Happy Homecoming!

Homecoming 2010 is now in the books. It was a great week, full of excitement and wonderful performances. You can see to the right that the freshmen got right into the spirit of things with their banner celebrating the theme of "Game Time." Led by senior advisors Logan, Maura, and Tracey, they created a clever reworking of the Monopoly board with a musical theme.

The Warrior Marching Band started Homecoming Friday with an early bird practice on the back 40, where we were under a fairly constant drizzle. With our dress rehearsal cut short, we went inside to wipe down the instruments and head off to class. By 8th period, though, we were ready to start the festivities. Continuing a tradition that dates back to the 1960s, we marched through the halls performing the fight song, our halftime numbers, and several cheers. My favorite stop is always by the DeerPark Daycare, where our little friends helped us cheer on the Warriors with "Go Big Red!"

Then it was on to the pep rally where we joined forces with the cheerleaders, Warriorettes, and drill team for a rousing rendition of the fight song. In our featured numbers, drum major Logan Bloom showed off his advanced mace spinning techniques for the crowd as we performed the video game theme song, "The Legend of Zelda." His final toss narrowly missed the ceiling of the exhibition gym, and the audience cheered his triumphant catch. Then, the homecoming court was announced, with band members Alex Schopa and Danny Dubin representing the sophomore and junior classes, and Laurie Polisky as homecoming queen.

The football game went very well for both the team and the band. Pregame was well executed, starting everything off with a spirit of patriotism. At halftime, we performed our tribute to video game music, with a complicated drill on "Super Mario Bros." and a giant game of Tetris, in which each squad became a Tetris block and marched towards the sideline, rotating and sliding into place. Since I couldn't figure out how to make the squads disappear, we didn't manage to clear any lines. The cheerleaders helped out by forming the sides of the game board. They were so excited to be part of the show that they baked us cookies! After the 3rd quarter, we reprised Logan's mace routine from the pep rally, and when all was said and done, we were tired, happy, and basking in a 35-7 victory over Maine West. Go Big Red, indeed!



This is the 100th post on Mr. B's Blog! Thanks for reading!

The Modern US Military Band

Special thanks to a band parent who sent this link to me...

Here is a great NY Times article about American military bands in the 21st century. Just like our modern fighting forces, these groups need to be able to move in, perform quickly, and get out. Therefore, each of the traditional large ensembles can be broken down into small chamber units and rock bands.

A couple things to note from the article. Col. Thomas Palmatier was quoted several times, and he is no stranger to the DHS bands. The colonel has been the guest conductor of the North Shore Honor Band twice, most recently in 2009. He conducts the US Army Field Band, from which one of my college friends retired just this past summer. My friend joined the clarinet section of the band after a stint in Germany right out of college, and most recently he worked administratively for the Field Band, coordinating their extensive American tours.

I'd also like to share that a military band career is a fine way to be a professional musician. There's no hunting for gigs, playing drunken weddings and drab society affairs. You get to perform for important ceremonies like boot camp graduations and inaugurations. The military provides you with top-of-the-line instruments, excellent facilities, and money to pay off student loans. Auditions for positions in the top groups like "Pershing's Own" (Army) or "The President's Own" (Marines) attract master players from all over the country. If you think you'd be interested in a military music career, talk to me, and I can get you more information. It's obviously not for everyone, but it's a great life for many.