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Bands entertain at Ida festival - 09/20/2003
From monroenews.com...
The festival isn't a competition, but a way for bands to have someone tape them and critique their performances.
By MICHELLE SWARTZ
Evening News staff writer
IDA - For one night, the high school marching bands were the main attraction on the football rather than the players.
On Saturday night, more than 500 people filled Ida High School's stands at its football field to watch six area marching bands show off their skills. The bands performed a variety of music numbers, with some dance routines, during the 13th annual Ida Marching Band Festival. The Ida Band Boosters sponsored the event.
"We come every year. We always have a lot of fun," said 17-year-old Andrea Aguilera, a senior at Flat Rock High School who plays base drum. "I think it helps to see other bands, too." The festival is not a competition, but an official from the Michigan State Band Orchestra Association (MSBOA) judges each performance. After the event, the official gives each band director comments and suggestions for its band. A videotape of their performance also is given to each school. "There's no judging but each band still gets plaques and certificates for coming out here and performing," said Mark Smith, president of the Ida Band Boosters. "A lot of these bands attend competitions so this is a good warm-up for them." Katie Besler, a freshman at Flat Rock High School, hoped that the videotape and judge would offer some beneficial tips in order to prepare for an upcoming competition. "This will help us prepare for a Belleville competition we're going to in October," the 14-year-old said. "We can watch the videotape and fix anything we need help with." St. Mary Catholic Central, Flat Rock, Monroe, Bedford, Ida, who have all participated in the event in the past, represented area schools. Making their debut, however, was the National Homeschool Music Ensemble (NHME), a 32-member band made up of homeschooled students. "We range from sixth to 11th graders," said Don Dobrosky of NHME, co-director with Kathrine Johnson, prior to the event. "We've been around for three years, but this is our first year here. We're really excited and hope to make a good showing tonight." The band's goal was to practice its skills before a couple key competitions in the near future. "This is a warm-up for us," Mr. Dobrosky said. We're counting on the judge to give us some helpful tips to help our band out before the competitions coming up." The crowd included fans from the area high schools participating in the show. The hometown fans, however, had the best showing. Two of Ida's fans drove four hours to watch the show. "We live in Youngstown, Ohio, but we made a weekend out of it. We got here Friday and will leave Sunday," said Jim Bennett while sitting with his wife, Carol. "Our son (Chris Bennett) is Ida's band director so we've been coming here for the past few years now." But the proud parents not only came to see their son and his 140-member band, but also to enjoy each performance. "It's fun to watch all the bands because they each have their own style, which makes it interesting," Mrs. Bennett said. "It's good to see the smaller and bigger bands here together. The smaller bands work just as hard as the bigger bands, so it's good to see them out here having a good time." Throughout the festival, the crowd stayed on their feet and applauded the efforts of each band, which played a variety of music and dance routines. "There's just something about a band, big or small," said Yvonne Hauska, whose son, Jason, plays in the Ida Band. "It gets you going … it makes you stand up and clap. It makes you cheer for them."
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