Nikhil Rao Shares His Perspective as a Drum Major for the Athens Red Hawk Marching Band
It is difficult to realize that the 2026 marching band season has already come to an end, though it will probably hit most marchers this week when they find themselves paying attention to schoolwork and television instead of standing at attention in the Athens stadium. And as much as I have looked forward to the end of this season during intense rehearsals and under the sweltering heat of band camp, standing on the other side of the finish line has given me a different view of things. Specifically, one from above.
One thing that is particularly hard to grasp as a marcher is just how much power a marching band holds, both in its sound and in its movement. The height of the podium forces you to feel the full force of every bell, every stick, every mallet, and every heel-arch-ball-toe-cross. As a marcher, I never knew what exactly our band sounded like outside the bubble of the alto saxophones or woodwinds in general. The brass behind me sounded like muffled elephants discovering their trunks for the first time, the drumline a series of clicks I listened to only as a metronome, and the pit ensemble in front of me sounded good, probably. All I knew was that those things somehow sounded different enough all the way up in the box that it got us good scores and good placements, and made the audience cheer. And although that was not the most important thing to me back then, and still isn’t, standing in front of the band has made me realize the actual importance to the production of our power of every single part of the band. But more than that, the importance of the stuff that keeps everyone together. Some might call it ‘glue’ and others may call it ‘the metronome’, but to me, the stuff that keeps the band together is something larger than any one individual can accomplish on their own, and definitely larger than the eight-pound metronome. The stuff that keeps the band together is the culture and tradition that makes the Athens Red Hawk Marching Band the community that it is. And community is a much better-fitting title for this ensemble of people than band, but unfortunately, it doesn’t sound as fitting being announced over the loudspeakers in the stadium.
The community of the marching band is one most prominently shaped by tradition, but also the subtle commitment everyone in the band has to showing up for the band and for each other. Tradition is a thing I hadn’t previously thought of as all that important, and it wasn’t until I had spent enough time in the band that I realized what a cornerstone of our culture it is. Previously, I had thought of tradition as the antithesis of change, of progress, of movement for the better. But this season, in addition to a new pair of gloves, has given me a new pair of eyes through which I see that tradition is the basis for change, and serves as the foundation for which we improve and grow over time. And on the topic of community, the band is one of the most present communities in the larger community of Troy. Never once have I witnessed a marcher go without a friend, a ride home, a spot saved for them in visual block, or a spot in line for concessions. Having taken a step out of the larger body of marching band members, I’ve seen how every marcher, consciously or not, is constantly on the lookout for each other. For those they know and are close friends with, to those who merely share the title of marcher with, the most core tradition of the band is kindness, compassion, and care. This is where our culture plants its roots, this is where everything can be traced back to.
During this season, the thought that I will be back again next year has constantly lingered in the back of my mind. Many times, it made me think of Vengeance as a stepping stone to the best the band could be, and the best I could be. But standing on the other side of that finish line, bird’s eye view and all, puts this season in a different context. Like looking at the lines on the closet wall marking your growth in height over the years, it is difficult to fathom that you have been all of those heights, and all the miniscule heights in between, at some point in the past, and that you still have more growing to do. Each new season and each new show may feel like one of those in between heights that doesn’t get marked and seems like just a step in the process to getting to a higher height, but if I have learned anything from serving as drum major, reality is quite the opposite. It is important to look back and appreciate growth as it is happening, and not just when it’s done. Because truthfully, we will always have more growing to do. This season has been a season of immense growth for both me and the band, and I cannot wait to see, from my white-gloved bird’s eye view, the heights we will reach in the future.
Blog post by Nikhil Rao, a Creative Guild Student Producer.