Smaller marching band hits a high note

This year’s Sound of USD marching band is smaller than in previous years, but junior drum major Sam Schroeder said the band sounds the best it has since he joined as a first-year student.

The 2013 band, which has 115 members, is currently preparing its “Movies” field show, which  will debut at the Dakota Days football game Oct. 5.

“We are definitely smaller than we’ve been in the past, but we’re doing very well and sounding the best we have in the last three years,” Schroeder said.

Sound of USD Director Jonathan Alvis said his goals for this year’s band are two-fold.

“My number one goal is for all of the students to have the best experience, but while I want them to have fun, I also want us to be great at what we do, both musically and visually,” Alvis said. “So we want to entertain, but we also want to represent the university as best as we can with a strong presence in the community, state and region.”

Alvis said he has high expectations for this year’s band.

“Every year, a different group walks through the door, and that’s what I love about my job,” he said. “We have great retention, but every year there’s a different dynamic, so it’s fun to see the band develop. Right now, they’re learning a lot in a short time, so I do have pretty high expectations for them.”

In addition to the 115 instrumentalists, the band also has 12 women who make up its color guard. Together the band and the color guard work closely to put on a complete show that entertains the audience every time, sophomore Kelsie Vonhollen said.

“I did color guard in high school and really liked it, so I decided to keep doing it in college,” Vonhollen said. “Personally, color guard is always my favorite part of watching a marching band perform. It gives you that visual to look at while listening to the band. Plus it adds color and makes it more interesting.”

This year, the band has four different halftime shows. The group performed its “Military Appreciation” show at the first home game Aug. 31 and is currently learning its “Movies” show, which will include songs from the soundtracks to “Superman,” “The Godfather” and “Rocky.” They also will perform a “Radio” show featuring current radio hits later in the season and a “Classical” show at the game against South Dakota State Nov. 17 in Vermillion.

Alvis starts choosing show themes in the late fall, asking for the input of a wide variety of students, faculty and friends in the community, he said.

“When the band performs for such a wide audience, you want to incorporate everyone,” Alvis said.

He said he then lets his ideas sit until mid-spring, when he starts designing the shows and picking music. He then spends the summer arranging the music.

“Sometimes it takes even longer,” Alvis said. “I waited with the ‘Radio’ show to see what song would go viral at the beginning of the school year, so the band actually (just got it Tuesday).”

Vonhollen said her favorite part of color guard and marching band is each time they get a new show to learn.

“I really love performing and learning the new routines,” she said. “Every year, pre-game is always the same, but halftime is always a new routine. It’s just fun to learn something new.”

The band traveled to Kansas with the football team Sept. 7 and will not travel to anymore games this year. However, they will perform exhibitions in Sioux City, Iowa, Sept. 27 and in Chester, S.D., Oct. 4.

“I love touring,” Schroeder said. “It’s a culmination of our work, and it’s a great way to come together and bond.”

Alvis said the exhibitions are more than just a chance for the band to perform.

“The audience is there to see a marching band,” he said. “At football games, the crowd is really there to see a football game, so the exhibitions are nice in that aspect. But they’re also a major recruiting tool for our department and we can show everyone what we do, why we do it and give them a reason to be a Coyote.”