With the first game out of the way, the band now has a more accurate picture of what to expect from the incoming freshman and the returning marchers, who are gearing up in earnest for the competitive season.
Junior Katie Coffey had doubts about the new marchers at first, but she has changed her mind since seeing the freshmen in action.
“I thought it was good for their first time marching in uniform,” Coffey said. “It was all new to them, but they did really well.”
Senior Matthew Cochran agrees with Coffey.
“I think they really handled themselves well,” Cochran said. “I loved seeing their reactions after we finished. There was a lot of adrenaline, even with the whole band. It was the first time showing people the product of everything we did.”
Band director Mr. Nathan Griffin is still optimistic about the upcoming season with the new marchers.
“There were some rough spots with the new marchers, but overall it was a good outing,” Mr. Griffin said. “We had fun, and that’s what matters. We’ve had some really good rehearsals since then as we’re leading up to the competitive season”
Wednesday was the all-Howell show, where each high school in the district showed off what they have been working on all summer. The band is heading off to its first competition in O’Fallon Saturday. Mr. Griffin is excited to see what the competition has in store.
“It should be a great competition, since we’ve really worked hard in the rehearsals,” Mr. Griffin said.
Cochran thinks that the competition is a chance to show the other competitors that FHC is a force to be reckoned with.
“We’re out to prove that we can compete against schools the size of Rock Bridge, and that we can take first place,” Cochran said.