get a lot of free time to spend with friends. Whenever you’re doing a game it’s go, go, go,go and you’re constantly moving and constantly playing. You don’t really have that free time to just be yourself and hang out with your friends. I think that with competitions it’s like a missing piece because it’s stressful, while everything leading up to you stepping on that field is stressful, afterwards it is just the best time.” Her favorite part of the show is the second movement. She chose the second movement because it makes her feel like it is a time to show off her skills. At that time the show slows down and she feels like she gets to interact more with the band. Anna also thinks it’s really cool that they have a vocalist  because at any competition she has ever been to this is the first one she has ever seen. Here is what Anna wants people to know about the show, the band, and drum majors, “People view the show and the band as a weird group of people, which weird is a compliment to me now because I have been called it so many times, it’s not as bad as it seems. You find your own group of kids to be around and your own set of friends. It’s not easy being in band and marching the show, but I think it has this stigma around it that ‘oh it’s the worst thing ever and people put all their time and effort and you waste your summer away,’ but it’s like summer camp.”. For her opinion on if the band gets the attention and appreciation they deserve; this is what she had to say, “No. People don’t realize how much work, time, money and blood sweat and tears we pour into this and then so many people don’t even know what the marching show even is, what color guard is, or what being a drum major is or what kinds of instruments there are. It’s like a world that people don’t even know about and I feel like it needs to be recognized and brought up more. So no, I don’t think they get the right recognition.”