Personal Narrative: The Marching Band Has Affected My High School Career

“Marching band is for dorks and nerds that have nothing to do”, I used to think to myself. After all, the media has portrayed band students to be this way. How could I not think that band kids had no social life and were all geeky! It was a flaw of mine to believe the stereotypes, but after my friend constantly insisted in me trying out for the color guard, I could not say no. Weeks passed by as I thought about

If I could continue anything i did in high school I would join the michigan marching band. Marching band in high school has been a way for me to meet new people. One of my favorite marching bands for me too watch has always been the Michigan band I would love too take part in it. One of my requirements for school has been a marching band or a pep band and a large marching band like Michigan's would be very preferable. Overall if i could continue anything it would marching band because it is a passion of

I believe in marching band. I believe in blood, sweat, and tears. I believe in working hard not only for yourself, but also for the other 90 people on the field with you. I believe that if someone can get through a season without sweating, bleeding, and crying a few times throughout the season, they don’t deserve to call themselves a marching band member.

I am Julianna Jenkins an outgoing Musical Theater major with a dream to be an entertainment lawyer. I have been going to Appomattox Regional Governors School for 3 years as a Musical Theater Major. One of the reason I fell in love with Greensboro College is because it has a small community and that will give my an opportunity to grow. After meeting some of the Musical Theater students from freshman to senior they all said that they have gotten support from student and teachers at Greensboro.

In the September of 2009 I made the decision to join the Anacortes Band program. I stayed with program all through middle school and high school, and in the end of my Sophomore year I was voted to be the leader of the Flute section. I was one of the youngest leaders my band director has ever seen. Being section leader, I had to lead sectionals, welcome and teach new members the ways of our band, and to help younger players in class when they were struggling. I may not have been the most experienced musician and I certainly was not the oldest, however through my natural talent as a leader I was able to grow my section to one of the closest groups in the band.

My high school drill team director—Gina Rhoden—has impacted my life in a positive way. Through her advice and the example of her character she has inspired me to work hard to achieve my goals, to never be lazy, and to be more confident. Mrs. Gina puts in so much effort towards our drill team and all of her hard work and dedication is inspiring.

Throughout my Life and high school career I have spent many hours with teachers and coaches. I have had many experiences, but the one that stands out most to me is my former cheerleading coach and gym teacher, Ms. Traska. She coached our team with no background in cheerleading. She brought us closer as a team and being part of this team has made a difference in my life. The two years that Ms. Traska coached were the most fun, productive, and memorable years that I have been on the team.

Joining the school marching band at the beginning of my freshman year of high school was one of the best decisions I have ever made. I’ve spent hundreds of hours working with my peers, building friendships while working toilsomely to perfect one show each year. When we weren’t on the field practicing, we were performing at football games or at community events, bringing the community together with a sense of pride. Being a part of the marching band has taught me to put the betterment of my peers over myself and I have made it my goal to make the people around me the best that they

I have had an amazing four years participating in many extracurricular activities but I have found that my biggest passion is colorguard. I have grown to love the sport. The reason for joining colorguard was because I stopped playing my instrument in junior high so I couldn’t march. The only other way to join the band was by joining colorguard. The reason for joining was because of a boy and I really liked him so I wanted to join to get to know him better. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out but I’m forever grateful for joining because it helped me find who i truly was and it helped me find my true passion.

At the end of junior year, a majority of the upperclassmen band members send in applications to become the next leaders of the band during marching season. These leaders are the role models that, as an upcoming senior, I intended to join. I couldn’t understand how I couldn’t get it. I spent hours after performances unloading supplies. I had perfect attendance for every afterschool practice since freshmen year and always turned everything in on time. Even when it was off season I was helping in every way I could like volunteering for band camps that taught little kids how to play the french horn. There was not a doubt in my mind that I wouldn’t get it. With that, I turned in my application as soon as I could. The list of leaders was posted the next week and I could hardly wait. I remember when he put it up, as I was waiting there and was one of the firsts to

I stood seven steps from the start line, hands sweaty and lips trembling. It seemed as if at any moment I would break the position of attention: feet at a forty-five degree angle, knees slightly bent, chin just above the horizon, and shoulders up, back, and down. Though I always dreamed of representing the Benicia High School Panther Band as their drum major, the lone figure in front of the block of blue and gold wearing a white British uniform and a brown bearskin hat, it never occurred to me that I was finally there. There was no way I could not be nervous; it was the last marching practice before my first competition in my career. Nevertheless, there was no escape.

Concert band has been a long rode for me throughout the seven years I’ve been involved in it. Fifth grade was when I started playing an instrument. The battle begins here because I wanted to play the flute, but my mom forced me to play the alto saxophone. The first three years of band is the time I struggled the most. I didn’t want to be in band and everytime I asked my mom to quit she would say no. Her reason why was because she was paying for it every month, I couldn’t quit until the instrument was fully paid off. Since

At Marcus High School, I stayed involved heavily with band and drumline. These extracurriculars demanded immense time management and a sharp level of focus. During sophomore, junior and senior years, I was able to join the student leadership corps and become the leader of the Snareline, an instrument that requires high concentration in comparison to the rest of the band. I was tasked with making sure the incoming students understood their music, and if unable, I taught them. This position led me to become an understanding leader with the desire for greatness.

One achievement that has greatly impacted my life, is the honor of being drum major for the marching band. Throughout the whole audition process, and the season that followed, I have learned important life skills, that will help me in the future.

My special place to remember is my high school band hall. I spent a significant portion of my high school years in that place. Our band hall housed approximately 300 budding musicians during marching season, and so it was spacious. There were practice rooms, a uniform room, and a room with shelving that housed our instruments during the day. Above that room was the library. No one was allowed up there except librarians, of which I was one. Of course, others went up there from time-to-time for various reasons, none of those being to gather music, I am sure. There was a couch, a table for sorting, and dozens of file cabinets full of sheet music. That library smelled like old, musty books from the paper that the sheet music was printed on. The