Freshmen band students reflect on their GB band experience
Band at GBHS is a year-long commitment, time-consuming yet rewarding
Worn on a constant basis, Kyra Martin loves her Emerald Brigade jacket. Many students in the band have and wear their embroidered letterman jackets with pride.
Students who partake in band spend large amounts of time practicing and preparing for performances, solos and the list goes on – these student sacrifice their own time to practice and juggle everything that is included in band.
“The hardest part is definitely the practice. During the marching band season, we had practice every day,” freshman Carter Neumann said.
While band and practice can take up time, there are definitely the fulfilling aspects that come along for the ride.
“Band is, and will be for sure one of the most rewarding experiences and classes of my high school career. We learn so many things other than how to march and play an instrument, or perform in concerts. We are given confidence that we didn’t have before, and a place in school and friends where otherwise it would be difficult(,)” freshman Kyra Martin said.
Band also provides a family of people who all work together on one piece, creating close-knit relationships and bonds.
“My favorite part is being around people who love music as much as I do and encourage me to be better. Because of them, I’ve been surrounded by such a positive community that allows me to grow as both a player and a person. The more time I spend in band, the more I learn about music, myself and others,” freshman Areanne Dy said.
Sometimes the students have to learn to be flexible and adjust to the new situations and issues that have come up, helping them keep humbled mindsets.
Because of them, I’ve been surrounded by such a positive community that allows me to grow as both a player and a person.
— Areanne Dy
“The whole experience of our championship being cancelled because of the wild fires was disappointing of course, but it makes for a great memory of my first year in the (Emerald Brigade),” freshman Nate Stebbins said.
Partaking in band, one learns a valuable lesson in which everyone has to work together to create one big performance.
“We have to be great as a whole and not just individually,” Dy said.
There are times where students can feel overwhelmed with the amount of pressure added to their everyday lives, yet they still manage to pull through.
“There’s times where it’ll get hard and frustrating and it’s so tempting to give up. While you’re in the moment, you can feel super stressed and pressured, but when you look back at it, the experience is definitely worth it. It definitely is because there’s so many life lessons that I’ve learned in band that can’t be taught in any other class. In band, we don’t compete for grades, instead we try to be the best we can be,” Dy said.
