Marching onward…to Hawaii
November 14, 2007
By: Nancy Tan <ntan@hilite.org>
According to band director Andrew Cook, the marching band originally planned to travel to California to participate in the Hollywood Christmas Day parade, which occurs over Thanksgiving. The parade, however, was cancelled due to a lack of funds. Although the marching band’s initial plans to go to Hollywood fell through, members of the Marching Greyhounds now have the opportunity to journey further westward.
On Thanksgiving morning, 130 marching band members and 50 adult chaperons will leave for Hawaii. Senior Alexandra Bellis, who plays piccolo in the marching band, said that she is excited about the band’s upcoming five-day trip to the Hawaiian island of Oahu. According to Bellis, the trip, which costs $2,000 per student, will occur over Thanksgiving break and will last almost a full week.
“We are traveling to Pearl Harbor on Thanksgiving Day and (we are) spending our entire time traveling and exploring Oahu,” she said.
Junior Hannah Chiasson, a third-year member of the color guard, said that she is looking forward to the trip to Hawaii.
“I have never been there before, so I’m excited for all the historical (sites) and the beach,” she said. “We only go on a trip every four years, so it’s kind of a big deal. It should be a fun trip.”
Even though the students going on the trip will be missing three school days, the trip itself will not be all fun and games. The main purpose of the trip is to perform at Pearl Harbor and at the Waikiki Shell with the Royal Hawaiian Band. Cook said that the marching band is playing twice for varying crowds. According to him, the band plans to play a selection of patriotic songs including “Stars and Stripes Forever” and “God Bless America.”
“It will be music that people will recognize and enjoy,” Cook said.
“Our first performance will be at the U.S.S. Missouri, which is where they signed the peace treaty for World War II. That (performance) is for anyone at Pearl Harbor,” Cook said. According to Cook, the second performance is with the Royal Hawaiian Band. “It’s basically like in a central park. Every Sunday, (the Royal Hawaiian Band) do a performance, so we’ll be joining them in their afternoon performance,” he said.
Chiasson said that the color guard will also participate in the performances.
“I know the band is going to be playing a couple of songs. The (color) guard is going to have a flag routine to it and march with the band,” she said.
The marching band members are gearing up for these performances with extra rehearsals. “We are preparing during as many SRTs as possible. We practice (during) both sessions,” Bellis said.
According to Chiasson, the color guard will have a lighter rehearsal schedule.
“It’s easier for us,” she said. “The routine we’re learning is going to be really easy. (We’ll) be just doing spins and flourishes, so we don’t have to practice really intensely.”
The band has also scheduled chances to go sightseeing into its agenda. Bellis said that students going on the trip will have plenty of time to go explore and that the band is taking a bus tour.
“First day we’ll take a bus tour of Waikiki up through the island,” Cook said. “We’ll go to the beach, where we’ll have a cookout and a dance. They can go kayaking and swimming. The second day we perform. We’ll also have a dinner cruise. We’ll be in the bay where we can see Honolulu and Diamond Head.”
In addition, Chiasson said she thinks the students are going to be seeing some volcanoes.
“I know we’re going to have some free days where we chill at the beach and some days when we can go shopping. (On some days), the band’s going to be practicing and the (color) guard won’t have to practice,” she said.
Performances and tours, however, are not the only reason that brings the band members to Pearl Harbor. “We are raising money for the restoration of Pearl Harbor,” Bellis said.
The band is currently raising funds through “Pennies for Pearl Harbor.” Bellis said that the band hopes to present them with a check.
“We’re trying to collect pennies,” Chiasson said. “Then we’re going to put it all together and give it as a gift from Carmel marching band. I think we’re getting ‘Carmel marching band’ engraved into a brick or something.”
The band’s financial contributions will prove to be a help to the restoration effort. According to Pearlharbormemorial.com, the Pearl Harbor Memorial Museum suffers serious structural damages. To date, this facility, which floats over the remnants of the U.S.S. Arizona, has sunk over 30 inches into Pearl Harbor.
Other aspects of the trip will help to enhance students’ knowledge of U.S. history.
“(On) the Monday before we leave, we’re having one of the survivors from the Pearl Harbor bombing talk to the kids, and they can talk to him via satellite,” Cook said. “When we get to (Hawaii), he’s going to give us a tour of what happened that day. It’s kind of a fun, educational (experience).”
The underlining reason for this trip to Hawaii is to provide another platform for the marching band and for the students to become more seasoned musicians. Cook said, “It’s not anything other than a chance for the kids to perform.”
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