Orem City Marching Band: The Path to State Champions

There are several things one may have come to mind with the words “Marching Band” . For some, it may be the marching band in the iconic Taylor Swift’s song “You Belong With Me” or the infamous song “Black Parade” by My Chemical Romance. For others, it’s a vague “other” category of performing arts. While those associations are not inaccurate, they don’t entirely capture the finer details of a marching band, specifically a high school one.

There are 6 sections that contribute directly to the show. There’s the brass, woodwinds, colorguard, and drumline, of which move on the field directly to make various shapes and formations while playing assigned music and performing choreography. And then there’s the pit/front ensemble, which remain traditionally at the front of the field while playing their show, as do the drum majors on their respective podiums, while conducting the band as a whole.

This fall, the Orem City marching band (OCMB) attended six competitions, performed at three halftime shows, marched over 3 parades in various cities, put on two separate performances for family and friends, and to top it off, performed for every junior high in the city before leaving for state in St. George. The OCMB also took various trophies at their competitions- their most notable prize being the ever coveted title of state champions in the 5A scholastic division- which comprises ten other, hard working bands. 

 State champions is impressive, but just as impressive still was the OCMB’s path to this title. Rather than being represented by one school, the OCMB was a combined effort of every high school in Orem. Some may view this as “easier” due to the fluctuation in numbers, but the harsh reality is that with a merge such as this one, comes many conflicts, adjustments, and one performance after another.

While these accomplishments shine more brightly than perhaps any season to date for any of these schools in the past few years, the merge did not receive an initially positive response.

“I wasn’t happy [with the merge] at all,” said Amber Guymon, a senior at Timpanogos, and one of the lieutenants of the OCMB colorguard. “I didn’t want to get mixed up and have people think I was representing a different school.”

“We lost a lot of traditional things… But once we figured out a new culture, it was good.”

A common misconception is that because the marching band is named “Orem City” that it must be rooted in OHS. Several people, especially if they do not reside within Orem city themselves, seem to hold this belief. However, various people have made a conscious effort to recognize and promote the fact that it is unified and a conjoined effort, rather than the pride of one high school. 

Representation was not the only concern. “We lost a lot of traditional things that we would do, things that I loved.“ Said Oliver Judd, a senior at OHS, and one of two OCMB drum majors. “But once we figured out a new culture, something everyone could vibe with, it was good”.

“I liked having a smaller band because you knew everyone personally” stated Garrett Tucker, a junior at THS and one of the drumline snares in the marching band. Last year, each band had roughly 30 people apiece. This year, the marching band as a whole became just over 60. 

While a bigger band means more difficulty and adjustment, there was plenty gained. Not only is there food provided by various boosters and band parents, but due to all of the hard work put into these shows, students who do marching band can fulfill a term’s worth of PE elective credits for every season they do, even if they’re pit or drum major. 

According to Tucker, one of the best parts of marching band was the fact there was “lots of experience between everybody”. Jack Bouche, a junior at MVHS and a tenor on the drumline, said that it was “the people” and how he “ made a whole lot of good friends, especially from other schools.”

Making new friends is one of the biggest perks of such a large yet closely knit group, but there are some downsides. “Getting to know everyone was really fun,” said Guymon. However, it was hard due to “Not being able to become close friends with everyone in the band” as she had last year. “And some of the people I did talk to during the season don’t go to my school, so it’s likely that I’ll never see some of them again.”

“You’ll regret not doing it a lot more than if you just suffered through the hard parts for the good parts. Eventually you’ll realize that you are so glad to have stuck with it to the end”

Life may not cater to much convenience, but it is definitely worth it according to most of the band to make these new friends, even if one cannot be entirely sure of what the future holds with it. 

Amidst new friendships, various levels of experience, and intense adjustment, some may be wondering, did they expect to take state, even during such a difficult transition? 

“Absolutely not,” said Tucker. However, “It felt fulfilling, especially since we crushed state”. The OCMB had been consistently placing as top 3rd and 4th, up until their second to last competition at AFHS- of which they proudly took home first place, as well as the visual and colorguard caption.

“I was expecting 3rd or 4th. Definitely not 1st, but I’m not complaining.” said Guymon. Similarly, Bouche said “I didn’t expect to take state. I didn’t even think we had a chance until the AF competition”, which had unfortunately dire weather circumstances such as rain, harsh winds, and intense cold.

State champs or not, there is arguably more to marching band than the historical accomplishment made during their three day tour–especially amidst a merge.

Not only did they perform constantly, but they rehearsed three days a week, for anywhere from 2 to 3 hours at a time- and that’s not counting the ever dreaded occasion of band camp (see the ‘21 edition of the Tiger Times). Performer burnout is an understatement, but regardless, Tucker said “Even though it’s really hard, it’s worth it”.

“I think I had my best season,” said Judd. “The accomplishments help with my emotions and stuff, but I don’t want to sound like ‘we win stuff and it makes me happy’ because that’s not true.”. He states that “figuring out” the “new culture” and its happy results was “the most rewarding thing” for him. 

Guymon ended with “You’ll regret not doing it a lot more than if you just suffered through the hard parts for the good parts. Eventually you’ll realize that you are so glad to have stuck with it to the end”. 

The path taken to take the state championship has been nothing short of an unpredictable game of adjustment for  the OCMB, but they have shown that at the end of the day, their wholesome teamwork and raw dedication will prevail.