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Orange, white, navy and azure blue adorned Cicero-North Syracuse High School’s field as the Pride of Syracuse City School District Marching Band performed songs like “One Love” and “Salina Street” — showcasing pride for their hometown.

“Being in the band to me is like having a new family,” David Miller, Pride of SCSDMB member and Henninger High School senior, said. “It’s bringing together all the schools, all new people to create new friendships.”

Pride of SCSDMB is a seventh to 12th grade marching band composed of students from all 12 of the SCSD middle and high schools. The band is the first and only of its kind in the district. It was created in 2023 by Henninger High School band director Holly McCoy and Corcoran High School band director John Chiamulera.

The band aims to unite the Syracuse community through fine arts, said Lansing Dimon, the visual coordinator of Pride of SCSDMB. He hopes the band brings the community together beyond its typical effect.

“So often, we rally behind a sports team or some other team that represents the city,” Dimon said. “Musically, we haven’t had an organization that really does (more than that.)”

The creation of the district-wide marching band was no easy feat, McCoy said. The program went through a pilot year in 2023 and proved to be successful after several proposals and presentations to SCSD administration. Chiamulera and McCoy named the band after what they hoped students would take away from the experience: pride from completing musical performances and pride for their city.

“We really do like the idea of bringing the five high schools, the six communities in the Syracuse city, together as one united through music,” McCoy said.

The band first started playing at halftime of football games in the SCSD before taking on competitions in 2024 as part of the New York State Field Band Conference. The band will attend six competitions this season, each at a different high school.

So far, the band has earned two first-place finishes — one at East Syracuse Minoa High School, and one at Cicero-North Syracuse High School. The band will finish off its season at the NYSFBC on Oct. 27 in the JMA Wireless Dome.

The band’s uniforms and performances are inspired by Syracuse’s rich culture, McCoy said. When designing the uniforms, McCoy and Chiamulera avoided the 13 colors used in the SCSD’s middle and high school logos to ensure all the schools were represented. The pair turned to the “First Light” Syracuse city flag for inspiration because of how well it represented Syracuse’s communities and cultures.

The flag was designed by Syracuse resident Eric Hart and symbolizes “a new identity for (the city) and its residents,” according to the First Light website. This message spoke true to the reasoning behind creating the band, McCoy said. The flag features the colors orange, white, navy and azure blue, along with mirrored triangles and a six-pointed star. The uniforms also feature each of these pieces.

The band begins their “First Light” performance at every competition with “One Love” by Bob Marley — representing the SCSD community’s unity through the band, McCoy said. The band also performs “Salina Street,” a piece written by local jazz artist Dave Solazzo, and “In the Bleak Midwinter,” which represents the band’s peace and purity along with Syracuse’s snowy winters. The performance also features several voiceovers from Syracuse community members like Hart, Mayor Ben Walsh and SCSD Superintendent Anthony Q. Davis Sr.

“A lot of the time, the city is represented in a negative light, especially the city schools,” Miller said. “And for this and for our show ‘First Light,’ it puts us in a totally different perspective.”

The band’s performances feature several props that represent downtown Syracuse, Dimon said. One of the props features several street lights with street signs, each sign indicating an intersection on Salina Street. The performance also features several panels with different scenes depicting Syracuse’s history. It’s evident the city is incorporated both musically and visually throughout the band’s seven-and-a-half-minute performance, McCoy said.

“It just really pulls off a sense of pride,” McCoy said. “Being able to represent both Syracuse and the art of music is just overwhelming in a great way.”

Published on October 3, 2024 at 12:14 am