“Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened” -Dr. Suess
As I reflect on the 2009 University of Delaware Marching Band, many things come to mind, different activities, events and inside jokes that we shared as a group during the nearly four months that we were together making music. Some memories will be wonderful and a pleasant reminder of all the good times we had together. Other memories will be a reminder of the turmoil and struggle which every individual, and the group as a whole endured. However through all of the struggles and hardships of the season we always had each other to lean back upon, and it was that safety net of friends family, that gave the support to push through and come out stronger on the other side.
“To us, family means putting your arms around each other and being there.” -Barbara Bush
Contrary to many people’s beliefs Marching Band is not just a group of people moving around and blowing their brains out, it is much more. It is a group of individuals that unite all their separate voices to work toward a common goal. Without the contribution of every member playing his or her music or doing their work or flapping their arms the ensemble will only be able to accomplish so much. However when everyone binds together and works toward a common goal, the end result is a gorgeous display of color, motion, music and passion.
“Families are like fudge… mostly sweet with a few nuts.” -Unknown Author
Many times during the season this year I had moments of complete breakdown. However it was not tears of joy that I was shedding, but rather laughter from the antics of my peers. One of the reasons that rehearsals and football games were so enjoyable this season was that there was always a sense of humor and humility floating around. No matter if the sun was baking us like cookies in an oven or if the rain was turning our horns into rain catchers someone was always cracking a joke or telling a story about this one time at band camp. It was those moments, those experiences of playing dinkle football with the Tubas or eating pizza at 10 before the last home game that I will remember the most.
“Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” -Confucious
This year we had two very well designed and entertaining shows that we put out at Delaware Stadium. If you did not get a chance to see you missed out, the show this year was made up of four rock charts including Pressure by Billy Joel, Holiday by Greenday, Saturday Night is Alright for Fighting and Bohemian Rhapsody. However our success this year went far beyond the simplicity of marching with good technique, being in time, playing the right notes and doing dynamics. This show provided an electricity, an energy that drove performance, and the music to another level. It was this energy that made performing day in and day out so much fun.
“A moment lasts all of a second, but the memory lives on forever.” -Proverb
To say what part of the season was my favorite this year would be doing an injustice to all the good times we had. I could obviously point out the first night with the rookies and woosh, the band camp rehearsals, meeting the Delaware State Band, traveling to Allentown and performing in front of a packed house, having UMass come down and perform with us in our own stadium, meeting alumni that were at UD before I was even born and even seeing the seniors perform their goodbye show for rest of the band and audience. However it is not just one of these that will stick with me as a reminder of this season, every memory that I have of this year is special and it is all of them together that made this season so much fun.
“In my life I’ve loved them all”
