BY ARIELLE KRAUS
After a summer filled with countless hours of practice and preparation, the Sound of Pride (SOP) continues to get ready for the competition season ahead. Since the previous year, many changes have been made to the program, allowing for many improvements and opportunities for the band.
As the SOP enters a new marching season, they will be participating in a nation-wide competition. They will be a part of Bands of America (BOA) instead of Florida Marching Band Championships (FMBC). This allows the program to have different experiences on a national level. Music is a strength of the SOP and it is strongly emphasized and evaluated at BOA. Due to this change, the SOP will not be attending states.
“Bands of America is a national stage instead of a state-level competition,” Band Director Danielle Singer said. “There is potential for the band to travel to Indianapolis or to Georgia in the coming years, once we go past the Orlando regionals this year.”
In addition to the competition change, the SOP has also added many staff members to their crew. They have an entirely new group of technicians, including Justin Samuels and Robert Rivero, who assist the students on a more individualized level. Technicians work with small groups of students to help them succeed and thrive in the program. They mentor and advise the students on how to better their performance for the competition show. There are also two new drum majors: sophomore Samantha Sigal and junior Jenna Hack.
“We can see the show coming to life before our eyes.”
Last school year, a group of band members was a part of the first pit orchestra. A pit orchestra accompanies musical productions. This orchestra participated in the Thespians production of “Into the Woods” during the previous school year. It has been confirmed that there will be another pit orchestra for the spring musical in March.
“Because last year’s pit orchestra was one of Cooper’s first, it was a new and different experience,” pit orchestra member Nicole Ganga said. “It was really great to see how talented the Thespians were, and to contribute to their amazing show. I am glad the pit orchestra will be doing another show this year and am looking forward to participating.”
The theme of the SOP’s marching show will be a circus freak show. The music for the show will be arranged and written by technician Rivero. Technicians and parents are working diligently on making many props for this year’s competition show. This includes giant cages with metal bars that will be incorporated into the marching show, which can hold an entire instrument section of students inside.
“Music is really what Cooper City does well.”
“Props are an extremely important visual concept for our marching show,” drum major Samantha Sigal said. “They help to portray the theme of the show. Our theme is a freaky circus and with our wonderful band parents building us cages, we can see the show coming to life before our eyes.”
Over the course of the next few months, SOP members will prepare for upcoming competitions. Competitions are a time for the SOP to showcase their skills with their music and performance. Their first competition will take place on September 29, 2018 in Boca Raton.
All of the new additions and changes made to the SOP allow for students to experience a variety of opportunities within the program. BOA will provide SOP members with a different scoring system in competitions. Change may be difficult, but it is made with the improvement of the SOP in mind.
“BOA, from an educational perspective, uses a scoring system that includes 60 percent music, which is a lot heavier than the emphasis on music at FMBC,” Singer said. “Music is really what Cooper City does well, so we wanted to take that step toward that venue.”
Photo by Jaylen Knight
