Marching Band provides musical spirit

Musicians and color guard pump up the crowds and put on a show

Oberlin football games might sometimes be decided by halftime, but that's when the fun begins for the 26 members of Oberlin's marching band. With a program that includes songs from the movie Austin Powers and a sizzling dance routine, the band is giving Oberlin fans one more reason to cheer during the game.

The marching band presents a full arsenal of instruments, including trombones, trumpets, clarinets and drums. They also boast several more obscure instruments, such as a sousaphone and a mellophone (a French horn that opens towards the front.) Combined, they form a tight, energetic band that will have even the most languid fans tapping their feet.

Their on-field performance, called the drill, features a repertoire consisting of four songs from the film Austin Powers. For other types of performances, the band has a complete canon of 34 tunes, including themes from Star Wars and Indiana Jones.

The band is student-run, with members arranging the music and choreographing the marching patterns. The band practices twice a week, devoting two hours to each session. The band council - elected by and from the membership - is responsible for arranging rehearsals and conducting.

"They [band council] make sure that activities and work are shared. Everybody comes in and helps," said senior piccolo player Alison Gent.

The band also includes a color guard, the dancers garbed in glittery dresses who accompany the music. Twirling streamers and batons in the air, they give the cheerleading a run for its money. "We're getting more and more comfortable," said first year Kasia Wawer. "The shapes we do in the drill are getting much smoother. We spend a lot of time cutting and polishing our routine."

Says Wawer of the racy outfits her team wears, "We thought that since it was a 60s show, we should wear the shortest, tightest outfits possible."

When the band and the color guard get together on the field, it makes for a very exciting performance. In fact, the audience is often as attentive during the halftime show as they are during the game.

Gent insisted that there is no rivalry between the marching band and the cheerleaders. In fact, she said, "We're hoping to work with the cheerleaders. We're going to give them some of our music so we can do something together."

When the teams take the field again, band members lead cheers and rouse the audience with stirring fight songs, calling for the crowd to root for their boys.

Gent says, "We always like the songs the crowd reacts to, like YMCA. What we play depends on the crowd response."

"A lot of us enjoy it so much that we don't mind the extra effort. You really become a part of it," said first year clarinetist James McConaghie. "It's more camaraderie and discipline than performing a show."

Fellow first-year Lisl Walsh noted, "We get a lot of freedom because we write our own drill. It's nice because we have a small group and we learn quickly."

It's a great band," says Wawer. "It's tiny but it's great. It's just loads of fun."

The marching band will be performing at Oberlin football games throughout the semester, as well as at Ultimate Frisbee, ice hockey and women's rugby matches.