A/N - okay folks, here's the start of the evil drum major fic I've been
promising – I've had horrible writer's block, but I figured if I post what
I've got, then maybe people would harass me for more and I would snap out
of it. It's a bit lengthy at the beginning with the character
descriptions, I know, but bear with me here, folks! And I think
something's wrong with my computer – I typed this on AppleWorks and then
pasted it into MSWord to post, and the formatting is all screwy – the
spaces look way too small. So if they really appear that way, please let
me know so I can try to fix it. Thanks guys! Enjoy!
A Year From Hell - based on a true story.
*names have been changed to protect the guilty*
background info on characters, etc.:
Melanie is the queen bitch who goes on total power trips. She's a junior, was not student staff the year before, and is DM number two. Her best friend is Liz, the senior DM from last year who trained her and was just as bitchy. She plays oboe/clarinet and fits the snooty stereotype of an oboeist (when I say stereotype I mean it - I have a friend at another school who plays oboe and is very nice. Melanie isn't.)
Jake is DM number three. He's a junior and was sort-of student staff last year. His ex-girlfriend is Liz, who convinced him to try out for DM and was on the judging panel. But she graduated. He's very easy- going, his family inheritance is a major beer company and he has definitely earned the nickname Johnny Pot-smoker, but during marching season he's been good about that. He tries his hardest to do well, but more often than not (if you know him at all well) his attitude is more than a little discouraging. He marched tenor sax last year and played bari sax in concert band.
Sara is DM number one. She is a senior and the absolute sweetest girl you will ever meet. Her mom works at the school and her brother, Carl, is a junior who is one of the drumline section leaders. Very humble and honest. It takes a LOT to piss off Sara. She plays flute and piccolo.
Chris is senior and the other drumline section leader. He, if anyone, deserved to be a drum major this year with Sara. He's dedicated, has an awesome attitude, truly cares about the good of the band and is a great musician.
Flute section leaders are Elly and Rebecca. Elly is a senior, Rebecca a sophomore. First year as section leader for both of them. Elly is very agreeable and amiable. Rebecca is an incredibly talented leader who is always busy with ten different activities at the same time, so becoming a drum major would require prioritization of her activities. She has occasional mood swings.
Clarinet section leader is Alison. She is a senior and a total band nerd. She is not always in the loop and often finds out about band gossip after it is over.
Trumpet section leader is Ben. He is an incredibly talented junior and the best player in the region. However, due to other commitments, he is not actually in the class and his friend Jon takes over during in-class rehearsals.
Low Brass section leader is yours truly, the narrator. For convenience, we'll call me Kanoi. I'm a sophomore this year, so it's obviously my first year as leadership. I'm pretty close to Sara and have been by her side through everything that's happened to her this year. And believe me, a lot has happened to her this year! And just think, it's not even concert season yet. I play baritone, but for auditions I have to say I play euphonium. So sad, really. Baritones don't get enough recognition in this world.
The director we'll call Mr. P. It's his second year with the group, so I've been with him for all of my marching career. His daughter is two years old and shares my real name. He has not yet grasped which has to come first for three months out of the year - family or band. Melanie has him wrapped around her little scrawny pinky.
Other characters will be introduced as needed. These are the essentials for now.
The second day of leadership camp, a Tuesday, one of the Assistant Drum Majors pulled aside the Head Drum major. "I need to talk to you," she said. "Alone."
"Well, Jake is a drum major too, we're all drum majors together, and he can't be here for freshman camp, so can he stay?" asked the ever-polite head drum major, Sara.
"No, he can't. I need to talk you alone." Melanie closed the door to the staff room. "Here's the deal, Sara. I feel that you are looking down on people a lot, and just totally putting yourself above everyone else on this staff. I'm afraid the same thing is going to happen once the freshmen and returning members get here. I think this is really horrible and needs to stop if we want to have a good year. Oh, and by the way, Jake feels the same way."
Shocked, Sara went home that day and called up Jake. He promised he had no idea what she was talking about and that he had never said these things to Melanie. And this was just the beginning.
Freshman Band Camp. The thing that student leadership looks to with fear and joy. These still-really-eighth-graders are just lumps of clay with instruments in their hands. They are ours to mold. If we fuck this up, it'll follow us for the rest of the season.
The first thing Mr. P does is have the freshmen sit down on chairs in the riser-like band room. The staff (that's us) lines up against the chalkboard in the front of the room. We're all wearing our band shirts - the ones we have on now are a combo of our show shirts for the year and a staff shirt - different color scheme than the show shirt, and with the word STAFF really big across the back. Our band is big on different shirts.
We get in a line and say our names, year, and what section we are in charge of.
"Alison, senior, clarinets."
"Elly, senior, flutes."
"Rebecca, sophomore, flutes."
"Ben, junior, trumpets."
"Jon, junior, trumpets."
"Chris, senior, battery. I play snare." I smile at this. Chris always hated the pit, and did everything possible to distance himself from them. "That's the marching drums, freshmen."
"Carl, junior, drums. I'm on snare, too."
"Kanoi, sophomore, low brass. That includes baritones, trombones, tubas, french horns, bari saxes, and tenor saxes. For marching season. For concert, axe the saxes." I swear, I have the most work after the drum majors. "And I play baritone." I restrain myself from adding, And very well. But it's true. More of that later.
Now it was the drum majors' turn. Jake, true to form, wasn't at freshman camp, and wouldn't be back until regular band camp. So Melanie had to start. "Hi guys, I'm Melanie, I'm a junior, and I'm one of your drum majors. I marched clarinet and I play oboe."
Sara was last. She had on her white drum major polo (the band's polos are red), which was tucked into her blue jeans. She had what would become her trademark belt on - red and glitter-y. Her thick dark hair was up in a ponytail fastened with a red ribbon. I'm pretty sure she had her usual light dusting of glitter around her eyes. (But it wasn't red. That was MY trademark for the marching season.) Sara was the epitome of school spirit, of band spirit. Unlike Melanie, who only wore her white drum major polo under her uniform. She never wore a band shirt on Fridays like she was supposed to. She never wore her band shirt, come to think of it. Except for in the stands at competitions. But back to Sara.
"Hi guys, my name's Sara, and I'm another drum major. I'm a senior, and I play piccolo and flute. And for those of you who don't know, the drum major is the person who conducts you guys when you play and is in charge of the band after Mr. Peterson."
The next thing Mr. P did was call attendance and have us pass out name tags when he called names. Me, being sort of boy-crazy, started looking for any cute freshmen. Hey, I'm only a sophomore! And there were a couple - a clarinet named Doug and a percussionist (and soon to be cymbal slut) named Jeff.
A Year From Hell - based on a true story.
*names have been changed to protect the guilty*
background info on characters, etc.:
Melanie is the queen bitch who goes on total power trips. She's a junior, was not student staff the year before, and is DM number two. Her best friend is Liz, the senior DM from last year who trained her and was just as bitchy. She plays oboe/clarinet and fits the snooty stereotype of an oboeist (when I say stereotype I mean it - I have a friend at another school who plays oboe and is very nice. Melanie isn't.)
Jake is DM number three. He's a junior and was sort-of student staff last year. His ex-girlfriend is Liz, who convinced him to try out for DM and was on the judging panel. But she graduated. He's very easy- going, his family inheritance is a major beer company and he has definitely earned the nickname Johnny Pot-smoker, but during marching season he's been good about that. He tries his hardest to do well, but more often than not (if you know him at all well) his attitude is more than a little discouraging. He marched tenor sax last year and played bari sax in concert band.
Sara is DM number one. She is a senior and the absolute sweetest girl you will ever meet. Her mom works at the school and her brother, Carl, is a junior who is one of the drumline section leaders. Very humble and honest. It takes a LOT to piss off Sara. She plays flute and piccolo.
Chris is senior and the other drumline section leader. He, if anyone, deserved to be a drum major this year with Sara. He's dedicated, has an awesome attitude, truly cares about the good of the band and is a great musician.
Flute section leaders are Elly and Rebecca. Elly is a senior, Rebecca a sophomore. First year as section leader for both of them. Elly is very agreeable and amiable. Rebecca is an incredibly talented leader who is always busy with ten different activities at the same time, so becoming a drum major would require prioritization of her activities. She has occasional mood swings.
Clarinet section leader is Alison. She is a senior and a total band nerd. She is not always in the loop and often finds out about band gossip after it is over.
Trumpet section leader is Ben. He is an incredibly talented junior and the best player in the region. However, due to other commitments, he is not actually in the class and his friend Jon takes over during in-class rehearsals.
Low Brass section leader is yours truly, the narrator. For convenience, we'll call me Kanoi. I'm a sophomore this year, so it's obviously my first year as leadership. I'm pretty close to Sara and have been by her side through everything that's happened to her this year. And believe me, a lot has happened to her this year! And just think, it's not even concert season yet. I play baritone, but for auditions I have to say I play euphonium. So sad, really. Baritones don't get enough recognition in this world.
The director we'll call Mr. P. It's his second year with the group, so I've been with him for all of my marching career. His daughter is two years old and shares my real name. He has not yet grasped which has to come first for three months out of the year - family or band. Melanie has him wrapped around her little scrawny pinky.
Other characters will be introduced as needed. These are the essentials for now.
The second day of leadership camp, a Tuesday, one of the Assistant Drum Majors pulled aside the Head Drum major. "I need to talk to you," she said. "Alone."
"Well, Jake is a drum major too, we're all drum majors together, and he can't be here for freshman camp, so can he stay?" asked the ever-polite head drum major, Sara.
"No, he can't. I need to talk you alone." Melanie closed the door to the staff room. "Here's the deal, Sara. I feel that you are looking down on people a lot, and just totally putting yourself above everyone else on this staff. I'm afraid the same thing is going to happen once the freshmen and returning members get here. I think this is really horrible and needs to stop if we want to have a good year. Oh, and by the way, Jake feels the same way."
Shocked, Sara went home that day and called up Jake. He promised he had no idea what she was talking about and that he had never said these things to Melanie. And this was just the beginning.
Freshman Band Camp. The thing that student leadership looks to with fear and joy. These still-really-eighth-graders are just lumps of clay with instruments in their hands. They are ours to mold. If we fuck this up, it'll follow us for the rest of the season.
The first thing Mr. P does is have the freshmen sit down on chairs in the riser-like band room. The staff (that's us) lines up against the chalkboard in the front of the room. We're all wearing our band shirts - the ones we have on now are a combo of our show shirts for the year and a staff shirt - different color scheme than the show shirt, and with the word STAFF really big across the back. Our band is big on different shirts.
We get in a line and say our names, year, and what section we are in charge of.
"Alison, senior, clarinets."
"Elly, senior, flutes."
"Rebecca, sophomore, flutes."
"Ben, junior, trumpets."
"Jon, junior, trumpets."
"Chris, senior, battery. I play snare." I smile at this. Chris always hated the pit, and did everything possible to distance himself from them. "That's the marching drums, freshmen."
"Carl, junior, drums. I'm on snare, too."
"Kanoi, sophomore, low brass. That includes baritones, trombones, tubas, french horns, bari saxes, and tenor saxes. For marching season. For concert, axe the saxes." I swear, I have the most work after the drum majors. "And I play baritone." I restrain myself from adding, And very well. But it's true. More of that later.
Now it was the drum majors' turn. Jake, true to form, wasn't at freshman camp, and wouldn't be back until regular band camp. So Melanie had to start. "Hi guys, I'm Melanie, I'm a junior, and I'm one of your drum majors. I marched clarinet and I play oboe."
Sara was last. She had on her white drum major polo (the band's polos are red), which was tucked into her blue jeans. She had what would become her trademark belt on - red and glitter-y. Her thick dark hair was up in a ponytail fastened with a red ribbon. I'm pretty sure she had her usual light dusting of glitter around her eyes. (But it wasn't red. That was MY trademark for the marching season.) Sara was the epitome of school spirit, of band spirit. Unlike Melanie, who only wore her white drum major polo under her uniform. She never wore a band shirt on Fridays like she was supposed to. She never wore her band shirt, come to think of it. Except for in the stands at competitions. But back to Sara.
"Hi guys, my name's Sara, and I'm another drum major. I'm a senior, and I play piccolo and flute. And for those of you who don't know, the drum major is the person who conducts you guys when you play and is in charge of the band after Mr. Peterson."
The next thing Mr. P did was call attendance and have us pass out name tags when he called names. Me, being sort of boy-crazy, started looking for any cute freshmen. Hey, I'm only a sophomore! And there were a couple - a clarinet named Doug and a percussionist (and soon to be cymbal slut) named Jeff.