Special to The Citizen
AUBURN - The Vanguard looked like a scene from “Night of the Living Dead” as it took to the field at Holland Stadium Saturday night for the 27th annual Harvest of Sound Field Band Competition.
There was a color guard of ghoulish vampires and a drumline and brass section of marching skeletons, zombies and other creatures of the night as the 119 members took to the field.
For the past several years The Vanguard, Auburn High School's competition field band, has been pushing the envelope, going beyond traditional marches and apparel. This year was no exception as the group took its performance to another level with “The Horror Show.”
“This is a really different show for them,” said Coylynn Cator, chairperson of the Harvest of Sound. “There are a lot of props and costumes and it is a really involved performance.”
Cator said that band director Edward Meier picks the themes and music the group will focus on each year, and that as soon as an idea is settled on an intensive practice schedule begins.
“They started working on this in April,” Cator said. “There were practices and workshops and then they started practicing again in June and then they pick it up again in July and August. They have eight-hour days working on getting all of this together. This is their sport.”
The Harvest of Sound is the big home field performance for the band members, as they played host to 10 bands from around central New York.
The Vanguard performed eerily fitting pieces, as Halloween looms ever closer.
Bach's “Toccata and Fugue,” Grice's “Haunted Carnival,” Michael Jackson's “Thriller” and Chopin's “Funeral March” set a somber and haunting mood for the performance, which included intricate dance numbers and a cast of extra ghouls and blood-spattered zombies.
“It was great,” said trumpet player Jeremy Vevone. “The audience was cheering as soon as we got on the field. We were really proud about that.”
All the months of hard work, tweaking and fine tuning the performance paid off - the band won in its division.
“I think it went really well,” said mellophone player Rob Miller. “There were a couple of spots we really worked on in rehearsals, and I think we really got it down pretty well.”
The music, visuals and overall performance sparked the crowd of Auburn, that stood and cheered as the band marched off the field.
“I thought it was great,” Shelly Swran said. “I really enjoyed it, it was non-traditional and a really great new idea.”
There was a color guard of ghoulish vampires and a drumline and brass section of marching skeletons, zombies and other creatures of the night as the 119 members took to the field.
For the past several years The Vanguard, Auburn High School's competition field band, has been pushing the envelope, going beyond traditional marches and apparel. This year was no exception as the group took its performance to another level with “The Horror Show.”
“This is a really different show for them,” said Coylynn Cator, chairperson of the Harvest of Sound. “There are a lot of props and costumes and it is a really involved performance.”
Cator said that band director Edward Meier picks the themes and music the group will focus on each year, and that as soon as an idea is settled on an intensive practice schedule begins.
“They started working on this in April,” Cator said. “There were practices and workshops and then they started practicing again in June and then they pick it up again in July and August. They have eight-hour days working on getting all of this together. This is their sport.”
The Harvest of Sound is the big home field performance for the band members, as they played host to 10 bands from around central New York.
The Vanguard performed eerily fitting pieces, as Halloween looms ever closer.
Bach's “Toccata and Fugue,” Grice's “Haunted Carnival,” Michael Jackson's “Thriller” and Chopin's “Funeral March” set a somber and haunting mood for the performance, which included intricate dance numbers and a cast of extra ghouls and blood-spattered zombies.
“It was great,” said trumpet player Jeremy Vevone. “The audience was cheering as soon as we got on the field. We were really proud about that.”
All the months of hard work, tweaking and fine tuning the performance paid off - the band won in its division.
“I think it went really well,” said mellophone player Rob Miller. “There were a couple of spots we really worked on in rehearsals, and I think we really got it down pretty well.”
The music, visuals and overall performance sparked the crowd of Auburn, that stood and cheered as the band marched off the field.
“I thought it was great,” Shelly Swran said. “I really enjoyed it, it was non-traditional and a really great new idea.”
The Citizens' Say
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shifty13021 wrote on Oct 2, 2007 12:50 PM:
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