BLOOMFIELD, NJ — After the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on last year’s regular season, the Bloomfield High School marching band is back to performing for audiences.
Last year, to restrict travel, the band members got to play only at home games and had to drop out of their normal competition schedule. The halftime show was shelved in favor of easier music that could be learned without the regular amount of practice time. But in 2021, what was supposed to be the 2020 show is in the works and will be debuting in front of bigger crowds.
“We’re doing the best we can,” Director Natalie Kerr said in an interview with The Independent Press at a rehearsal on Sept. 20. “It’s a really good group of kids. I think if we keep this group, we can build from there and we’ll be good.”
They’re building a five-minute show called “X,” with movements based on words that start with the sound: exclamation, accelerate, exaggerate and exotic. There’s been a lot of learning to do, even for the members who have been on the field before, because COVID prevented a regular band camp from being held last year. The juniors and seniors are catching up on their performance skills, while the freshmen and sophomores have never experienced a regular season.
“We don’t have a lot of freshmen, but it’s the inexperience of performing publicly” that is a challenge to overcome, Kerr said. “The summer rehearsals helped them open up to each other, and I really think that helped build morale. The relationship building is important.”
Even still, they have to have a backup plan for the backup plan. Flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Ida rendered Foley Field unplayable for at least another week, so BHS hasn’t had a home football game yet and practice fields have to be shared with other sports teams. Also, Kerr knows that at some point throughout their season some band members will miss rehearsals due to the quarantining requirement after being exposed to COVID-19.
“You don’t sit kids on the bench in this activity,” Kerr said. “The snare and tenor parts are written for the students playing them. We’re aware of that.”
Last year’s season went on before school opened for hybrid learning; members were seeing one another for only a few hours a week at practices instead of all day in class. Senior drum major Stephanie Aguilar said they’re still adjusting to the new schedule.
“You get used to not being around people,” she said in an interview with The Independent Press on Sept. 20. “So we’re adjusting to social interaction and being around each other. We’re trying to push everyone hard to learn music. It’s been nice; we’re getting there.”
The only band members who remember what a normal season is like are the upperclassmen, and they’re excited for a fall that more closely resembles 2018 and 2019. Color guard member Maya Thomas played the saxophone in middle school band but decided to pick up the flags because the color guard looked similar to dance classes she had taken.
“It’s been good getting back to what we did with a full show,” Thomas said at rehearsal. “It was so exciting, and I felt bad for the seniors who didn’t get to do it last year.”
The Bengals’ home opener had to relocate to Nutley after the flooding, but they’re hoping to return to Foley Field on Oct. 1 against Newark East Side. With no fans in the stands in 2020, Thomas is ready for an audience at home and at competitions.
“Home games were so fun, and more people were there to see us. It’s more exciting,” she said. “People don’t consider it a sport, but we put in a lot of work. Now people get to see what we’re doing.”
It’s not the same as pre-pandemic times, but it’s a lot closer than it was a year ago.
“I’ve been impressed with the work ethic,” Kerr said. “When you see the trumpets helping the percussionists with their equipment and helping the color guard, it’s setting the tone that everyone wants to be here. Overall, it’s been very positive.”
Photos by Amanda Valentovic
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