Band and Chorus

Molly Garrity ,  Veritas Staff

The band marches at our home football games. photo by Carl Strobel

What would a Friday night football game be without the high-spirited presence of the band?

For the past few years the Rockland High School band has held very high expectations from spectators. The band has had an exciting start to the new year and has surely been inspired by our new principal Mr. Cron, a talented musician himself who played trombone for a number of years and completely supports activities like the band.

Though many listeners from the crowd of football fans would believe that the band’s performances were nothing short of perfection last year, senior trumpet player Sonya May says that the students of RHS should expect to see “a lot of improvement and enthusiasm” for the new season.

Many students at RHS are unaware of how much time and effort is put into perfecting the music choices and performances carried out by the band. Each summer, the entire band attends band camp at Esten Elementary School for three day overnight camp, in order to prepare for the new year.

Senior Alexis Hogan who plays the flute explains, “The purpose of band camp is to learn the half-time show for the football games and to bond with each other before the season starts.”

Ian Haas, a junior member of the band, says that he enjoys camp because you leave the three day session “with a sense of accomplishment.”

What many outsiders may not know is that joining the band at RHS is a huge commitment.

In the fall, the band, practices as a marching band so that they can perform at home football games and march in the Veteran’s Day parade. During the rest of the year, the ensemble performs for their Holiday Concert, Broadway Night, and Pops Night.

Band students also participate in the Southeastern District festival, and the SEMSBA festival.

One important event is the Band Auction held in November. This is a huge fundraiser for the band which the Band Boosters and students take part in. It is filmed and coordinated with WRPS.

Alexis Hogan summed up the importance of our band. “The band is an essential part of any school because it allows students to boost creativity and to freely express the magicalness of music,” she said. We may not always know what to expect musically from the group, but we can always count on the band for their whimsical attitudes and a perfect rendition of “Hey Baby.”