Despite the early hour, the summer heat is intense. The teens out on the field stretch and run laps before taking what will be the first of many water breaks.Already, many have broken a sweat, with red faces and heavy breathing.
But this is just a warm-up to get the day started. And rather than picking up helmets or gloves or footballs or softballs, these kids pick up instruments -- some heavy, some not -- and line up on a mock football field with their postures straight and instruments up while the metallic clicking of a metronome fills the air.
Just as football, softball and other sports teams gear up for the new school year and another season, so do marching bands.
Zachary Fisher, director of the Pride of Chandler, sounds almost like a drill sergeant as he has his students count out loud while marching up and down the practice field. He said there’s a lot of change this year, namely because the band has more freshman; however, that’s just how it is in high school. Kids come in and graduate out.
The band also has some staff changes that he’s excited about -- he has a student teacher, Emma Sanders, and a new assistant in recently hired choir director, Andres Lambastida. There are five staff total, including himself, which is more than Fisher’s ever had.
He’s also excited about this year’s show, “Through the Storm,” even though he expressed some good-natured grumbling over another area school choosing a similar theme.
“They’re going to end up being pretty different, I think,” he said.
The band will be adding some new technological elements and incorporating sound effects to enhance the experience and add ambience. The program starts with a storm approaching, moving into the calm before it hits.
“And then you’ll see it and hear it. It will impact,” Fisher said. “And then the end of the show is about, how do we recover from it? What do we do? So, it’s this good, hopeful, exciting and positive moment at the end. Kind of pulling each other up, working together to recover from a disaster.”
Fisher said he sees a lot of potential at Chandler as he enters his third year as director.
“It’s a great place to come in and teach… and there’s just a ton of potential for growth,” he said.
Growth is something that senior Alison Radcliffe sees as well.
“We are a very, like, freshman-heavy band, but I think that has great room for a lot of potential for growth and stuff. I’m really excited,” she said.
Drum major Karyss Campbell agreed, adding that she thinks it’s going to be a fast-working season as the new members have been catching on quickly. Senior and section leader Lauren Aylward commended this year’s commitment level.
All three are excited about this year’s show, saying that once the band gets it down, it’s going to be steady going.
Aylward and Radcliffe are looking forward to their solos, with Radcliffe adding that she’s excited for the color guard’s performance.
Campbell is ready for the impact of the music on the crowd. “I think the music in the ballad, and especially the closer, is gonna be quite emotional for people.I think it’s gonna hit them hard and they’re gonna love it,” she said.
Down in McLoud, Director Cody Tollison said he’s dealing with a smaller band, but one with higher quality. He’s down to about 34 from 42 last year.
“Everyone is trying really hard, so that’s why I say the quality is so much higher now with less kids,” he said. “We’re moving so much faster.”
Near the end of the first week of their band camp, the marching band was already making steady progress on their show “Self Reflection.”
“It’s all about the inner self-reflection and how it changes. And that’ll be… the development of the show is how each part changes. And there are different parts where it’s happy, sad and whatnot,” he said, adding that the show incorporates more elaborate props this year.
He said the goal for this season is for the band to do the best that they can.
“It’s a little bit smaller, but the quality is better, so I do still expect good results out of it,” Tollison said. “I do think we can do better, especially with how we’re moving so far.”
Drum Major Brooke Davis said she’s feeling really great about this season. “We’re moving a lot faster. I think we’re definitely going to get everything done in time,” she said. “I’m a lot less worried this year as I was last year.”
She added that she hopes people see a very big improvement from last year and the years going on.
Junior Kayden Holmes is happy with the group he has, which has made things better. “They seem pretty cool. We don’t have any of the issues we faced last year. And they all seem like they actually wanna be here,” Holmes said. He added that he likes the show and theme a lot, saying the solos are majestic. “It definitely gives us our own vibe. Differentiates us from everyone else.”
Senior and flute/clarinet section leader Pasha Johnson said she also enjoys the theme and is hoping to see more enthusiasm, better playing and more trophies this year.