Q: What inspired you to become a drum major?
A: I kind of knew that I wanted to be a drum major since I was a freshman. I was really inspired by the current drum majors when I was younger, and they really encouraged me to just audition my freshman year. Obviously I didn’t get in because I was a freshman. But my sophomore year, I decided to go for it again because I really thought that I would enjoy that position. And I got it, and I haven’t looked back since.
Q: What does a day in the life of a drum major look like?
A: I try to get there a little early, so then I’m greeting people, holding the door and then we’ll get started with rehearsal. We normally split up, with the brass and the woodwinds, and then the percussion and color guard do their own thing. I help with leading warm ups, and then we’ll get into the actual rehearsal part where I’ll be up on the podium, conducting. We just kind of follow the flow of the director, and then I just conduct, and that’s pretty much it. I’m just on the podium for most of the night.
Q: How do all of the drum majors work together in PMK?
A: We have a pretty good flow of things, like me and [Olivia Tokimoto] are the senior drum majors, and then Cole [Licato] is our junior drum major. Liv and I kind of helped mentor Cole a little bit and teach him all the stuff that he’s going to need to know next year when we’re not here. I think over the course of this season, we’ve just really tried to be communicative with each other and work things out [and] delegate tasks to each other so it’s not one of us doing all the work.
Q: What have you learned since becoming a drum major?
A: I’ve learned not to take myself so seriously. I think even with a big leadership role like this, I’ve had to learn not to be like, so hung up over like a small mistake or something. You just kind of let the errors roll off your back and keep pressing forward. Otherwise when you’re a leader and you’re getting hung up over stuff like that, then you’re kind of holding everyone else back.
Q: What do you love most about PMK?
A: I would just say there’s nothing else really like it, you know, even when I’m in Concert Band or playing my instrument, it’s just not the same. You don’t get the same feeling from performing in front of a large audience or the Friday night lights, and it’s just such a unique community where you get to meet all kinds of people at all ages. It’s just such a great space for us to create music and do this activity that is so special to all of us.
Q: How do this year compare to past years’ shows?
A: I think the music [this year] is very dramatic, and it’s really exciting. And I know a lot of other people feel the same way. I think in past years, we’ve had all kinds of themes and all kinds of music. I definitely think this year is my favorite, like the set list of music. I think it’s just so powerful, and it’s just some pieces from some of my favorite composers.
Q: What is something that you wish other people knew about PMK?
A: It might sound a little silly, but I kind of wish we could stray from the whole band kid stereotype because it’s a lot more than that. It’s a lot harder than people think it is. There’s so many moving parts, like literally and figuratively. There’s so many people moving on the field, there’s different parts in the score and composition and there’s a lot of memorization that takes place in a lot of hours and hard work that goes into it. I think people tend to minimize it into [a] like nerdy activity when it’s really not.
Q: How has PMK enhanced your experience here at Prospect?
A: I would say I’ve dedicated most of my time at Prospect into the PMK. That’s my main extracurricular, and I would definitely say that is one of the highlights of my high school career. It’s my thing. That’s my niche, and it’s the thing that I spend all my time with. I think that when I look back at my high school career, I’ll be like, “Oh, yeah, I was in the PMK. That was the fun part. That was what I loved about high school.”
Q: What will you take away from your experience in PMK as you graduate high school this year?
A: I think for me personally, I want to pursue music education, so it kind of directly ties into my experience in the PMK. That’s what encouraged me to continue in the path of music [education]. I think the directors and the instructors have really inspired me to pursue that path. So in that sense, my experience from the music aspect and the educational aspect, I’ll take all those experiences and apply it to my own career later in life and how I want to teach music to other people.
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