On Friday, October 18th, 2019, John Muir Middle School hosted Band Night at the Burbank High School. Middle school Band Night is where students can experience what it is like to be in a high school marching band, first hand, for a football game. I was excited because it was my first time performing on the football field.
I am a part of the Middle School Band, playing the flute. Our school band, led by our teacher Ms. Musicant, includes 62 students from Concert and Symphony. We had learned a few pep tunes, stand shorts and had been practicing for 1 month. In the afternoon, our music team gathered in the band room and had a rehearsal with the high school marching band, then marched to the stadium. The Burbank High School Memorial Stadium is truly impressive and huge, and the sunset was so beautiful. After the choir sang the National Anthem and Pledge of Allegiance for the game, the Burbank High School football team, named the Bulldogs, came out of the entrance to the field. All the parents, students, friends, and fans were cheering, yelling for Burbank High School football team to win. The opposite team was Glendale High School, named Nitros.
Finally, the football game started at 7:00 pm! All marching band students sat in the stands and were trying to play music at our best, to keep up the energy of our football players along with the cheerleaders and color guard members. I was so excited to join the Band Night even though I don’t know what the football game rules are. Our football team had touchdowns twice in the second quarter alone. After the touchdown, we played a song called On Wisconsin twice happily, because once our football team has a touchdown, we have to play the song to keep them excited. During half time, the Burbank High School marching band performed on the field. I have never seen any marching band play before. Their performance was amazing and a great show. I was so caught up in the performance that it almost felt like me in a marching band, I became one of those people.
After the football game, the Burbank High Bulldogs won against Glendale High Nitros by a score of 27 – 0. I was very happy when our Burbank High Football team won so totally, it was so much fun. This was a great and awesome opportunity because of how much I had learned about teamwork, practicing music, and performing. I was really proud to play the music with the high school marching band on the football game and hope it happens again next year.
Jaiden Jung, 6th grade
John Muir Middle School
