Ozzy Osborne isn't exactly traditional marching band fare. Neither is Led Zeppelin or Alice Cooper.

But then marching bands today aren't like those of years past, performing traditional, safe material during half-time at the football game.

Field marching bands of today, are as much about pizzazz and performance as football teams are about hard hits and graceful passing. And simply because they might play at half-time, doesn't mean they exist solely for the football team. Today's marching bands are competitive entities unto themselves.

Much to the delight of the Auburn High School Maroon Vanguard Marching Band, rock 'n' roll is on the menu this year. Band director Ed Meier arranged the music and the performance elements of the "Rock Show" to celebrate the music of his youth.

"My rock roots were the inspiration for the show. We've done classical, we've done jazz. We decided to leave the box," Meier said. "We may do this next year, too."

The band abandoned their traditional uniforms for black coveralls, red baseball caps and Converse All-Stars emblazoned with flames. They added some non-traditional band elements -- an electric guitar and an enormous rack of tom drums - to bolster the spectacle. They've never done anything quite so elaborate, but Meier was ready to take the risk.

"(The band) loves it to say the least," he said.

While many schools have marching bands, not all are competition bands, those that travel to compete against other bands. Auburn and Jordan-Elbridge are the only schools in the area with true competition bands, and every weekend in September and October during band season, these groups of musicians are on the road performing.

This year, the Auburn band is traveling to Allentown, Pa., and Trenton, NJ., to compete. Those are just two of the eight shows, including the Harvest of Sound, here in Auburn, which the band is competing.

With 116 eighth through 12th graders under his instruction, Meier's got his work cut out for him. He begins planning for the fall season during the previous winter, preparing the music, choreographing the drill sets and meeting with the section instructors and color guard coaches. He holds workshops in the spring, and come August, starts work with the musicians.

Every Monday and Wednesday evening in August, the band is out practicing at the high school. No doubt the surrounding neighbors have gotten used to the choppy start-stop rhythm of the rehearsals. For one week during the month of August, the band practices 1 to 9 p.m., but Meier says they try to make it as fun as possible.

"But's definitely a lot of work," he said.

At Jordan-Elbridge, the story is similar. Band director Jim Peer works with 99 musicians from seventh through 12th grades beginning the first week in July. Then come August, the band practices for a week, nine hours a day and attendance is mandatory.

Jordan-Elbridge's concept this year is "Tempus Fugit," or "time flies," celebrating the band's storied history as the second winningest band in New York state. The show begins with a voice-over charting the band's legacy and involves props such as banners, screens and an oversized grandfather clock showing the passing of time.

"Sometimes you have to spell it out for the judges," Peer said, referring to the competitions.

Peer, a 1989 graduate of Jordan-Elbridge, sees a change in bands over the years. Though the full band still performs at almost all home football games, their primary duty is competition. The band will also travel to eight competitions this season, including a trip to Mount Vernon Invitational Marching Band Classic in Northern Virginia.

Peer has seen a change in the competition aspect of field marching bands over the years. Props and costumes have become more elaborate and schools are spending a fortune.

"It's really evolved here. New York state is really advanced. It's a combination of a lot of things," he said.

One of the reasons Peer suggests, could be the fact that many school music programs throughout the state are quite robust, and many offer music lessons as part of the curriculum.

Every Monday and Wednesday evening during band season, you can find these two bands honing their performances and tweaking bits here and there. After one recent soggy performance where Jordan-Elbridge got poured on, Peer met with the musicians in the band room and reviewed the videotape of the show. Like a football coach going over game tape, Peer pointed out areas of improvement, and the students for the most part, paid rapt attention.

"We're still a work in progress," Peer said to the band. "We're all human so don't get on each other's cases.

Despite the pressure of getting complicated routines down pat for show time, most of the musicians thrive under those circumstances. The marching band combines the best elements of music and sport - creativity and teamwork - and it appeals to a broad range of students.

Jordan-Elbridge drum major Adriane Fedorchuk, has been in the band since eighth grade, and has loved every minute of it. Though it took her a while to get the hang of walking in formation and playing music at the same time, she is now commanding the whole band with a few strokes of her gloved hand.

She loves the competition and camaraderie of the band and wants to pursue music in college.

"It's a lot of pressure, but it's really exciting at the same time," she said. "There's a lot of weight on my shoulders, but it's just so exciting."