After rushing into their band locker rooms and changing into shorts and t-shirts, students grab their instruments, scatter into the large band room and begin playing out of sync, making loud, cacophonous noise.

One of the three drum majors, or band leaders, blows a whistle to quiet the musicians. They’re ready for band magnet teacher Bringle Cidel’s instructions.

So begins a rehearsal for the new pep band.

The pep band consists of students who are in magnet band courses like orchestra or jazz band. However, any students can join.

Cidel originally intended to create a marching band, but because many students in the music magnet program that live out of area, Cidel felt it would be too much strain for them to stay back and practice the necessary late hours a marching band would entail.

“Academically we want our kids to excel,” Cidel said.

The difference between a marching band and pep band is that a marching band participates in local parades and competitions, whereas a pep band plays at pep rallies and football games. Unlike marching bands, the pep band doesn’t have uniforms; however, they will be seen wearing their purple pep band t-shirts and black Dickies pants.

After forty minutes into practice, the pep band is divided into their sections with their section leaders outside of the band room. The drums, the loudest aspect of the pep band, practice on the patio behind the third building.

Most of the section leaders have been playing instruments since before they started high school and share a serious enthusiasm for music.



“Music is my passion,” said trumpet section leader junior Geoffrey Laleau, who has been playing the trumpet for four years.

Because the pep band consists of a large amount of people, behavior plays an important role in organization. Three drum majors were assigned positions to keep order in the group.

“In the past we’ve had disciplinary problems with the students in band. We felt that it was necessary to have these positions so that we could have discipline in the pep band,” said senior and David Hosking, one of the pep band’s drum majors.

At the end of practice, the drum majors discuss with the students how practice went and what they need to work on.

Before leaving, lead drum major Glenn Miller begins to shout one of the chants he wrote: “You know we don’t stop, because we run Krop!”

The pep band repeats the chant while moving left to right with their instruments in hand.