The sounds of brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments surround the stadium. The band has perfect choreography. That Wylie Band’s marching season is coming to an end soon; their most recent competition was the UIL 6A Area J Finals. However, that also means an emotional farewell is coming for the seniors.
“My life is so different than what it could have been if I didn’t do band. And just all the people that I’ve met through there have, you know, changed my life for the better,” Senior trombone section leader Nicholas Moore said.
The immense impact of That Wylie Band on its members is that it challenges and grows players from their freshman year to their senior year.
“The past four years, through the band specifically, I’ve grown so much, not only as a musician, obviously, but as a person, just through all the people that I’ve met through band and the connections I’ve made,” Moore said.
The growth of everyone in That Wylie Band over the marching season will be a core memory for the seniors.
“This year, my favorite part of the marching season has been watching my section grow as people and musicians, and just how much we’ve improved since we started this summer. It’s been really awesome to see our growth through the season,” Moore said.
That musical drive didn’t just start in high school; however, everyone has a backstory somewhere.
“Back when I started the band, it was mostly because music just kind of drew me in as an activity, and I really just love entertaining people and giving them, you know, enjoyment through performance, and that’s something I strive for in life,” Moore said.
As seniors, it’s definitely emotional for the end of their stint in That Wylie Band; the friendships they have made will never be forgotten.
“I’m going to miss the people I’ve built friendships with because going into college, it’s going to be a whole new environment, and I won’t have these friendships that I’ve built up with these people anymore, and I’m going to miss seeing them every day at rehearsals and things like that,” Moore said.
One of the last competitions, UIL 6A Area J Finals, was definitely a reflective moment for the seniors.
“For me personally, I was just proud the whole time of how far we’ve come and how great the show that we’ve put on has become. And just seeing, you know, we tried our best, we did the best that we possibly could, and that’s really all that matters to us. A score can’t define the work that we’ve put into the year,” Moore said.
Although as seniors, they will be moving on to the future, and most will be moving on to college.
“In the next four years, I’d like to see myself in some position of a studio musician, commercially producing music in just more production aspects, like getting hired to do a job, to do a gig, or something like that,” Moore said.
That Wylie Band’s been an emotional roller-coaster for the seniors, but it’s one they will never forget.
“I think band and fine arts in general are amazing, and I think everyone should do that just to really feel the emotions you get by creating some sort of medium to get to share with people. I think it’s an amazing experience, and I think everyone should have that,” Moore said.