Booming bass and staccato snare mingled with chimes, brass, woodwind and guitar echoing through the stadium and rolling into surrounding neighborhoods and hillsides.
The Harker Heights High School Red Brigade Band hosted the second Drums in the Heartland percussion competition Saturday at Joseph L. Searles Stadium.
Thirteen percussion ensembles competed in two divisions in the Harker Heights band fundraiser that highlighted the unique sounds and role of percussion.
Photos of the event are posted here www.killeenisd.org/photos
“It’s very cool. It’s a wake-up call for us to see how we look compared to other bands,” said
Harker Heights senior and percussion captain Tramel Bracey. “I’m grateful to be the percussion captain. I love to see the band grow.”
Percussion captains described the unique role their section plays in the life of the marching band.
“It’s special because it’s our own territory. Seeing drum lines and how they articulate themselves and put themselves on the field is an honor. It’s a real gift,” said Ellison senior Enoch Bolaji, the EHS band’s battery captain.
Percussion is far more than drums keeping a steady beat. Ensembles in the competition included portions of brass and woodwind and in some cases keyboards and guitars amplified across the stadium.
“It’s amazing. Percussion is a subsection of the band. Here we really get to be us. This is about percussion,” Shoemaker senior John Hall, percussion captain.
“I love being the center snare and having the role to keep that rhythm. It feels great.”
In the end, in the smaller “Red Division,” Academy finished in first place, Lorena in second and Wharton in third, followed by Salado and Valley Mills.
In the larger “Black Division,” James Bowie High School finished at the top with Belton High in second and Hutto in third followed by Shoemaker, Chaparral, Ellison, Killeen and Temple. As host, Harker Heights competed in exhibition outside the competition.
“It means a lot. We don’t get to be just us in our zone very often. I think it connects us,” said
Killeen High senior Shyheim Willis, drum captain.
“It’s a great experience. Watching other bands lets us incorporate new stuff into what we do,” said Chaparral junior Khalil Medlock, snare section leader.
“I like how musically we can change the dynamics and tell a story through music.”
All five Killeen ISD high school bands are set to perform, along with the district’s 10 middle school bands at the 48th annual Spirit Spectacular Saturday, September 19 beginning at 7 p.m. at Leo Buckley Stadium.