Tension thickens the air as anticipation moves through the room silently, but this is all broken with a crescendoing cymbal roll; suddenly, the room is charged with sound.
Drums and bells move together cohesively to create a dynamic show that explores kinetic energy, having instruments and props constantly moving throughout the performance to highlight the activeness of the theme.
Since November, the indoor drumline has been practicing and competing across Pennsylvania, receiving multiple wins throughout their season and even winning the Keystone Indoor Drill Association Championships.
Front ensemble leader Lori Tanner reflects on how championships made her feel.
“Winning Championships was like a promise that even with all the changes, we can still perservere and come out on top,” Tanner said.
The drumline is an indoor ensemble performance band, combining both middle school and high school students, that uses only percussion and front ensemble instruments.
Senior Cooper Friend, who plays center snare, has been playing in the drumline for six years. Pressure rises for the group as the competitions ramp up and the drumline gets deeper into their season.
“It gets to the point later into the season where when we’re doing rehearsal, everyone’s…laser focused trying to get better, and everyone’s working for each other,” Friend said.
It was evident the drumline improved through the year as they consistently scored and placed higher than their second place finish in their first competition.
During this period of training, the indoor drumline won all but one of their competitions. However, winning is not the only goal band members like front ensemble leader Lori Tanner have been focused on.
“My goal was to make sure they were ready for next year cause I’m going to be leaving,” Tanner said. “…I’ve really pushed them to not rely on me.”
Seniors are a vital part of many high school activities, providing support and guidance to newer students, so when the seniors graduate, newer members will have to assume the same leadership roles their mentors had.
The drumline’s success in competitions reflects the drive the middle school and high school students have to become a better group.
Wesley Harler, the band teacher who works with the indoor drumline, explains the intense environment.
“Competitions can be more stressful because of the amount of people and moving around that takes place at the event,” Harler said. “It takes a high level of coordination to get every group where they should be, at the correct time.”
Despite this pressure, the indoor drumline has risen to the challenge due to the focus of students coming out with multiple first place wins, cementing this as a successful season.
