I've been informed that my 'hobby' posts are less than interesting, so I'll make this one a bit more entertaining by interjecting a few random pictures of the kids at Band Camp.
Band Camp, for those of you who are not already familiar with the term, is a special type of summer camp where children of the appropriate age (high school) are trained in the fine art of synchronized marching while holding a musical instrument. The training is conducted during the summer months in order to subject the students to the maximum discomfort in regards to heat, humidity, and sunburn, so that they are fully prepared for the actual marching performances which take place in the dead of winter where there is four feet of snow on the ground.
James and Deborah were the lucky recipients of this year's "I Survived Band Camp" awards.
James, the veteran, had quite an enjoyable time. I'm not sure how much of his enjoyment was due to being the veteran, with a young sister around to look up to him and learn from him, and how much was due to the fact that he was finally able to play his instrument while marching instead of pretending to do so, as is the case with the rookies.
He is a section leader for the clarinets this year, which means he has charge of a set of other clarinet players, helping them to learn the music and the steps and the procedures, all while keeping up with his own responsibilities while out on the field. I don't envy him the position, having led other people in various projects. Sometimes leading other people, especially talented, smart individuals, is like herding cats. I hope he has a much better time of it than those of us who have tried to lead engineers, who are also talented, smart individuals. (Many engineers also happen to be talented musicians.) It will be an interesting test of his character, his ability to inspire and lead others without being domineering. I have great hopes for him.
Deb, the rookie, had a thoroughly wonderful time. I'm not sure how much of her enjoyment was due to the fact that her big brother was there to watch over her, and how much was due to not having to actually play her instrument while learning the marching drills. From what I understand, it's rather difficult to get the hang of doing both at the same time. Which is why there are so many people in the marching band. At any one time, only fifty percent of them are actually playing. The rest are trying to keep track of where their feet are going.
I don't know how many new friends she made, or if she mainly hung out with her fellow freshmen (or fellow flute players). But whenever I happened to be out by the field, she was in the middle of a large group of girls, smiling, laughing, chatting it up with the other musicians, executing her marching drills without a lot of fuss, and looking for all the world as though she'd been doing this kind of thing forever. About the only thing she complained about was the incessant heat, and that was bothering everyone.
As part of the Pit Crew, it is my job to help the percussionists (the front-line musicians) get to the field on time, with their marimbas and xylophones and keyboards on the rolling carts, tied down and ready to go. As such, we are responsible for the tractor and carts which carry the percussion equipment out to the field, and this "rolling stock" requires a lot of maintenance during the summer months in order to be ready for the fall/winter performances. Like greasing the moving parts, replacing worn-out wheels, re-positioning the "cups" which hold the wheels of the instrument stands, making sure the tractor engine and the batteries are ready for another season. This year, we were also tasked with constructing three rolling cabinets which will house a new drum set which was ordered by the band directors.
And I wasn't the only member of the crew.
Years ago, it was difficult to arrange for parents to volunteer to help out with Band Camp because it was far too expensive. The band travelled out of state to some college down south for Camp, and it cost somewhere in the neighborhood of four hundred dollars per person. As you might surmise, this makes it extremely difficult to recruit volunteers!
For the last five or six years, the parents and school staff have worked together to have the Band Camp here at the High School, reducing the cost significantly; now it costs only somewhere in the neighborhood of one hundred and fifty dollars per student. And the volunteers don't have to pay anything, since they aren't needing to arrange transportation, room and board.
This also means that more parents can volunteer to help out with staffing and meals, which had to be hired out previously.
We had a most excellent staff, and the meals were extraordinary. In fact, they were so extraordinary that it was necessary for me to skip several of them to avoid filling myself beyond capacity! (Oddly enough, this was not a problem for the children, who seem to have an incredible ability to eat massive quantities of delicious food without suffering any ill effects.)
Cheryl helped out in the kitchen with the meals. She seemed to be having a wonderful time as well, chopping things up here and there, handing out food to the kids as they came through the breakfast or lunch line, pitching in with whatever chores needed to be done.
The schedule required that we arrive no later than 7 a.m., and we worked hard every day until at least 9 p.m. It made for a very wearying but satisfying week. By the end of it, we were all glad for the experience, but exhausted.
Friday night was the big performance, where the kids played three of the five songs they are learning for the season. They were marvelous! Afterward, the kids were invited to spend the night at the school for a Lock-In, with food and games and all kinds of activities hosted by the chaparones. Deb decided to stay, while James (and Dad!) decided it would be more fun to go home and get some sleep.
Consequently, Saturday was a total wash for most of us. We picked up Deb at the school by 6 a.m., then brought her back home to sleep. And most of us slept in til nearly ten in the morning. Didn't even think about accomplishing anything that day.
There'll be plenty of time for accomplishment later on. I hope.
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| Cheryl, Mary and Adam watch the Final Performance |
Band Camp, for those of you who are not already familiar with the term, is a special type of summer camp where children of the appropriate age (high school) are trained in the fine art of synchronized marching while holding a musical instrument. The training is conducted during the summer months in order to subject the students to the maximum discomfort in regards to heat, humidity, and sunburn, so that they are fully prepared for the actual marching performances which take place in the dead of winter where there is four feet of snow on the ground.
James and Deborah were the lucky recipients of this year's "I Survived Band Camp" awards.
James, the veteran, had quite an enjoyable time. I'm not sure how much of his enjoyment was due to being the veteran, with a young sister around to look up to him and learn from him, and how much was due to the fact that he was finally able to play his instrument while marching instead of pretending to do so, as is the case with the rookies.He is a section leader for the clarinets this year, which means he has charge of a set of other clarinet players, helping them to learn the music and the steps and the procedures, all while keeping up with his own responsibilities while out on the field. I don't envy him the position, having led other people in various projects. Sometimes leading other people, especially talented, smart individuals, is like herding cats. I hope he has a much better time of it than those of us who have tried to lead engineers, who are also talented, smart individuals. (Many engineers also happen to be talented musicians.) It will be an interesting test of his character, his ability to inspire and lead others without being domineering. I have great hopes for him.
Deb, the rookie, had a thoroughly wonderful time. I'm not sure how much of her enjoyment was due to the fact that her big brother was there to watch over her, and how much was due to not having to actually play her instrument while learning the marching drills. From what I understand, it's rather difficult to get the hang of doing both at the same time. Which is why there are so many people in the marching band. At any one time, only fifty percent of them are actually playing. The rest are trying to keep track of where their feet are going.I don't know how many new friends she made, or if she mainly hung out with her fellow freshmen (or fellow flute players). But whenever I happened to be out by the field, she was in the middle of a large group of girls, smiling, laughing, chatting it up with the other musicians, executing her marching drills without a lot of fuss, and looking for all the world as though she'd been doing this kind of thing forever. About the only thing she complained about was the incessant heat, and that was bothering everyone.
As part of the Pit Crew, it is my job to help the percussionists (the front-line musicians) get to the field on time, with their marimbas and xylophones and keyboards on the rolling carts, tied down and ready to go. As such, we are responsible for the tractor and carts which carry the percussion equipment out to the field, and this "rolling stock" requires a lot of maintenance during the summer months in order to be ready for the fall/winter performances. Like greasing the moving parts, replacing worn-out wheels, re-positioning the "cups" which hold the wheels of the instrument stands, making sure the tractor engine and the batteries are ready for another season. This year, we were also tasked with constructing three rolling cabinets which will house a new drum set which was ordered by the band directors.
And I wasn't the only member of the crew.
Years ago, it was difficult to arrange for parents to volunteer to help out with Band Camp because it was far too expensive. The band travelled out of state to some college down south for Camp, and it cost somewhere in the neighborhood of four hundred dollars per person. As you might surmise, this makes it extremely difficult to recruit volunteers!
For the last five or six years, the parents and school staff have worked together to have the Band Camp here at the High School, reducing the cost significantly; now it costs only somewhere in the neighborhood of one hundred and fifty dollars per student. And the volunteers don't have to pay anything, since they aren't needing to arrange transportation, room and board.
This also means that more parents can volunteer to help out with staffing and meals, which had to be hired out previously.
We had a most excellent staff, and the meals were extraordinary. In fact, they were so extraordinary that it was necessary for me to skip several of them to avoid filling myself beyond capacity! (Oddly enough, this was not a problem for the children, who seem to have an incredible ability to eat massive quantities of delicious food without suffering any ill effects.)Cheryl helped out in the kitchen with the meals. She seemed to be having a wonderful time as well, chopping things up here and there, handing out food to the kids as they came through the breakfast or lunch line, pitching in with whatever chores needed to be done.
The schedule required that we arrive no later than 7 a.m., and we worked hard every day until at least 9 p.m. It made for a very wearying but satisfying week. By the end of it, we were all glad for the experience, but exhausted.
Friday night was the big performance, where the kids played three of the five songs they are learning for the season. They were marvelous! Afterward, the kids were invited to spend the night at the school for a Lock-In, with food and games and all kinds of activities hosted by the chaparones. Deb decided to stay, while James (and Dad!) decided it would be more fun to go home and get some sleep.
Consequently, Saturday was a total wash for most of us. We picked up Deb at the school by 6 a.m., then brought her back home to sleep. And most of us slept in til nearly ten in the morning. Didn't even think about accomplishing anything that day.
There'll be plenty of time for accomplishment later on. I hope.
1 comment:
And who told you your blogs were boring? I read and print every one of them and will save them for ever.
Just keep them coming. And when your dad starts working on his old 39 Plymouths then I will be blogging with pictures too.
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