By: Alan Agundez Castillo    Find me @OwlFeedAlan

Marching band. Why in the world would somebody want to join this class? When you are in a class like band, there is a sense of community and family.

The people in a class like marching band or any group will always stay connected and face everything together. They are like your second family that always stays together.

However, for freshman marching band members, they are just starting to begin their high school careers and build their bonds. Jazmine Mendez, Ariel Vasquez, and Joseph Rihl are all marching band members that came from Wigwam Creek Middle School.

They have been in band for most of their years in middle school, so they have an idea of what it is like.

The three had different reasons as to why they wanted to join marching band, ranging from trying to get a scholarship to college, to just doing it because they had it in their schedule. Vasquez said that she joined because she wanted to exercise in the process and to do something that she loved to do.

Marching band, for these freshmen, even made them think about their future already! “I joined so I could get a full ride scholarship to anywhere,” Mendez said. “It actually made me think to join the military band.”

However, this is not a class for everybody. They all agreed that not just anybody could join. You have to be prepared to be in this class because if you don’t know how to play an instrument, this is not for you.

Vasquez said that they if they don’t know how to play, it would be difficult because they have to memorize their music and the routine. “No, not since that they would be a beginner and don’t know how to play an instrument and marching band is tough if you don’t know,” Mendez said. “Probably join beginning band.”

For freshmen marching band members, this is a special year for them as they are starting to get the flow of high school and building their bonds with new people. These freshmen are thrown into a pool of upperclassmen not knowing if they will be accepted as friends or not, but this group of students in band accepted them with open arms.

Also this class has made impacts in their lives ever since middle school. For many students (including me), when you play an instrument, it is an escape from personal issues. “Well it has actually helped me alot with personal issues that I’m dealing with, and when I play my instrument, it is like I’m in another world in my head,” Vasquez said.

If you are thinking of joining marching band, or in middle school wanting to join, these freshmen have advice for you as they have been through it firsthand.

“Toughen up! That’s my advice,” Mendez said.

“You have to be ready to challenge yourself in here,” said Vasquez. “It gets pretty tough in here.”

Rihl said that you have to be committed if you want to be in marching band. “If you’re not willing to practice or go to the rehearsals, there is no point of you being there,” he said. “That is the whole point of being in marching band.”