From the back of the band bus come the sounds of drumming and tapping. Irked band members beg the source of these sounds to cease their music, but this is an average occurrence in the life of a percussionist, and others finally ignore the persistent noise.
Percussionists are much more than the instruments they play: They form two sub-groups in their section, each of which has its own distinct culture.
There are 11 students in the drumline, which marches on the field, and 12 in pit percussion, which is stationary and plays instruments at the front of the field.
With two factions of the percussion section, which practice and perform in different areas, each subgroup becomes intensely loyal to their own.
According to sophomore Raiza de Vera, a member of drumline since freshman year, the group is different than the other sections of the band because there aren’t as many people and usually don’t practice on the field with the rest of the band.
Although they are faced with a demanding practice and competition schedule, drumline still finds time to unwind and have fun.
“At our most recent competition, the bass drummers linked our harnesses together so that we were joined to each other, forming a circle,” said de Vera. “People leaned back to make everyone else lean their way, and we all started laughing.”
The members of pit also have memorable experiences during the season and enjoy each other’s company.
“Our bond is kind of like a family. We are all very relaxed with each other,” said Feargus MacFinionnlaoich, a marimba player in pit. “There are no awkward situations because there are only 12 people in pit, so we know each other pretty well.”
“We get everything done, but we have fun while we are doing it,” said sophomore Michael Eschen.
The members of pit have an array of inside jokes and traditions.
“We have something called ‘Dress like Aben Day’ where we dress like our past instructor by wearing skinny jeans and flannel shirts,” MacFinionnlaoich said.
People who aren’t well informed about percussion instruments tend to wonder how musicians in pit are able to keep their sanity after tapping mallets against such large instruments.
“The [marimba] is the hardest to learn but easiest to get better at. Once you have the technique down, which comes from monotonous exercises, you can then learn a much wider variety of music,” MacFinionnlaoich said.
Although the members of percussion tend to keep to their separate sections, the friendships they develop within their sections are strong. They enjoy every minute of their unique bonds fostered by their love of percussion.
“Even though front ensemble [pit] and drumline have extremely different jobs and spend most of the time separated,” said de Vera, “we come together to create musical passages that neither section would be able to create alone.”
