Feeling some country and western music from over the years?
Attend the first Seymour High School home football game Aug. 26 and you’ll hear the Marching Owls play the theme from the television show “Rawhide,” “Friends in Low Places,” “Fancy Like” and “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” That will follow the theme “Country and Western Favorites.”
Feeling some pop music from over the years?
Attend the Sept. 30 home football game to hear the band play “I Want You Back,” “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” “Toxic” and “Mr. Brightside.” That will have the theme “Obsession and Envy.”
This fall, the band along with the color guard and cheerleaders will have something for everyone.
If you ask the four drum majors about their preferred themes, senior Samantha Carter is all about the first one.
“I was ecstatic,” she said, smiling. “Because we’re in the small town little Seymour, and I thought everybody would just really enjoy it.”
The other three, seniors Liza Stuckwisch and Olivia Fowler and junior Lucas Jablonski, favor the pop theme.
“I’m more used to hearing those songs, and I know them more, so maybe playing them will feel a little more natural,” Jablonski said.
“I think it will be really good to play some of those songs because I’m more familiar with those ones. I’m not as familiar with the country songs,” Fowler said.
Throughout band camp on the last full week of July, Stuckwisch said they focused on the country and western songs, so switching to the pop songs during the football season will be a good change.
“I think we do a good job playing (the country and western songs), and I think the audience will really like them,” she said. “We played ‘Country Roads’ at graduation, and so that has been really good for us and we’ve sounded really good and I like that song, and then we just wanted to keep that and we added in some other songs.”
The variety of songs is a plus, Carter said.
“I’m excited for all of the different songs we’re going to do,” she said. “I just think that the band plays them and it just sounds so fun, and we’re all just working together and we all get so excited.”
This is Stuckwisch’s second year as a drum major, but it’s the first for the other three.
“It’s really cool to just be the one that has stayed over, and I like teaching them what to do and helping them,” she said. “It’s just fun leading the band and being able to conduct. I like it better than marching.”
While Carter said she likes playing with her fellow clarinetists, she also likes being up on the stand in front of the whole band. That consists of 240 people when including the color guard, Director Kevin Cottrill said.
“I’m so excited just to be able to spend time with everybody,” Carter said. “I’m a people person, so I get to be in front of them and help them.”
Fowler also likes spending time with all of the band members.
“And being able to help whoever I can instead of just one set of people,” she said. “I think it’s really making me be involved with more people, and I really like that.”
Jablonski said he especially likes helping the freshmen.
“They are not very used to it yet, so seeing them just progress and get better and being up in front of everybody conducting, it feels really good,” he said.
The drum majors are ready to play the songs on the field at halftime and in the stands during games.
“I’m excited to see the response to country and western. I think a lot of people will like that and just really get into it,” Stuckwisch said. “And football games are just a fun atmosphere. It’s just awesome. Everyone’s cheering, and I love it every year. I always look forward to it.”
Carter said it’s a time for the band to display what it has been working on all summer.
“I’m getting so excited about presenting it the first time, especially the freshmen, to all of the parents and kids,” she said. “They get so excited to see what they’ve done.”
Fowler said the band improves a lot between the summer and the football games.
“I’m excited to see how much we’ve improved because just from right now to when football starts, the band clicks so much, and I’m excited to see that,” she said.
Whether in the stands or on the field, Jablonski likes being part of the football game atmosphere.
“We sit next to the student section, which I really like. We’re kind of part of it almost, and we get to hype up the crowd a little bit at halftime,” he said. “I feel like the band is a pretty big thing in Seymour, so being able to show everyone our abilities at halftime, it’s really, really good.”
At a glance
The Seymour High School Marching Owls and Guard will perform at home football games Aug. 26 and Sept. 9 and 30.
The band is directed by Kevin Cottrill. The assistant directors are Kyle Lutes, Debbie Carroll, Luke Horton (middle school director), Kyle Karum (marching) and Tony Franklin (drill writer). The drum majors are seniors Liza Stuckwisch, Olivia Fowler and Samantha Carter and junior Lucas Jablonski. The color guard directors are Steve Nauman and Lacey Money.
The section leaders are Rosy Domingo, Shayla Thompson, Erika Corya, Audrey Newkirk, Joey Larison, Anthony Benitez, Marlo Cornn, Sydney Montgomery, Aubri Engle, Katie Cottrill, Wyatt McKinney, Jordan Stevens, Savannah Easterday, Jeremiah Myers, Kaydan Noblitt, Kiley Estes and Hannah Money.
There are 240 members of the band and color guard.