Finishing off their 2022 season on October 22, the Battle High School Marching Band has officially finished their show La Femme Fatale. Starting on July 11, the BHS Marching Band began work to get this year’s show ready to perform by the first performance, breaking tradition by getting 3 out of 4 movements ready to perform by their first competition. Only continuing to get better by getting a score of 89/100 at their final competition. 

Starting on July 11, the marching band began their annual marching band camp, reviewing marching technique, and learning the show. Monday through Friday, the BHS Marching Band rehearsed from 8:00-4:30, working in temperatures up to 89 °F.

For its first competition on September 26, the BHS Marching Band placed second in their division in preliminary performance, proceeding to get eighth in finals. Continuing to improve throughout the season, the band then ended their season on October 22. Beginning the day with the Mizzou Homecoming parade, the BHS Marching band then went to perform at the University of Central Missouri Festival of Champions, getting first in preliminary performance the best drum major, and best auxiliary, awards, with first place in their division. They then went on to be less than a point away from the first place winners with a 90/100 in finals.

“Marching band to me is a community, a family,” said band director Kim Foley. “A majority of the time we get along, we support each other, but just like families we fight every once in a while. and we get in disagreements, and then we make up, and then we’re family again.” 

Marching band can be seen as many different things, audiences may see it as a show, participants may see it as a way to express themselves, yet really, there is no true way to define marching band. Marching Band is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as “a group of musicians who play instruments while marching together at a parade or sports event”. Yet marching bands, to many, can be seen as much more. 

One definition of marching band, sees it from a more artistic perspective. Some see marching band as a performance, a spectacle, to move somebody towards a certain emotion. 

Junior, Gavin VanBuren, Sousaphone section leader, said “At its core that’s what a performance should be, it should move someone to a certain emotion, and marching band to me, is moving to an emotion of awe or happiness.”

 Former Cavaliers member, and band director Marc Lewis said that his favorite part of marching band is “the sound waves that hit you, it’s an enormous feeling. it’s the feeling that you get from sounds. so sound is the number one, and then you see these cool things going on, that over stimulus from [visuals].”

Marching band can open up many opportunities for anybody willing to put in the time.  

“It’s a grind,” said Marc Lewis. “It’s long, there are a lot of rehearsals and there are a lot of mornings that people don’t want to get up, get in there, and do their job. Except that’s exactly what life is’’. 

Battle High School Marching band program has a heavy focus on setting you up for employability later in life. 

“If you want to do something that’s going to make you a better person, a better leader, a better communicator, a part of a team, then do it. If you want to learn work ethic then do it,” said Marc Lewis.

Marching band is a family, as described by band director Kim Foley. 

“It’s very close, because we’re together every day. We all have a very close bond,” said Keeley Fizer, Clarinet section leader.