Tribute to a Band Program

The final month in the Panther Band is a time for reflection. 

When bringing a band year to a close, the schedule is anything but light.  In addition, each week is underlined with ample tradition, symbolism and weight.  The Panther Band filled their last five weeks with at least eighteen events.  This included competitions, fundraisers, the Try Tunes community outreach, concerts, live orchestra performances for the Spamalot musical, an orientation with incoming freshmen, and an awards banquet.

There were corsages, grand salutes and final photos.  The march Alhambra Grotto was retired, which will only be heard again at the next four graduations to honor each band class who played it in the course of their high school years. During the acceleration of the last mile, one had to fight hard to pause and absorb the full meaning of the moments.

Lighthearted images surfaced often.  At the final competition, carpool vehicles held a tangle of clothes, snacks and instrument cases as the day progressed; not far from how their bedrooms look at this time of year.  The mad rush of five events in five hours and constant uniform changes can test any system. However, when the students emerged from the vehicles looking like James Bond in their crisp tuxes, the miracle of the suit was that they looked nothing like their rooms. 

Christian Wood, senior, was asked about his upcoming final march.  “It is going to be very special.  But it’s special every time.”  It was spoken very quietly and with love for this band.

Many students served an eight or nine year run in the Benicia Unified School District’s band program.  Vast hours were spent in this ‘leadership’ academy, where more than music was taught.  By design, the adults (boosters) also became part of it.  They were the silent scaffolding full of gears and pulleys which were in perpetual motion day and night, even in the summer.  During the high school years, the machine was working at the most intense level, keeping up as the students evolved and matured.  The adults and their years of experience were called upon to help the Band Director, Patrick Martin, deliver a highly functioning program.

Being a booster is a unique role, and it is difficult to find its equal in any other high school activity.  It is a privilege to be part of something with one’s teenager during those years from which we thought we’d be cut.  It is a treasure to stand shoulder to shoulder, to adjust uniforms and give water and hold their instruments.  To witness their concerts, parades and celebrations.  It was experienced together, without much adult interference, where the booster was a shadowy presence, or a behind-the-scenes force in the back row, but at all times, included.  It meant a lot to the kids when the grown-ups took such an interest and care in the program.  For the adults, it was a chance to model what it is like to put someone else first, ahead of self. 

One doesn’t audition to be in the high school marching band.  The program accepts students and ‘builds’ them.  One milestone of May was when current 8th grade band members from the middle school, (incoming freshmen) met the current high school band.  They worked together on a few pieces and performed for the families.  These three hours allowed the future and past to meet briefly, overlapping their incoming and outgoing eras.  8th graders were at the ground floor, pushing everyone up one level, to help lift the seniors upwards and out.  This was the first and last time, where five grade levels were united in a group nearly 100 members strong.  It was like a tide coming in and going out at the same time, but there was no undertow…just a smooth and undisturbed surface. 

For the seniors and their families, the final days were obviously poignant as their 48 month, ‘round-the-clock' program was coming to an end.  For the remaining students, they prepared to say farewell to the band as they knew it, ready to ramp up a few days after graduation to start again, being promoted one level higher in the hierarchy. 

The one constant is the band director and instructors, where only half of their job is to teach music.  The other half, the ‘life skills’ piece, is where everyone confronts their weaknesses and strengths; where they are held accountable; learning about chain of command and hard work.  They belong to different groups depending on the event, so that all barriers are broken and everyone learns to work with various personalities.  There are difficult days, long days, days where things can melt down and other days that soar.  Each day is a page within a fast moving flip book, but the common thread is the fun and respect and camaraderie that will remain. 

At the band award ceremony, the ritual-filled evening served to solidify the bonds.  The end-of-year slide show highlighted the many hours spent since August, reminding everyone of the long road that brought them there.  It had a strong message: when all the hours are evaporated away, the students will be left with the solid and sweet moments at the bottom of their hearts.  “This is what I want you to take away from the band program,” said Martin.

Apparently, it is a successful formula.  Alumni are a constant, strong and growing presence.  They are invited and welcomed at each event, and nowhere is it more meaningful than at the final marching practice, another milestone of May.  

It was held in the upper parking lot of the high school, and many parents and alumni came.  Costumed students and the carnival atmosphere gave way to the bittersweet moment of the Senior Pass.  The seniors left the formation and took the steps to view the band, to see the holes in the formation for the first time. “This is where the seniors get to see what the band is like without them, and that the band is going to be okay when they are gone.  It means a lot to them to see you perform for them,” said Martin to the underclassmen. “These are the steps where seniors of the past have stood before.  I don’t know of any other bands that do this.  We are so deeply rooted, that alumni come back.” 

At the end, the farewell speeches were given on the steps, with the parents present on the fringes of the lot.  The wind carried away the words, leaving most of the speeches for the kids’ ears only.  Words were elusive and uncaptured by video or by the surrounding adults.  But some words drifted by as if the phrases were on gossamer ribbons, weaving past and brushing by our ears.  “I wanted to make a difference in one kids’ life, just one.”  “This is something you can't get anywhere else.” “I fell in love with this program because I knew I could mean something here. I know I can make a difference in the world.” “No matter what happens out there during the day, know that during band time you all matter here and now.” “I feel safe here.” “Everyone here is my family. Every year that family grows.”  “I tried to come up with words, but there aren’t any to describe this band. This is part of my history that has shaped me.  It is something to cherish. It is precious, rare and valuable…something like this only comes once in a lifetime, if that.”  “Thank you Mr. Martin.” “When I’m super old, like 30 or 35, I hope that I can come back.”

The final milestone happens on the day the senior parents reluctantly send in the tuxes and gowns to the cleaners, where the suits will be sanitized of the essence from an era where their child performed music that will never be forgotten. 

In closing, after being one of the families departing the Panther Band after an indescribable four years, I would like to end with my own quote which came to mind after the dust cleared from graduation day: “For boosters and students alike, the band program is like being in a rock tumbler.  You get jostled around by a lot of joy and hard work, but you come out a much more gleaming version of yourself.”---Sheri Hoffmann