Holding my mallets up in a salute stance, I am honored to say that I am trying out for the Florida State Marching Chiefs. After long and hard consideration, I’ve decided to face the challenges such as physical rigor and extreme time crunches, in order to achieve one common goal: along with the other Marching Chiefs, I’m going to get another chance to walk into Doak Campbell Stadium. This time though (unlike in high school), the stadium will be filled with a crowd cheering not only for the football team, but also for our extremely talented band.
The Doak Campbell stadium itself isn’t a text for just the Marching Chiefs, or even the sports team that practice and compete in there. It’s also a representation of the spirit of the entire Florida State University student and staff community. The band itself is just a portion of the school that helps get that point across. This is precisely reason I want to contribute to this club, and also the reason I researched more to help find valuable information that could inspire other people who are considering joining the Chiefs, to also take the leap. This community brings outcasts together, and despite the rumors saying that it’s hard to get into, if that is the case, “there is a concert band that accepts all players of all talents” (Interview, Katie Olney). The best part is that concert band is all year long, so you can still perform with a large group of fantastic people. Living in the Cawthon music dorm here at Florida State University this summer has certainly been proof enough that they will take anyone and everyone, and that the program will be as patient as possible to help students become both comfortable with the environment as well as their ability to play an instrument. This being said, the students have to actually show that they are committed by coming to rehearsal and asking for help (just like any class you’ll ever take at a college or university).
The road to making this decision for me personally was long and hard. I honestly know that if I didn’t do all this research for this project that I probably wouldn’t have considered trying out for the percussion section my freshman year. I first set out to find the Orientation Leaders I had heard say that they were a part of this organization during the presentation about how every student is encouraged to contribute to FSU through extra-curricular activities. I needed to know what the path for an incoming freshman marcher was going to be like. My first interview was with former rookie Angel Purganan. Angel made sure to give me a full crash course of what to expect during the season as a percussionist, making sure to mention that “we move-in about two weeks before classes start for preseason training” and that “that would be considered our "band camp,”” (Interview, Angel Purganan). This was valuable information to know, as it gave me a time-table of how long I have to achieve the objectives that had been set in front of me by the percussion section. Band Camp is an event where attendance is required by each and every member, so knowing the dates for that is something I’m definitely going to make sure to tell other fall students who are coming to Florida State University for the first time, or even as returning students. With the camp itself fast approaching, I felt the need to also ask how a current member of the band felt about their time management skills, once they were officially in the organization. Angel went on to only confirm my thoughts about the nerve-wracking system by saying that “Chiefs is a SUPER big-time commitment,” but that “it definitely prepares you to be able to successfully function in such a tight-schedule,” (Interview, Angel Purganan). The average person would probably be very discouraged after reading this information. If anything it ignites my motivation more to give it my all and accept the challenge. I’ve lived through the late night practices in high school, and I know that the reward is worth the risk. This will also be an important skill to keep building up, as I know it is something everyone needs to learn with balancing work, family, and self-care in our everyday lives. Without time-management, one simply cannot get the most of life.
After my interview with Angel Purganan, I ran into Katie Olney, who is a member of the Leadership community in the Marching Chiefs. She is currently helping to organize a camp for high schoolers that further develops their leadership skills for the years to come. Katie was a great help with me get over my anxiety for the audition. She made sure to assure me that “it's a pretty rigorous process but once you make it through, it's SO much fun! It's such a great community to be a part of and it has so many great traditions too,” (Interview, Katie Olney). Being able to talk to someone who not only has connections to the percussion section, but also the leadership community, was very comforting. Going through the process with someone is always better than going through it alone, which is something I hope to do for others while in this organization by either joining the leadership community or simply just being a good friend/teammate. One other thing that was eating at me was the thought that maybe I wouldn’t have a high chance of getting into the program because I wasn’t a music major. Once again, Katie had all the answers, and she told me that I need not worry because “over seventy percent our members are non-music majors, so the numbers speak for themselves,” (Interview, Katie Olney). After listening to this, a giant weight was lifted off my shoulders. It was always a fear of mine that pursuing a major in Cyber Criminology would get in the way of my music and marching career. Without even asking Olney also gave me a piece of advice that sealed my fate for joining the Marching Chiefs. Her wise words for the day of my audition were to keep “an open mind and a positive attitude. Confidence is key to success,” (Interview, Katie Olney). I have not heard any truer words when it comes to any audition process that I’ve ever been through. We all get ourselves so riled up, when in the end all that matters, much like once you’re marching on the field at Doak Campbell stadium, is that you know that you personally gave it your all. It’s an even better experience knowing that everyone around you feels the same way, and that nothing can change that.
After writing all these notes down, it is clear that the Florida State University Marching Chiefs is an organization dedicated to letting both music and non-music majors at Florida State University show their passions in an environment that can be witnessed by a fair majority of the members of their local community. The marching members themselves practice 4-6 hours a day, either on or off the field of Doak Campbell stadium. Each and every member makes sure to sign up and communicate via Facebook and/or Remind 101 to stay up to date with any possible changes in their music, dot locations, or sectional schedules. A text that is very valuable to the Marching Chiefs is Doak Campbell stadium. When my interviews concluded, I asked Katie and Angel if they could possibly give me a tour of the legendary stadium I had heard so much about. They were reluctant to show me the home of the Marching Chiefs. As we walked up, the grayish concrete walls encompassed every corner of the ever-echoing tunnel. It quite literally felt like darkness was enveloping the tunnel itself. We got closer and closer to the entrance of the stadium, and a burning bright light could be seen at the end as the sun became visible from behind the clouds. The sight took my breath away. I had only ever seen pictures or videos of the location. Every time I had come for a tour of Florida State University it had always been closed for repairs. I had never stepped foot in Doak Campbell stadium prior to when Marching Chief veterans Katie and Angel gave me a tour that day, and it was stunning in every way.
The first thing I noticed when I walked into the Stadium was obviously the field. It’s Bermuda green grass stuck out like a fish out of water, despite its minimal inclusion of the school’s primary colors of Garnet and Gold on the field itself. The edges of the field were painted in garnet red, with one side reading FLORIDA STATE, and other end of the field reading SEMINOLES. Each side of field was towered by a giant yellow field goal that resembled a student stuck holding the Y pose of the YMCA song. Smack dab in the center of the football field was the most noticeable figure drawn onto the field: the Seminole mascot itself. Angel and Katie showed me where the Marching chiefs would be sitting in the stands during all the home football games. I could picture it, standing there in the heavy white and garnet uniform, cheering our team on while performing the War Chant. From the memories of all the Super Bowl Championships I had watched, I could also picture the crowd, and the endless rows of people encircling the field, cheering at an ear-splitting volume that could be heard from miles away. I could envision the student section of the crowd flooded with thousands of spirit-filled students wearing Garnet and Gold spirit wear, along with the Garnet and Gold Glitter Guys shining brighter than the North Star.
Katie and Angel made sure to also enlighten me on the numerous traditions that are held at these weekend games. As they described them, I tried to recreate the images in my mind from all the videos I had watched in my research. I could see the crowd growing more and more silent in anticipation of the famous Chief Osceola’s arrival. I turned around, and could I actually picture Chief Osceola riding on Renegade, making his way to the center of the football field as the crowd (even the opposing team’s supporters) grew louder and louder. I could imagine Chief Osceola holding the flaming spear, the fire burning just as bright as the torch Paul Revere took the night he proclaimed that the British were coming. As always, Osceola continued down his treacherous course with his horse/best friend Renegade, until he reached mid-field. It was here that he fulfilled the tradition of stabbing the torch into ground. Despite the crowd’s immense screams of joy, the sound of the spear puncturing the field created a sonic boom. From what I heard in all the videos I had watched earlier, the sound was much like that of a NASA shuttle when it goes faster than speed of sound and breaks through the Earth’s atmosphere to achieve its space mission. With that, the game commenced. The newly learned traditions that Katie and Angel had told me about, along with the videos I had watched in order to further aid my research helped create the scene perfectly.
I could picture the second quarter ending, and the Marching Chiefs beginning to lineup for the half time show. From my experiences in high school, as any former band member would’ve been able to, I could remember the feeling of the grass crunching underneath my feet as I marched onto the fields at my previous band games and competitions. I tried to picture myself walking onto the field with a drum harnessed against my torso, getting into the set position, and looking at my fellow Chiefs as we give each other a nod of understanding before we begin to perform our masterpiece. Even though I wasn’t there, I could still feel the anticipation as my heartbeat sped up. Then I remembered the feeling of my nerves slipping away as I performed the show. At that moment I knew, that while college and high school marching bands are strikingly different, and that this was how they synced up in the end result. Being able to be in the moment and envision that in-person, using the resources that were presented to me, was definitely something that I believe anyone joining the Marching Chiefs should experience.
Katie and Angel continued on to tell me that after the band had performed that there were also half-time shows that were performed on a stage right in front of where we would be sitting. We then walked down to the front row of the Chief’s set section of the stands. From there I could imagine the half-time performance stage set up right in front of the Marching Chief’s stands, giving us a front row view to whatever amazing and mind-blowing performance would be coming our way. The overall experience of visualizing the Florida State football game experience was shell-shocking. I haven’t even actually become and official member of the Marching Chiefs, and I’m pumped for the next game this fall. I honestly can’t wait to meet the new family that I already feel like I know from the interviews I conducted. I’m excited for my future of making great lifelong memories on the Doak Campbell football field.
After this, my teacher, Mat Wenzel, brought us to our school’s student library, where the librarian taught us about an online program called FSU One Search, which would allow us to find more scholarly sources. I was able to find a few valuable websites that taught me a little more about what the season itself entailed. One of the websites was very simple and straightforward visually, in the fact that it contained dozens videos from almost every year that the band has performed during the 21st century. This was very helpful as I had mentioned earlier, because it allowed me to put myself in the alumni’s shoes and be in the moment as the Marching Chiefs performed on all different types of terrain. Going down further on the list I found on FSU One Search, I discovered some more textual information. One article from the NCAA in particular caught my eye. In their article, they mentioned that in 2015, “the Marching Chiefs took the field as zombies and then performed Michael Jackson's "Thriller" at halftime of the Seminoles' Week 9 game against Syracuse,” (Richmond). Learning this was very exciting to hear, since Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I had always wanted to do an off-season event like this where people would look at you with awe and admiration. The pictures taken of the Chiefs in Halloween costumes honestly made me personally even more overjoyed to join this club, since that was something that my band used to do in high school. It was definitely a team bonding experience, which also acted as the ultimate distressor before all the big competitions started. From this I learned that being in the Marching Chiefs isn’t just about expressing the spirit of Florida State University, but it’s also about expressing your own youthful and now slowly maturing spirit.
That being said, while I like hearing that the band participates in fun activities, it was also nice to hear that they have a zero tolerance hazing policy. With FSU being a well-respected university “infractions would be a good deal harsher than previously: infringements would be met with a suspension of the entire Marching Chiefs organization for one game,” (Faucett 175). After the greek-life hazing incident in 2017 at FSU, it was very reassuring to hear that the Marching Chiefs were held up to just as high of a standard. To a non-band member, not being able to play at a football game doesn’t sound like a severe punishment at all. But what they don’t realize is that we put countless hours of dedication into making the show as spotless as we can, and nobody wants to the one responsible for taking the chance to show our masterpiece away. To my surprise, the good intentions of the Band did not stop there. The Marching Chiefs encourage work to be put-in during the off-season to help out the community, and in 2015, three of its members “showed their courage by donating stem cells through the “Be the Match” organization,” (Florida State University News). One might think that this isn’t a big deal, but Stem Cells are the future, and with not only one, but three band members joining the fight, I think that’s pretty amazing. Being a part of an organization that encourages such selflessness is very inspiring. Not only that, but from a down-to-world point of view with someone like me who is on the Bright Futures Scholarship, having a band that encourages community service will help me be extra motivated to keep up with my volunteer work. I’ll able to multitask and still have Bright Futures continue to pay for my tuition, on top of giving back to my community to represent the Florida State University Marching Chiefs, just like others have done so in the past.
Hearing all this information makes me even more reluctant to join the Marching Chiefs. I wanted to be a part of an organization at FSU that had good morals, and that would introduce me to a fantastic group of people that I could call a second home. Through my research, I am glad to say that I have accomplished both. Whether or not I am successful this time around in my audition will not determine my future. Much like how I felt reborn walking into the stadium in my interview with Angel and Katie, I will walk through those gates again one day, as a Marching Chief. I hope that sharing my research with others encourages them to aspire to do the same, as that is now my main goal through gathering all this information.
Works Cited:
· Purganan, Angel. Personal interview. 10 July 2018.
· Olney, Katie. Personal interview. 11 July 2018.
· "Three Fsu Marching Chiefs Make Life-Saving Donations." States News Service, 2015. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsgao&AN=edsgcl.428319611&site=eds-live.
· Richmond, Sam. "Florida State Band Takes Field as Zombies, Performs 'Thriller'." NCAA News, 31 Oct. 2015, p. 1. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=110691054&site=eds-live.
· Faucett, Bill F. The Marching Chiefs of Florida State University : The Band That Never Lost a Halftime Show. Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, [2018], 2018. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat05720a&AN=fsu.035830882&site=eds-live.
Annotated Bibliography:
Purganan, Angel. Personal interview. 10 July 2018. My interview with Ms. Purganan was very insightful. She was very adamant about giving me a front row view and personal perspective about what it really means to be in the Marching Chiefs. I would say that her interview was definitely a preparatory crash-course about what to expect during the audition process as a freshman, making sure to tell me what specific type of attitude I should have during each section. Her interview was very similar to the one I had with Ms. Olney, in the fact that both emphasized how being in the program itself was such a rewarding experience mentally, physically, and socially. Though Ms. Purganan is not in my instrumental section of the band, she knew from her own connections that the specific concepts and training that she was preparing me for were the same for all sections in the Marching Chiefs.
Olney, Katie. Personal interview. 11 July 2018. My interview with Ms. Olney was very similar to the one I had with Ms. Purganan, given that both of them had the same goal of trying to prepare me for the Marching Chiefs. Ms. Olney’s interview was unique, because rather than focusing on how to get into the actual organization itself, she told me what exactly the band’s schedule was going to be once I’m in the Marching Chiefs. She in essence made me realize that if I’m going to be in the Marching Chiefs, whilst trying to get into the Honors College here at Florida State University, that I am better off holding off on getting a part-time job until the spring semester. Furthermore, as a member of the leadership program in the Marching Chiefs, Ms. Olney mentioned to me that the practice/workload would be reduced dramatically once the band gets into concert season in the spring and summer semesters.
“FSU Marching Chiefs.” FSU Marching Chiefs Home Comments, Florida State University, fsuchiefs.com/future-chiefs/. This source was not peer reviewed, but I do not think it’s biased because the website only gives you factual information about schedules and requirements for the Marching Chiefs. The website itself provided calendar information of the previous years’ rehearsal schedule, which was an exact match to what Ms. Purganan and Ms. Olney described in their personal interviews. Ms. Purganan and Ms. Olney both referred me to this website because it is actually is essential to joining the Marching Chiefs. It leads you to the direct online signup sheet for auditions, while also making sure to inform you that it is required to have certain medical exams prior to the audition. The bad thing about the website by itself is that it doesn’t give a 1st-person perspective of the organization. It describes the practices, games, and competitions that they do, but it doesn’t mention what it feels like for the actual members to go through the process. In other words, the website is more like an overall advertisement for joining the band, whereas the people in the interviews I conducted gave it to me straight, making sure to tell me just how much of a time, mental, and physical commitment being in the club would be.
Cumberledge, Jason P. "The Benefits of College Marching Bands for Students and Universities: A Review of the Literature." Update: Applications of Research in Music Education, vol. 36, no. 1, 01 Oct. 2017, pp. 44-50. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1152377&site=eds-live. This is a peer reviewed source that encases the many benefits of Marching Band. The article mentions a variety of social and education factors that evolve into recommendations for its readers. Its main focus though is to both combine and separate the different amazing aspects that Marching Band provides for both the college/university and the students themselves. Unlike the other sources, this article discusses the concept of marching band in general, instead of just the Marching Chiefs.
Richmond, Sam. "Florida State Band Takes Field as Zombies, Performs 'Thriller'." NCAA News, 31 Oct. 2015, p. 1. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=s3h&AN=110691054&site=eds-live. I believe this source to be credible to my project, despite the fact that FSU One-Search says that it isn’t peer reviewed. I don’t think that the NCAA were biased in this article, simply because they are not striving to cover marching bands in their articles. They are there to report stories on football games in general, and they are just a primary source recounting a magnificent halftime show at yet another weekend football game. This source is different from the others in the fact that it is from a professional company’s website, and that’s it’s not your typical halftime show company advertiser.
"Three Fsu Marching Chiefs Make Life-Saving Donations." States News Service, 2015. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsgao&AN=edsgcl.428319611&site=eds-live. This is not a peer reviewed source. I believe that despite the fact that this article was written by Florida State University, that this source is not biased. The article itself just gives credit and kudos to the individuals who participated in the Stem Cell charity, rather than promoting the Marching Band. It only mentions that they are in Marching Chiefs in order to further develop the face of integrity put on these students. The article itself is just proof that the organization does indeed encourage volunteering in the community. The article is also unique because it shows that the school takes pride in the Band organization, thereby giving students more motivation to join.
Faucett, Bill F. The Marching Chiefs of Florida State University : The Band That Never Lost a Halftime Show. Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, [2018], 2018. EBSCOhost, login.proxy.lib.fsu.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat05720a&AN=fsu.035830882&site=eds-live. Despite the fact that this is a published book, this source is not peer reviewed. I believe that this source is credible to my paper because the book itself sources historical events of how the band was built, as well as alumni that have gone through the evolution of the band themselves. Their first-hand experiences are valuable because they inform readers how this organization is safe and deserves to be well-respected.