Each year the Lewis Cass Marching Band prepares for the competitions that they have each Saturday during their season. This year’s show is called “A Young Guide to a Farmer’s Life.” The band puts together a show that includes props, uniforms, and music to go along with it. Past shows have been “New Colossus,” “Chaos and Order,” and “When the Kings Go Off to War.” One of the many seniors this year, Jenna Roeske, says that the band begins preparing the show early in July before band competitions begin in September through November. At band camp, they go for many hours in the hot sun to practice and begin working out the details of their show. As school begins the band starts to have even more practices which include 5th-period band class for an hour, Tuesday nights for two hours, Wednesday nights for two and a half hours, and Thursdays for two hours. Each night is for different groups to come in, but everyone is still putting in the same amount of work. As band competitions begin in the middle of September, the band has to be prepared to spend their entire Saturday at the competition. The band might have to arrive at the school at 5:30 a.m. or 12 p.m, it just depends on what time the competition starts, and how far away it is. Also before they leave the whole band shows up around an hour earlier than the time to leave that way they can run through the show one last time. After running through the show, each person polishes instruments, loads the trailers, and then gets on the bus. 

Putting together a show for a band takes a lot of time that many people outside of the program do not realize. The band members spend hours upon hours during their summer dedicated to practicing, planning, and putting together the entire show. Even once their season starts they spend extra hours after long days of school to come later at night and practice even more. During these practices, they work on parts of the show that are weaker or might need a little more work than others. Even on competition days, the members have to make sure that their uniforms are correct, and that they are ready to leave for the long day ahead of them. 

Another senior this year, Jayla Thomas, says that the things that keep bringing her back to band each year are both the people and the hard work and dedication that she has in the band. She loves her friends within her section and even others that aren’t in her section too. The hard work and so many hours of dedication that she has put in keep her coming back to see it pay off in the future. The band has won state for all of the years both Jenna and Jayla have participated, and they don’t want to lose for their senior year. The band has continuously put in hard work to keep winning more and more years of state. 

Works Cited

Roeske, Jenna. Personal interview with the author. 27 Sept. 2022.

Thomas, Jayla. Personal interview with the author. 27 Sept. 2022.