Band Music

 Reminder of Falls Past

Arthur A. Garcia, staff writer

Fall is here, and so is high school football. 

I love the idea of brisk Friday nights, stadium lights and, of course, the half time show.

I never liked football growing up.  When I was in high school, our team, which shall remain nameless, wasn’t as good as other area teams, so we never really had a reason to get excited.  I was reminded of how much fun I used to have in the football stands recently while participating in a hayride.  That’s right, I said hayride.  But regardless of what I was doing, I was startled by the sounds of a marching band at a nearby football stadium warming up.  I remembered how much fun we used to have on Friday nights. 

I wasn’t an athlete, but I was a hell of a percussionist.  I’ll never forget the first time I played a snare drum.  I was in eighth grade and my instructor was a jerk.  He was strict and sometimes harsh, but he made me into the percussionist I would later become.  For that, I thank him.

My first marching experience was during my freshman year in high school.  Rehearsals were grueling and exhausting, but it was always all worth it.  The friendships my fellow band mates and I would develop would stay with us even after high school.  We were all individual sections that would join together to become a tight unit. 

Anyone who was in marching band knows the dedication it takes to have a successful band.  Sometimes I thought I was in boot camp rather than high school.  But I never regretted any of it.  The fun of it all always outweighed the work it took to get there.  I think that without the band, a football game would be emotionless.  Bands make the people in the stands, well stand.  And even if our team is down 30 something points, you can always count on the drum line to play an awesome cadence or for the band to get you grooving in the stands.         

One marching band that I extremely recommend that you see at least once in your life is the Texas Tech Marching Band.  They are truly amazing.  I’ve seen them on more than one occasion take to the field, and they never cease to amaze me. 

All though we were never as good as a university marching band, we weren’t half bad either.  We had our moments, just like other high school marching bands. But we always had fun.  Writing this article makes me feel old, because those days seem so far away.  

In actuality though, it hasn’t been too long ago at all.  Most of my greatest memories in high school were of me and my friends acting stupid in the stands or on the bus rides back home.  I remember walking off the steps of our old yellow dogs at 3 a.m., complaining of a sore back from the cold vinyl seats, waiting for my parents to get there to pick me up.  Oh, the memories. 

As this year rolls to its end and a new one readies to begin, I guess I can’t help but reminisce of my high school days.  It’s a trip down memory lane that I can relive if I choose to every Friday night, during football season.