Coming off a first place at the Goshen marching band invitational and a regional championship in Toledo, Ohio, the Charger Pride Marching Band is poised to turn some heads at Lucas Oil Stadium during the state marching band finals on November 9.
The band has also positioned themselves for success at Band of America Super Regionals (BOA) competition also at Lucas Oil stadium on October 19.
Doug Hassell, Phillip Frazier, and Ryan Long, along with the other members of the Charger Pride design team, determined the 2024-2025 marching band show “Chasing Light” earlier this year.
Each fall season the marching band produces a new, breathtaking, field show. The question is: How do these field shows get to the point where they can be performed? Band directors Doug Hassell, Phillip Frazier, and color guard coach Ryan Long take nearly 10 months to craft and design each year’s show.
Before anything else, the design team had to decide on a theme for the show. This year’s theme is based on the concept of Joy. It’s meant to be an inspirational show about finding joy in the little things.
The idea came about when program consultant Dean Westman, one of the top marching band educators in the world, visited throughout the season last year and saw joy everywhere when watching rehearsals.
“We wanted to have a visual identity that we could portray- and since Joy is hard to ‘see,’ we chose to call it “Chasing Light,” Hassell said. “Light represents Joy – and you can see light, and “chasing” is an action that is seeable and is an action people can understand.”
Many other aspects of the show had to be decided, including the music that the band plays. Narrowing down which pieces of music will be used for the show is a lengthy process.
Hassell knew that he wanted to use “Benedictus” by Karl Jenkins for the ballad after finding the piece many years ago, but never had the right opportunity until this year to use it.
The most important thing the music arrangers had to keep in mind was how well different pieces of music would go together.
Alex Yoder, the main music arranger, wrote the brass and woodwind music along with a percussion sketch. He made sure to use an adaptation of the melody of “Ode to Joy” from Symphony No. 9 by Ludwig Van Beethoven in the show with music from “Benedictus.”
Design team members Michael Brown and Ross Taylor wrote the drumline and front percussion music and used Yoder’s percussion sketch as a base. Christian Good, the sound designer, then created sound effects to enhance the music and experience of the show. All of these elements together create the show’s music.
The musicality of the show is not the only part that goes into the design process.
Color guard director Ryan Long spends a lot of time designing the flags for the color guard to spin, the props on the field, and the costumes the guard wears. He’s been designing shows for years and has a lot of experience in the field.
The quality and thought put into each show is well crafted and goes through many drafts. Long explains that each piece he designs goes through 4-5 drafts before he’s finished with them.
When designing a show, Long asks himself what will make this show stand out from other shows.
“Our shows always mean something,” he said. “They’re important to the directors, the performers, and even the audience.”
Charger Pride shows are designed with meticulous attention to detail so that they can be impactful and memorable when all features come together.
”We wanted to stay true to who we are and the identity we have created that produces a challenging show for students, an entertaining show for the audience, and a memorable experience for all involved.” Hassell said.
Many other aspects of the show had to be decided, including the music that the band plays. Narrowing down which pieces of music will be used for the show is a lengthy process.
The most important thing the music arrangers had to keep in mind was how well different pieces of music would go together.
Alex Yoder, the main music arranger, wrote the brass and woodwind music along with a percussion sketch. He made sure to use an adaptation of the melody of “Ode to Joy” from Symphony No. 9 by Ludwig Van Beethoven in the show along with music from “Benedictus.”
Design team members Michael Brown and Ross Taylor wrote the drumline and front percussion music and used Yoder’s percussion sketch as a base. Christian Good, the sound designer, then created sound effects to enhance the music and experience of the show. All of these elements together create the show’s music.
While the band found success in the early season, there is still room for the Charger Pride to improve.
“Is it where I ‘want’ it to be? Well, no,” Hassell said.
Long echos Hassell’s desire for improvement.
“I hope we get to a point in which the kids are comfortable with what we have on the field, that we can start making adjustments to choreo/props and such, to overall enhance the general effect of our program,” said Long.
Last year with the show Bloom, the members loved the music, design, and everything about it. This year has been a bit different and people have been weary of how things will look. The staff of the Charger Pride are able to pick up on student’s attitudes and give their point of views.
“I mean, let’s face it we are bound to have issues with 47 kids in the color guard, but at the end of the day, kids would not be involved with something like this if they didn’t love it in some capacity,” Long said.
The staff members are a lot less concerned about this year’s show than the students have been. This is most likely because they are able to see the big picture and are the ones putting pressure on the students to be better.
“I would say that there is a very similar vibe to what we’ve had in the past,” Hassell said.
Hassell has a weekly “Motivational Minute” where he encourages everyone to be the best version of themselves and do everything possible to be amazing in every aspect of life.
“It seems like there is a lot of love and joy with the students and staff,” Hassell said.
