With school off to a fairly successful start this fall, the usual extracurriculars are back in full swing. A staple of Timberlane High School clubs and teams is the marching band. While the band may be overshadowed this year by the sudden success of the football team, they are historically one of the best bands in the state.

Unfortunately, since football made the drop to division II, many of the teams have very small bands or no band at all. When the team was in division 1, there was much more excitement and an almost competitive atmosphere surrounding the schools’ bands. Luckily for the Timberlane band, they will get to experience the feeling of competition once again at the annual Dover Band Show. 

What many people may not know is how much work the band puts into preparing for the show and their many football games. Over the summer, many members of the band attend the infamous band camp where students go early in the morning to perfect their marching skills. All members of the band have at least one band class every other day, and many of them take elective music classes as well.  

The Timberlane community got some big news recently with the retirement of long time band director Tony DiBartolomeo. But that did not stop the band from continuing their success. Chase Carstensen,a lead trumpet in the band, explained how the changes have affected the band,“Losing Mr.D was definitely a big blow to the music department and many students were close to him. Luckily the students already liked Mr.Schweiss who is now the music director.” Chase seemed to think that the band has retained its positive attitude despite the many changes they have gone through recently. 

Band is a group that manages to stand out despite there being many other great options in the fall. The long-term success of the band is something that people in the Timberlane community recognize and are very proud of. So while many groups like the football team have varying levels of success each year, it is fair to assume that the marching band will continue to strive for greatness in the years to come.