Anthony Olivares:
He led a creative group that
wasn’t
understood except by
themselves
By Bruce Smith
Matchup
The drum line section was always in the middle of the
Bingham Marching Band performances. Handling one of the most well-known
instruments, the group was often the center of attention.
If not for their play, then for their actions.
The section, including its leader, Anthony Olivares, wasn’t
always understood by the rest of the formation. For much of the season, they
were on their own and developed their own attitude.
“We typically did our own thing,” Olivares said. “We
often were doing things we weren’t supposed to. Sometimes the rules are a
little too strict. Everybody (in his group) was complaining and I would try to
keep them happy and keep (band director Darin) Graber happy.
“Spencer (Lepley, the head drum major) didn’t like that. He
wanted us to conform to every rule.”
In a long season, discipline frequently keeps team’s
focused. There was no doubt the Bingham band had that, as shown by its
season-long improvement that eventually resulted in a third-place finish among
the larger Utah schools at the Band of America competition in St. George.
“That was our best (performance),” Olivares said. “It was
so good that there people crying over it. I didn’t celebrate, but for a lot of
people, this was their very last competition and it was a great way to end.”
For this 13-member group, though, sometimes it was the
means that justified the ends.
“For us, the highlight was midseason,” he said. “Things
were flowing and there wasn’t much commotion. I liked to keep us more of a
section and be unified so we can learn how to deal with each other better.
“We had a lot of fun,” he added. “We had a guy from
California (Jake Goehring) come and and took our co-captain’s spot. He was the
most creative and spot-on funny guy. In any situation, he could come up with a
witty comment. Being with him made it a lot more fun.”
Olivares also pointed to Andrew Smith, who sometimes
showed his funny attitude.
“Andrew was one of the tenor players. The bases didn’t
talk much. They were the silent, but favorite group,” he said. “It was mostly
the tenors and snares that were obnoxious, but it was pretty funny to us.”
Olivares said the unifying factor for the drum line was
Larry Edvalson, an experienced percussion instructor who, in his first year, provided
a lot of good advice to the squad.
“He was a big help and we learned a lot from him,”
Olivares said.
Olivares said he hoped to continue learning after the
season ended. Besides band, he said another highlight of his schooling has been
working with special needs kids.
He also wants be active in music. He started playing the
drums in seventh grade and now has experience in virtually all the percussion
instruments. He planned to perform with the South County Percussion drum line
in Provo and try to earn a music scholarship to the University of Utah.
“I’d really like to make a career out of it,” he said. “
I don’t know in what way, but I’ll find something.”
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment