Lake Orion High School’s marching band had two great weekends recently and showed why they are one of the top high school bands in the state.
The marching Dragons placed third on October 26 at the Huron Valley Invitational with a score of 86.35. The competition, which took place at Lakeland high school, consisted of all but two of the largest bands in the state.
This past week, the Dragon marching band competed at the M.C.B.A. State Finals at Ford Field.
They placed second only to Walled Lake Central and received a score of 89.5- the highest in school history.
In order to prepare for the competitions they had every’Saturday, the band members practiced Monday through through’Friday’on the football field
‘We spend more time here than the football team does,? Kaelee Belletto said.
As one of the band’s drum majors, Belletto spends an ample amount of time making everything look just right. ‘We don’t see lines or formations like the crowd does; we see the person next to us. We really have to focus on being perfectly in line.?
Although the band puts in around 12 hours of practice every week, many believe that it was worth it.
According to some, the fellow members made marching band a ‘surreal? and wonderful experience.
‘All of the people are so interesting and great,? Dan Phipps said. ‘I kept up with marching band because of them.?
Their hard work showed at competitions, and the marching band received the top score in the state (88.8) at the time at the Clarkston Invitational on October 19.
‘The crowd was so pumped up, and we fed off the crowd,? Margaret Trudeau said.
Through all of their success, the marching band had remained true to their ‘real goal.?
Belletto said, ‘Our goal by the end of the season isn’t to win Grand Nationals or even to do well. It’s to become a family.?