On the evening of November 4th, 2023, an exhausted, freezing Oakdale High School Marching Band gathered in Johnny Unitas Stadium at Towson University to hear the results of the Maryland Marching Band Association’s (MMBA) State Championship. Just four hours prior, the b and took the field for the ultimate performance of their fall show, Celestial Connections. Under the direction of Ms. Summer Burton, the band placed first in the 4A division and set a new school record with an overall score of 93.70.
The scoring can “be a little complicated,” according to Ms. Kacy Strasser, an art teacher at Oakdale Middle and leader of the 24-person color guard. “There are several judges who watch each band perform and they are [individually] in charge of [judging] a different category, which include] Effect Music and Effect Visual, Ensemble Music, Ensemble Visual, Color Guard, and Percussion.” Together, these categories make up one composition score, which determines the band’s placing in the competition.
When the season started in May, Ms. Burton recounts, “State championships were [not among our goals.] [Our] goals were to give a show to the kids where they could really connect with it and push their boundaries. I wanted to tell a story. I wanted to add more visual effects. The goal was to push [the students] and make them better people and musicians.”
Marching band is no easy task, Ms. Burton reminds students. In addition to playing at football games, the band and color guard “have about seven and a half hours of class during the week and six hours of after school rehearsals.” Not to mention the “five, ten to twelve hour days, where we’re rehearsing, learning the show, basic technique. Additionally, color guard and percussion have rehearsal almost every single week over the summer.”
All of this work in pursuit of the best possible show paid off in triumphant fashion. Ms. Strasser shared, “This was a first in Oakdale history! I have seen this program grow over the years and foster stronger musicians. Ms. Burton and this group of performers are probably the hardest working and most dedicated I have ever seen at Oakdale.”
Despite only being at Oakdale for just over a year, Ms. Burton has already made an impressive impact: her bands have performed successfully, her students adore her, as was made clear during the Senior Night football game, when many students used their time to shout her out, and now she’s set a new record for the highest score at State Championships. “It still doesn’t feel real, even a few days later,” she confessed. “[It] was definitely unexpected. I don’t really know what else to say, it just feels really crazy and surreal.”
