The loud music echoes through the stadium. The green and gold uniforms fill the field in various
shapes and figures, spelling out the bold SMS. For every chant and every cheer, the songs played by the SMS marching band instill Raider pride in the ears of every parent, student and fan.
They’re at every game and always on the sideline, and at times they’re even performing on the field. They practice everyday, yet their dedication and importance isn’t always acknowledged. But like any other team, they’re as close off the field as they are on it.
“The kids are extremely close with each other. Band is like a big family,” band director Steve Adams said. “The attraction of being in band, as well as the love of music, brings the family closer together.”
Band camp and team bonding are crucial to the band. Team TP night, making shirts and special traditions keep the players together. Just like in any sport, if the players don’t get along it affects the success and performance of the team.
“If there’s a lot of tension, your performance isn’t gonna be as cohesive and it’s not gonna be as good,” senior Allison Rand said, “so as long as you keep a good attitude your performance is gonna be pretty good.”
The band practices five days a week for two hours each day. Not only do they work hard every morning and during school, but practicing outside of school is essential to acquiring enough knowledge of the music to play it without being able to see it.
“Dedication outside of school is very important because Mr. Adams expects us to have the music memorized when he says it needs to be,” junior Perry Schroeder said. “We have a lot of competitive competitions and tryouts that take hours worth of work outside of school.”
Memorizing four halftime songs, eight stand songs and four pregame songs plus the 15 sets of charts for each song takes a lot of dedication. But dedication doesn’t always have to mean all work and no play. While they work hard, they consider it a rewarding activity.
“The atmosphere of band is fun. It’s where you can be yourself around anybody. Everyone’s really nice which is cool, so you can pretty much talk with anyone and have a relationship with everyone there,” sophomore Will Skoog said.
Hard work can lead to success and accomplishment. The feeling players get after a halftime show, or a festival is a feeling of pride. The band competed in the Shawnee Mission Marching Festival Oct. 4, K-State Oct. 18, and will be competing in Warrensburg Oct. 29. Completing these marches is a huge achievement for the band.
“It’s a lot of adrenaline. You can really feel it. It’s everyone watching you and it’s nerve racking but it’s really fun,” Rand said.
This energetic and uplifting atmosphere helps with future success, and can lead to many opportunities. It also creates unforgettable bonds.
“It’s really fun, basically everyone is a family. It’s just like the soccer team, [and] the cross country team. Once you’re in there you’re kind of in there for life even if you quit or not,” junior Raj Selvaraj said. “We’re just a huge family.”
Adams sees marching band not only as a fraternity of musicians, but as a closely knit family never to be separated. Though they may encounter ups and downs, Adams has learned valuable lessons from his experiences with the band.
“I have learned to never give up on someone, [to] expect the unexpected, [and to] expect greatness,” he said.