Schools out.....band camp and missing seniors.

[hansel2011]

Hello. Well this is not a thread yet...that I know of. So dont jump on me if there is. Cool.

Well...school is out for the summer for me. I got out on the 29th. At first it didnt seem like it until graduation really hit everyone in the band hard...well most of us. We sisnt have that many from the band graduate, but they are what seemed to keep the band together. All of our seniors were top in their section. First flute, my best friend...first french horn, drum major, good friend of mine, first percussion, great guy to be around, second french horn, really funny.

We all thought the last day of school would be the hardest. We have band class last and we were hugging all the seniors and saying our goodbyes. I had to stay after to talk to my bd anyways but it was really hard on everyone becuse the people who they looked up to are gone and no matter what, it is always hard to see your bd cry. But once graduation came, he lost it...which caused me to.

My best friends were gone and then that night they told me they were not coming back to visit. I guess they are like me, when I get out of high school I am going far away and never coming back. Welcome to Brown County. lol. We alrady have plans for the summer and everything....but it is not the same.

Band camp is right around the corner. Completely new leadership team...everything. (including me) We lost our dm and all our captains.

It bugs me to hear people say that we are not going to do anything becasue we have lost everyone. That just makes me more determined to go far and to show everyone that we are going to be just fine without them.

Just write back...comments, concerns...anything.

[bluescalesdragon]

Ha, they said that every year when the seniors graduated, especially last year when a third of our small band graduated. But no, we just kept getting better, despite what everyone thought.

[clarinetrox2012]

Our graduation ceremony was on the 29.
We lost only eight people, but all will be missed.
We lost our field commander of three years. He was a great asset to the band.
We lost our low brass section leader.
We lost two great percussionists, one of which left to join the Army today.
We lost our best oboist and French horn.
And we lost two clarinet players.
=(

[Tunes]

I'm not exactly sure how many seniors we are losing..... not that many. But, one of them was this AMAZING trumpet player, he was in the Lion's Band. But this year, we have two new grades moving up. So I think things will even out. Our band next year is going to be bigger then the band has ever been.

And I am SUPER excited for band camp, my FIRST band camp. I'm pumped. I leave for Disney World in 13 days.... knowing me I'm going to be talking about band at Disney. Well they DO call it the happiest place on earth.

[Lprdgecko]

Well, I just graduated, and my class was my school's 3rd class to graduate, so I know how you feel. When we lost the class of 08 we thought it would be rough the next year. It didn't turn out too badly though. You can't just give up hope if you've lost a lot of "good" players. In fact, embrace the opportunity to improve as much as you can. Maybe you will end up better than the person who graduated?

[hansel2011]

Yep. Like in sofbtall we lost just avout out whole team. We came back this year and made history...in th school, town and city. I know we will be great. We have an amazong show, talented musicians, great leaders....it will all be fine. Ours was the 29th too. I am still best friends with all who grasuated and still talk to all them everyday...but theywill be gfreatly missed in the band program.

[mthsbandrocks]

Our band seems to be alot of the same as yours. We are losing the top 4 flutes, second chair clarinet, top two horns [we only have 4 to begin with], top trumpet, and all [2] tubas.

We are quite skeptical about everything, but I'm determined not to make my senior year suck. If you show everyone else how you believe in the band, the might folow your lead. That's the best you can do since you can't change their way of thinking. Good luck!

[armwaver]

Seeing seniors go is always tough! Our program wasn't hit too hard this past year -- we only had a few seniors -- but that doesn't take away from the sadness that you get from knowing your time is mostly over with these people you've known for years. Sure, you may see them here or there a few times, but there won't ever be that same connection, and that's really saddening.

What I find solace in, though, is that this is a cycle high schools go through every year. The seniors graduate, and they usually leave huge shoes to fill. But following in their footsteps are a new generation of leaders that actually have a really great chance of improving on what those seniors did. And then those people will graduate, and so on and so forth. Such is life.

[hansel2011]

clarnetlover-that is exactly the same way with us. my bd has been at school for four years now and they are his kids. like you said, it is really hard to watch them go. i remember at nationals back in november. it was after the awards and we went back to the hotel and everyone was in the lobby. there was kids, band parents, everyone with our band. well every year, this is when we usually say our goodbyes and such. our dm got up there and gave a speech. it was really hard becaue she was crying. but at our banquet, that is when it is really hard. everyone in the band chipped in to get our dm flowers. thats a lot of flowers. well we were all asked who wanted to present her them at the banquet. i was the only one. well five minutes before i step on stage i find out i have to give a speech. our dm came out on the stage during my speech and she was crying...which made me cry...and then my bd came out on stage and said stuff and started crying. it was a sad day. what stinks is when i am going to dma in alabama, that is when everyone is having their graduation parties so i will not get to see them.

[290Piika]

We didn't think it'd be too terrible going from the '07-'08 to '08-'09 years. Booooy were we wrong. Our band was horribly behaved and the actions reflected in the fact that our band was...I think last at WBA finals in 5A. :[ We're loosing a gangload of people in this upcoming marching season, including most of our principal players. Many are also quitting for whatever reason. =/

It's pretty depressing, actually. I just hope to be able to help our band next year (hopefully as section leader of flutes? ).

[Euphoniums PWN]

We lost somewhere between 30 and 40 seniors...they will be greatly missed.

[jazztastic]

^ Sorry to hear.
30-40 is like... the size of my band (w/ all drumline and guard). haha, we only lost a handful of seniors, but we're getting 30 NEW FRESHMEN. oi. This should be fun.

[KUguardgrl13]

yeah, i think my band lost a big chunk with this year's seniors. 2 of the 3 drum majors, 6 of the 20 guard members with only 1 or 2 new rookies, and a good portion of the rest of the band. but we've gotten better and more disciplined every year, so i'm not worried about them. i'm gonna miss them though when i leave for college. it's a tradition for alumni to visit at band camp and the home competition, but i can't make either of those. i won't even be able to make the drive from eastern kansas to st. louis to see the band when they're there because i have a band event that weekend for college. i might have to stalk some of their practices.

[hansel2011]

You know...when I first wrote this post, I was sad. I miss the seniors. They are my best friends. But I have been thinking and why should I be sad? They will always be there for me. They had me what I am and because of them, I am where I am today. DMA made me thinking. When George told us to close ours eyes and think of someone whao has been there, I thought of my best friend, my previous drum major. She was the reason I wanted to be dm. She was always there for me...from my rookie year to now. Soon people will be looking up to me if they dont already. These seniors have done everthing for me and why be sad? hey would want me to do the same thing which is what I am going to do:)

[let1troll]

OMGosh. Not to freak you out, But what school do you go to? I live in Highland County, Hillsboro, to be exact! I have never thought about someone that actually lives around here being on here I guess! <You should totally PM me!> lol. Sorry.

I really won't miss a few of our seniors. They weren't my favorite people. I mean, they were definately important, but nothing that I couldn't live without. Except our field commander/DM. She has been the DM for 3 years and I already miss her. = [ I will miss the others in a friendly way, but we all fought musically. And the two trumpets aren't going far anyway. = ]