Senior Night marks leadership transition for band

The following was originally published October 17, 2015.

“Saying goodbye to this class is going to be hard for me,” Shelbyville High School band director Russell Smith told band parents moments before last weekend’s Senior Night.

But the end of an era also means the beginning of another.

With the drum major application process just ending, Smith hurried to Breck Auditorium to meet with the night’s guests of honor.

In the dimly lit theater, Smith instructed parents how to proceed at the night’s halftime event. He tells them what time to enter the fi eld and where to watch the show.

When the band starts playing “Any way you want it,” the parents know it’s their cue to walk toward the center of the field with their high school senior.

After four years of early mornings and busy weekends, Smith offered a few parting thoughts.

He complimented parents for their steady leadership and “for putting up with all of those early mornings.”

For seniors, early practices will disappear into the past.

And, for the final time, Drum Major Alexandra Alvarado will lead the group before handing the torch off to the next Major, announced during the halftime performance.

The road to Drum Major is extensive, requiring evaluations from all faculty members and even an in-person interview.

One applicant, Lillian Treon, said she “toyed with the idea of auditioning at band camp and throughout the season” realized how much fun it could be.

“So I gave it a try,” she said.

Although she didn’t march freshman year, she picked up the trombone at band camp and continues to march. That marching brought confidence needed in the application process.

“I was a little nervous, as anyone would be,” Treon said, “but I was confident in my personal skills, so I used my confidence to work through the interview. I had pondered about questions they could ask and that helped a ton.”

At the end of the interview Smith encouraged Treon by saying, “You did a really great job and should feel very proud of yourself.”

But on senior night, the table for compliments was turned.

“I would just like to say ‘thank you,’” a parent said before elaborating on how much the parents appreciate Smith’s leadership. Other parents joined in a round of applause.

In brief remarks, Smith reiterated how much he appreciated the senior class. “Our country is in great shape,” Smith said.

Then it turned to business and the band marched out to the field. At halftime, the Journey tune plays and an end of an era occurs. But just as Alvarado ends her time as Drum Major, the baton is passed to the new Major: Lillian Treon.

The smile is almost impossible to erase from her face.

“It was a great feeling,” Treon concluded.

For Smith and those who worked closely with the Class of 2016, a difficult progression of goodbye’s now begin as fall sports end.