Under the blazing sun and to the beat of the metronome, 95 marching band students stepped in time Monday, the first day of the 2008 Beatrice High School band camp.
The start of band camp marked the beginning of a busy musical season for band students in preparation for football half-time shows and marching band competitions, band instructor Nathan LeFeber said.
Marching band is a big deal for both the school and the community, since so many people will see the students perform during home football games, LeFeber said.
“It’s an important thing for our community,” he said. “It’s a chance for my kids to have fun and a good advocacy for music in the community.”
This year, the marching band will perform at six home football games and three marching band competitions, he said. The first home football game is Sept. 4, when the Beatrice Orangemen play against Seward.
With the help of co-drum majors Hannah Pittman and Mia Gerten, band camp gets students ready for the season.
“We’re helping out to improve the band, be a leader in that respect,” said Pittman, a senior.
It is her fourth and final year for band camp, she said.
Both Pittman and Gerten said the camp is fun, but it is also hard work.
“It’s really to (the band members’) benefit to come here,” said Gerten, a junior. “Otherwise you are going to have to learn it while everyone else is moving on.”
For the next few days, students will be practicing and learning their music and the fundamentals of marching as they prepare for their first half-time show, Pittman said.
She and Gerten will be there not only to help students learn to properly mark time, but to help keep them motivated, especially when it’s hot outside. Temperatures on Monday reached into the high 90s, but forecasters predict a break as temperatures things cool down into the 80s for the rest of the week.
At the end of band camp, students will perform a special exhibition show for their parents, Gerten said.
Camp ends with the summer, but that doesn’t mean the end of work for the students. During first semester, marching band students will practice from 7:30 to 8:50 each morning at school, Pittman said.
Both she and Gerten attended a special band camp for drum majors at the University of Nebraska-Kearney this summer and are excited about their new leadership roles with the marching band.
“It’s a lot different, because we’ll get to watch the entire show,” Pittman said.