On August 28th-29th band members had a gathering to get to know new members and rehearse their pep band music before the start of school and the upcoming football game this Friday.
At home football games Prairie has had the pep band behind the student section bringing energy to our Falcons. Before this occurs the band must prepare the music they perform and get it performance-worthy. “Prepping our set lists isn’t too difficult since we have the upperclassmen from the years before to lead the songs, giving our new members a chance to learn,” said Band Director Ryan Messling.
Football season is one that many band members look forward to all year. Band Vice President Emerson VanDeWege explains, “The energy we are able to come together and bring is truly special, we don’t get the same experiences during our concerts or other performance setting as they are usually more serious.”
Not only does band camp help prepare the musicians for upcoming performances, but it also allows the members to meet their new bandmates.“The goal of band camp is to create an environment where everyone feels safe and comfortable to be themselves.” Ryan Messiling shares. Learning names and faces is key to keeping the band program as successful and enjoyable as possible.
Icebreaker activities such as This or That prompts and poster-making were used to get people out of their shells. “We split into groups by the instrument we play and learned each other’s names, pronouns, and grades.” Emerson VanDeWege explained. This helps the freshman to identify “section leaders” and people they can go to with questions and get advice from.
Music is a way of “expressing” yourself and being able to do that in the band program is very valuable in creating a group that some members consider a “family.”
