If one thing is painfully clear, it’s that the San Luis Obispo High School Band is extremely underappreciated. Sadly, all their contributions to our school’s society are ignored or deemed “lame.” Expressions interviewed two band members with the hopes of finding out more about our school’s incredible marching band.

Expressions: What instrument do you play?

Sophomore Ayanna Miller: I play Snare Drum.

Sophomore Emily Linstead: I play the Marimba. It’s the big one that looks like a Xylophone.

Expressions: How many hours do you put into band?

Linstead: We do at least one hour a day with an extra two every Tuesday. In total it’s about nine and a half hours a week.

Expressions: What do you do to prepare and perform for the field shows at halftime?

Miller: Every year we have a new field show where we march. We do parades and competitions around the state.

Expressions: Should marching band be a sport?

Linstead: Yeah definitely, we’re really active. We march in parades for a few miles in heat with heavy instruments, uniforms, and in step the entire time. It should be a sport because we put in time and effort and physical energy just like the other sports do.

Expressions: What does the drum major do at the football games?

Miller: Her name is [senior] Lindsey Young. She is a student who is elected by the band to lead and conduct our band. She gives us commands for us to play at the same tempo of her arms. She’s like the team captain.

Expressions: What does color guard contribute to the marching band?

Linstead: They do training to learn how to dance along with the band to enhance the performance. They use flags and rifles as props.

Expressions: What are your thoughts on the lack of band funding?

Miller: We need more support. We aren’t allowed to charge for our concert tickets but we have to rent the venue ourselves. We don’t get any of the revenue from our football game shows. We also aren’t allowed to accept donations from our parents so that means we can’t go on trips like other clubs and organizations here at SLOHS.

Expressions: Should musical education be promoted in schools?

Linstead: Yes, obviously. It’s been proven that people involved in musical education normally improve in test scores and IQ [Intelligence Quotient]. It also helps us make friends more easily.

Expressions: What is one message you’d like the school to understand about band?

Miller: We actually contribute a lot to the school. Most people who don’t like us don’t understand us and don’t realize how much work we put into band.

Linstead: Yeah, just imagine a football game where there’s no pep tunes during the game and it’s just mostly silent and without as much spirit.