The Marching Buccaneers Compete in 2019 Lion’s Pride

Berkeley’s marching band competes in the annual marching band competition, Lion’s Pride, hosted by King High School

Berkeley’s marching band hopped on a bus to King High School to compete in the annual Lion’s Pride competition. Two months of hard work was put into making the show, A Day at the Beach, which was also performed at an All School Convo. The set brought the audience to the beach with tropical songs such as “Surfin’ USA” by the Beach Boys, a Calypso tune, “Margaritaville” by Jimmy Buffet and “Wipeout” by Surfaris.

Lion’s Pride divides each group of schools into their own divisions, depending on how large their band is. Berkeley was placed in the red category, the group with smaller bands. From there, each band competes and receives feedback. Each band is also ranked based on how they performed, both musically and visually.

After Berkeley’s performance, the band sat back, grabbed some popcorn and watched the rest of the shows. Other schools that competed performed shows. The variety allowed the Berkeley band to see how other teams performed and to see what they could improve upon for next year. 

Berkeley also had the honor of competing in their first drumline battle, which pitted drumming ensembles against each other. While they didn’t make it to the finals, they put on a great performance. 

Many members of the band expressed feelings of bonding and camaraderie. “Making friends with other bands at Lion’s Pride is my favorite part because we all have similar stories and can talk about the coolest things. This was Berkeley’s first year competing in the Battle of the Drumlines, and though we didn’t win, the opposing school was incredibly supportive and made the experience so much fun,” said Mia Keller ‘21. 

This year was also the debut of Berkeley’s color guard. Members of the color guard use flags, plastic rifles, swords or other props to match the tune of the band’s music. Points are awarded for good visuals from the color guard. “I felt the competitive environment and was motivated for the guard to perform at our best,” said Rachel Kline ‘20. 

Lion’s Pride is an exciting band tradition, and it was a great opportunity to be introduced to other schools’ band performances and spirit. For the next performance of A Day at the Beach, attend the football game against Astronaut High School on Monday, October 28th.

BUS BUDDIES: Rachel Kline ‘20, Zoey Hildebrandt ‘21, Katie Fletcher ‘21 and Aashka Chavda ‘21 make their debut as Berkeley’s first ever Color Guard. Photo by Rachel Kline.

 

BAND ON THE BEACH: The Berkeley Band used beach-themed props for their show this year. Points are awarded from judges for how aesthetically pleasing the props look. Photo from Susan Zhang.