Alya Mehrtash staff writer
The marching band and color guard performed in the Disneyland parade on Jan. 31. They were originally set to perform on Nov. 29, but the performance was cancelled and rescheduled due to rain.
Sophomore assistant drum major Maryann Han found the delay helpful because it allowed them to rehearse even more.
“We held a couple more rehearsals both after school and during class to keep practicing and reinforcing our marching and playing, so I think that really helped,” Han said.
Crowds at Disneyland often cheer and clap for performers. This uplifting environment makes the performance even more enjoyable for students like Han.
“It’s a pretty fun experience to march down Main Street at Disneyland with all of those people applauding for you and cheering,” she said.
The band, however, is more accustomed to performing at high school events like football games. There are many differences between performing in parades as opposed to performing at such events.
“Marching in a parade and football game performances are quite different. The preparation that goes into each are also very different,” Han said. “Field shows and football game performances are more like putting on a show and it’s fun to put together all these moving parts. Parades are different because they’re longer and more tiring.”
Freshman flute player Mimi Kessler felt more nerves performing at Disneyland, as opposed to when playing at school events.
“The parade was extremely different because it was very nerve wracking. Although we had prepared a tremendous amount, the thought of messing up in front of hundreds of people was scary,” Kessler said.
Despite these nerves, both Han and Kessler found the performance to be a success.
“The band sounded great and Mr. Bradbury told us the Disney representatives also told him that we sounded really good,” Han said.
In Kessler’s eyes they did have some points of improvement, but ultimately performed well.
“Overall I think the performance went very well,” Kessler said. “Although we had some rough spots, we performed outstandingly.”