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Band Camp Brings Blue Devil Marching Band Together

After a week of intense training for the Blue Devil Marching Band, the group closed out camp with a run-through for their families.

A flawless blue sky, hot sun and the sounds of a metronome and drums beating out the time filled the air over Finley Middle School as the Blue Devil Marching Band showed off its preparations for the 76th fall marching season.

Parents watched the band perform its routine Sunday afternoon as the closer to an intense week of Band Camp, then laughed through a "march off," where band members followed shouted marching directions until only one person was left on the field. A cooler of water (and a gift card) awaited the winner, but those doing the dumping had to chase him down to a far corner to deliver it.

Students learned the often-complex marching band drill routines during a week of 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. days, and polished their playing of music that many already had memorized so they'd be able to concentrate on the marching aspect of the show.

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"It's fun. It's a lot of work, but it's a lot of fun for the kids," said Lois Campbell, mother of senior Anne Scott, who this year is a flute section leader as well as a field major. "I like the discipline it teaches, the camaraderie, and the music."

"They like the competitive aspect of it, too," added Kathy Rowland, mother of senior Meghan Rowland.

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The Blue Devil Marching Band performs not just at football halftime shows and in parades, but competes in weekend competitions in the New York State Field Band Conference, Large School Division II. The statewide competition is in the Carrier Dome in Syracuse each fall on Halloween weekend.

Raynisha Witherspoon, a 10th-grader who is section leader for the low brass (tubas, baritones, trombones and tenor saxes), said this year there are some especially fun drill sections. "There are more extra moves where we kneel and switch direction," she said. "And on one, we face the 50 [yard-line] sideways and then turn to face front, so there's a pop with the music. And we've got some different techniques for marching."

Parent Suzanne Kirkpatrick, whose son, Colin, plays bass drum, said she likes that the students learn to be part of a team. "It's like a family," Kirkpatrick said. "They have a circle of friends. It's very healthy and it teaches them discipline."

This year's camp had unusual weather extremes, spanning a 45-degree temperature difference between the closing day and the cold, wet start of the week. "It's been a great week," band director Brian Stellato told parents as he introduced staff on Sunday afternoon. "It's been a positive experience. Your kids have worked their butts off. We have a tremendous number of new members that are really rocking it."

The drum majors – seniors Sean Harkins, Natasha Stollmack and Ken Strapoli – concurred. "The energy has been awesome," Stollmack said. "We're a young band this year, and we're in a better place than we have been in band camp for years."

This was the second year that band camp week was held at Finley rather than at Huntington High School which makes for an easier week, according to Frank Battista, a Finley band teacher who directs the pit (tympani, xylophones and small percussion). He explained the band kids have the school to themselves, can eat lunch in the cafeteria, the practice field is closer and they don't have to juggle schedules with other groups for the week. "For a week, it becomes band camp world," he said.

Battista added that parent involvement through the Band Parent Association helps make it work. Parents help fill water coolers, provide ices and other treats during long practice sessions and work as roadies and chaperones for the band's many competitions, as well as spearheading fundraising campaigns.

Gabby Mandriota, a ninth-grader who is in her second year with marching band, said she likes the music this year and is excited about the competition in Syracuse at the end of the season. She said she also appreciates the band parents. "They're amazing," Mandriota said. "They're here with the rest of us and work just as hard, sometimes even harder."

If you want to catch the Blue Devil Marching Band in competitions and other than at halftime of football games, their schedule is as follows: Sept. 19, Brentwood; Sept. 26, Copiague; Oct. 2, Walt Whitman; Oct. 10, Arlington; Oct. 23, Mineola; Oct. 31, Syracuse. The band also is sponsoring what's called a Home Show at the high school on Oct. 17, a fundraiser where it invites other bands to perform and sells food, ads for a show booklet, and merchandise.

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