With the sounds of drums and brass filling the air, high school marching bands from all across Northern California took a visit to Del Mar this past Saturday for Feste Del Mar – an annual competition hosted by the school’s marching band program.
The event consisted of bands warming up, performing routines on the field, and cheering on other schools before concluding around 11 p.m.
Bands in attendance ranged to those from San Jose to bands from as far away as Sacramento; each school showcased a unique performance that reflected its own style and talents.
This year, Del Mar’s show, titled “Boldly Go,” is inspired by the series “Star Trek” and features a joint composition created by Desmond Rix and Lillian Escobar, two of the marching band’s staff instructors who are both from San Jose State University.
For some students, like freshman member Aurora Stevens, Feste Del Mar was their first time performing a field show in competition.
“[Our show is] very spacey,” says Stevens, “Very galactic.”
The field show includes music inspired by the series, along with space-themed uniforms and props incorporated into the show. Serena Gannon, senior color guard captain, says that this year the colorguard even gets to use Star Trek ‘lirpas’ in their show.
Gannon has been a part of the color guard for three years, and says she loves being a part of the band as a way to keep her moving and a reason to get out of the house:
“I realized I really like meeting new people, and it’s really fun to go out instead of being home,” says Gannon, “My family [keeps me motivated]; my dad and mom like watching me, and my sister said she is inspired by me to do [color guard], so it pushes me to want to do it more.”
Typically, a marching band consists of five sections: brass, woodwinds, percussion, front ensemble, and color guard. Alessio Dyrby, a senior, has led the percussion section for the past two years, balancing his leadership role with playing the drum set during performances.
“It’s a lot of fun because the people in percussion are a lot of fun. […] And it’s also rewarding because we sound good together,” says Dyrby, “People will look up to me to know how to act […] When I start goofing off, they start goofing off. So I gotta know when to be locked in.”
“[Feste] is nice, especially because it’s the first show of the season, so we kind of start off on our home turf, get our first show out of the way, then we don’t have to worry about doing that later in the season,” says Dyrby, “So I definitely look forward to Feste.”
While music and visuals are an essential part of a performance, members agree that community and teamwork are really what bring the show to life.
“My friends have definitely helped me, and especially an older euphonium player named Itzel Ramirez Garcia,” says Stevens, “She’s definitely helped me get the hang of marching band.”
Marching band competitions, such as Feste Del Mar, allow schools to showcase their musical talent, visual creativity, and storytelling abilities for judges and audiences to appreciate. The performances are scored out of one hundred points, and the bands with the highest totals receive awards at the end of the night.
“The most rewarding part is watching people grow, have our show finished, and perfecting it,” says Gannon, “It’s just heartwarming to see how many people grow in such a short amount of time.”
Dyrby says that the band has been working on this show for about two months now and will continue to compete through the Northern California Band Association (NCBA) until the end of November.
The marching band looks forward to perfecting their performance and improving their scores as the season progresses; their next performance is scheduled for October 25 at the Foothill High School Band Review in Pleasanton, CA.
