With booming bass drums and cymbals crashing together, Drumline’s dramatic entrance at the first All-School Meeting (ASM) of the 2023-2024 school year captivated the audience. Celebrating the new school year and Class of 2024’s last year at Andover with animation, Drumline member Jenny Jin ’24 described her favorite part of the performance.
“Definitely the leading Seniors [played a big role], because I am a Senior and the ASM in general feels really special for us. And then being Drumline, the one to lead everyone in, it was super exciting… Just standing in the front and playing while everyone was cheering, that was super, super great and a fantastic moment for me,” said Jin.
Although the spirited and upbeat opening was a huge success, it did not come without its challenges according to McKenzie Williams ’24. With a limited number of members, lots of time was dedicated to familiarizing themselves with the music and collaborating within different sections.
“We had been preparing for about two weeks… We made sure we practiced playing inside the [Cochran] Chapel. Being able to practice inside the Chapel and hear how sound interacts with the closed Chapel really helped us out a lot. We are also a little bit rusty coming after summer break, so having the first ASM right after break [with] only a few practices to prepare is a bit difficult. But, we all did our work in practice, outside of practice, and it worked for us,” said Williams.
The performance was successful, adding unique euphony to the ASM, and was well-received by the audience. As a Freshman, Ethan Ly ’27 expressed awe at the performance and noted the enthusiastic school culture.
“[It was] pretty loud, interesting, and engaging… I liked the enthusiasm of everyone, especially the class of ’24. They were chanting ‘Class of 24’ repeatedly and I thought it was pretty funny,” said Ly.
Reflecting on the performance, Williams described the rewarding experience and the valuable time spent being a part of the Drumline community.
“My favorite part is always walking in, and then seeing everybody turn around and look at us and hear us play. I also really like the Blue Keys cheering us on and riling up the crowd… I really like the music, the people make it great as well, but there’s just something about playing, the vibration, just hearing the sound in your chest, there’s nothing quite like it,” said Williams.
