With their eyes on a State Championship win, the Pride of Paoli band is working hard to achieve their goals this year. Former assistant band director Ben Werne stepped up to take on the role of head band director when Bill Laughlin retired from the position.

Along with a new band director, comes a new way to arrange their show. In the past, the music from the band’s shows came from Sunset Scores, a site that marching bands can buy their music from. Instead of buying their show music this season, Werne and a group of people customly arranged a show for the band.

“The custom arrangement by Luke Aylsworth, Stan Phillips and myself is going to impact the band in a very positive way. It allows us to showcase our strengths in the best light and hide areas of weakness. Think of it like clothing: buying a specific size for you always fits better than a ‘one size fits all.’ It’s the same thing with the marching band show,” said Werne.

The Pride’s show this year is called The Garden. There are three movements that make up the production. In the first movement, the garden is lifeless, and the fountain is broken. To begin, the gates of the garden open and the band members enter the garden. In the second movement, the garden starts to bloom into life, and the music is majestic and beautiful. In the final movement, it turns into a utopian garden, and the fountain begins to flow again. Movement three’s music captures the feeling of excitement and is very upbeat.

The Pride’s first performance will be at the high school football game on August 24. The band will be debuting movement one. They will also be playing the “Star Spangled Banner,” “Some Nights” and more pep tunes. The band’s first competition is September 8 at Salem.

Story by Angie Ceja