Students from all over the LAUSD district work hard to join LAUSD’s honorable band, All-City Band’. ‘All City-Band has been around since 1972. Only the best of the best band members from LAUSD are to perform in the Rose Parade. The parade takes place in Pasadena and is a New Year tradition. With auditions starting in September and preparing until December 31st, five students from North Hollywood High School made it into the honorable band.
Color guard co-captain Alyssa Angel was the only shield from NHHS. She held the LAUSD emblem along with other shields and tall flags from other schools. During the parade, Angel reflects, “I got emotional and I started crying, I was so happy…I was next to these girls who were a 2-year member and a 3-year member and so I had done this with them for two years already.” Even though this is Angel’s second time in the parade, it’s still so amazing for her since the parade is never the same. She reflects on the, “It was an eye opening experience” and “It made me a more outgoing person.”
Xochitl Cuveas was selected to play trumpet for the Rose Parade. This being her second time in the Rose Parade, she came prepared for this journey. During the rose parade, she lets us in on a little secret, “the average sleep time was around 4 hours…a lot of us took advantage of naps on the buses.” During the parade, she felt like she was rushing in the beginning. She says that her favorite part about the parade was the celebratory IN N OUT with the band and hearing her loved ones supporting her in this moment of LAUSD history. Cuevas reflects on her overall experience, “I met so many nice people and made so many memories with these new friends…It’s a really beautiful experience. It’s definitely challenging, but it’s so worth it.”
Andres V Olguin was selected to play the Marching Snare drums for the Rose Parade. He’s also experienced in performing in the Rose Parade, this being his second year in it. During the parade he explains, “I was responsible for keeping even sized steps, equidistance front to back of other lines, and signaling commands sent by drum majors.” Olguin reflects on the overall experience as, “A collage of word, feelings, and sounds?”. He describes, “I was tired, proud, excited, happy, sad, and even angry…Nonetheless, the experience was unique.”
Jesse Velasco was selected to play quads/quints for the Rose Parade. Quads/quints are four drums set up with a smaller drum that is at a higher pitch which is called the spock drum. This was Velasco’s first time being in the Rose Parade. He recalls, “When I first arrived I felt a bit intimidated…I hadn’t know anybody besides four other people and seeing over 300 people was scary”.
With this being a new experience for him, he was pushed to his limits when training for the parade. During the parade, the band knows they are reaching the last mile the band goes under an overpass. This was Velasco’s favorite part because when the band passes under the sounds of the instruments are amplified to the max. Velasco recalls, “It rallied me up so much that I forgot about the pain and in that moment I knew I wouldn’t give up and would finish the entire parade no matter the pain”. Velasco really enjoyed being a part of the band and it impacted him greatly. He will always remember this experience.
In the band community, being a part of All City Band and the Rose Parade is a big deal. All their hard work on the craft they love the most pays off and gets to be shown when entering the new year. They get pins, a poster, and most importantly, “The Jacket”. This jacket is what they all look forward to getting afterwards. It’s almost a badge of honor. This whole experience is really special since not just anyone can be accepted to this band. It truly is a personal experience in every way.
