Three former students, now enrolled at the University of Maryland, are keeping their marching band spirit alive beyond high school graduation caps and football fields, through the University of Maryland’s marching band, the Mighty Sound of Maryland.
Leading halftime shows, practicing in the blazing sun and marching under stadium lights are nothing new to these UMD students thanks to their past involvement in this school’s marching band. With years of experience under their belts, their transition into the Mighty Sound of Maryland has been smooth. “I definitely think that doing marching band [at Wootton] for four years before I came to UMD made it a lot easier for me to do marching band here and also make friends, since I already knew the basics of marching band and I met a ton of people who were super into marching band, too,” class of 2025 alum Collin Berman said.
These students’ love for music extends beyond the field. Waverly Nakashima, a class of 2024 alum who marched trumpet for all four years of high school, and Berman, who marched trombone all four years of high school, are both majoring in music education at UMD and hope to become band teachers in the future. “Doing marching band in high school, as well as concert band, really helped me realize that music is something that I want to pursue as a career, not just as an extracurricular or a hobby,” Nakashima said.
One alum has continued to be involved in this school’s marching band even while she remained a student at UMD. Aylin Aarhus, a class of 2024 alum who marched in drumline for all four years of high school, was a part of the marching band staff here for the 2024 season as a drumline coach. “Being able to work with the drumline that year was such a great experience. I’m going to miss all of them a lot, but I’m glad that I had the opportunity to hang out with them for the time that I did,” Aarhus said.
All three alumni agreed that continuing in marching band has kept them connected to their roots even as they grow into adulthood. “No matter how old I get or where I go, I know that I’ll always have marching band and the people I’ve met through that. You really make the best and most lifelong friends from being in band, and it’s something that I always recommend to people entering high school or college,” Berman said.
These dedicated musicians have traded their high school uniforms for new colors, but they still share the same passion for music, teamwork and performance. Even as they move up and move out, they continue to represent this school with pride, proving that once a band member, always a band member.
