At Westerville North, the school’s marching band is having band camp July 29 to August 2 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. in preparation for the upcoming season with their show “Red”. 

The band has spent hours dedicated to learning the music and building endurance to perform the show, starting as early as April 23. “We got the music last year in the spring and we’ve had some summer rehearsals and spring rehearsals to practice this show music,” Ryan Tipple, an upcoming junior saxophone player, said. “We did the same thing last year and it

was very successful so we’re doing it again this year.” 

The marching band has implemented conditioning for the members this year under the direction of one of the football coaches, Paris Long. “This year they decided to give us conditioning to help us get to our full potential (and) let us truly build on our skills, while having the stamina to play what I’d say very difficult music,” Tipple said.

Within the marching band, there are many groups that split up throughout the school to practice sections of the music, with a focus on repetition and precision. “You have to find a really good balance and it’s so hard to do that sometimes, but you always get there in the end and it’s so rewarding to hear yourself after a good run,” Alex Cooper, an upcoming junior trombone player, said.

The show “Red” consists of the songs “Bad Romance”, “Kiss From a Rose”, “El Tango de Roxanne” and “Bolero”. 

“I feel excited but more nervous because this is my first time doing one of the shows,” Toba Adeniyi, an upcoming freshman who plays percussion, said. “The band feels more excited about (the show) because it’s going better this year than it did last year.”