Ridge Marching Band Shows Spirit On And Off The Field This Season

Press release from RMB:

Nov. 24, 2020

Ridge Marching Band (RMB) has been sidelined by COVID-19 to perform a full season like many student athletes and student activities in 2020. However, 74 Band members have remained dedicated to showing spirit at home football games. The school musicians and Color Guard performers also have given their spirit to support the community and a good local cause.

The typical Band season usually includes up to 15 performances between home football games, a rigorous competition schedule among area high school bands and community events like the Memorial Day Parade and Field of Honor event celebrating our Veterans. Unlike other years, there is no theme, no full orchestrated show, no elaborate props and uniforms, no community appearances. Instead, this season has been more about lining up and sharing their talents to simply lift spirits at home football games.

Students and their families welcomed Mr. Clay Beyert in his inaugural year as director of the Ridge Marching Band, although it is not his first year working with RMB. “Mr. B,” as the students fondly call him, has been a part of the RMB family since first joining as a staff member in 2015. Over the years, Beyert supported former director Dan Zugale, who remains involved as an assistant band director this year.

“This entire year has been incredibly tough on everyone in the community,” comments Beyert. “The pandemic has greatly affected our schedule and as such we have not been able to provide the students with the Marching Band experience that we have become accustomed to. Even so, I have been so proud of how the students put all of the distractions behind them and remained positive. With each rehearsal and performance, we have had an opportunity to provide some spirit and good vibes to the community at a time when it is greatly needed.”

This year’s half-time show features an arrangement of these songs:

Crazy Train – Ozzy Osbourne, arranged by Michael Brown and Nick Angelis

Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting) – Elton John and Bernie Taupin, arranged by Tom Wallace and Tony McCutchen

Beyond the football field, RMB also has touched neighbors in the community who have admitted to catching a note or two as the Band rehearses weekly outdoors. Vicki Dennis, Basking Ridge resident and a long-standing Diamond Sponsor of RMB, proudly let the parent organization know how much she and her family appreciated hearing the Band rehearse recently.

“We live right down the road from the high school and I could hear the Band playing from my porch. I remember feeling excited, as it gave me a sense of normalcy,” commented Dennis, the general manager of Short Hills Tour, a local travel company who has supported the RMB in helping them travel to out-of-state performances at Disney and in Williamsburg, Va. in recent years.

“During this unusual season, the RMB wanted to put its energy and spirit into helping the needs of its local community,” explained Ridge High School Band Association Co-President Ellen Polito. “We identified a local organization to help replenish their supplies and give back to those in need during this challenging time.”

The RMB families mobilized and collected food and toiletries for Volunteers of America Delaware Valley’s The Agape House in Somerville. Lisa Spitzner, an RMB mom, organized a week-long food drive surrounding Band rehearsals. Lisa and her graduation RMB musician, Cole Spitzner, proudly delivered a very full carload of donated supplies.

“The manager at The Agape House was surprised and very grateful for our donations, which filled their storage room as well as one particular family’s heart that is staying there and in need of baby items,” shared Spitzner. “I can’t thank the staff, parents, and students enough for their dedication and support throughout this season,” shares Beyert.

This press release was produced by RMB. The views expressed here are the author's own.