By Hannah Ellington, Editor-in-Chief
Seniors Izzie Estes and Parker Duck both joined band as shy, nervous sixth graders. That’s hard to imagine now that they’ve spent so much time in the spotlight at every high school concert.
“I like playing an instrument because it’s another means by which to express yourself,” Estes said. “It’s just like singing or dancing and things like that. It’s just another voice to use.”
Estes plays alto saxophone in concert band and tenor saxophone in jazz band. She started jazz band in seventh grade, took Intro to Jazz freshman year and auditioned and got into Honors Jazz her sophomore year. She has also done marching and concert band all four years.
“I remember in ninth grade being kind of scared because there were all these people who knew what they were doing and obviously we didn’t yet, and it was just such a welcoming, family environment, which was super cool,” Estes said.
Estes kept that family feeling going the past year as a drum major alongside seniors Zane Fish and Kayla Hymiller, helping conduct songs in class, setting up formations on the field and keeping everyone in line.
“Coming into senior year, I definitely wanted to at least give (being a drum major) a shot and see what would happen. It was fun,” Estes said. “In our band, especially this year, we have field commander, two drum majors and band captain. Because we were all seniors and because we all kind of scored the same, we all got to conduct one song each.”
Looking back on her band career, Estes has made plenty of memories that will stay with her forever.
“For marching band my sophomore year, me and Evan Fish and Carmen (Chinchilla) and Willa (Briggs) when they were still here had what was a solo originally, but we decided we wanted all four of us to do it,” Estes said. “We all ran into the stands and got to play the solo with the audience.”
Through it all, Estes was able to make a core group of friends through their similar passion for music.
“The first year or two it was kind of like the same little group I had been hanging out with, and then once I became a section leader and once I started being more involved, I found myself being friends with literally everyone there and it was the best thing ever,” Estes said. “Especially this year because I was drum major and I was responsible for keeping track of everyone, I just got to be pals with everyone, which was super exciting.”
Estes plans on attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with an intended major in a STEM field. While she is not planning on majoring in anything music related, she hopes to keep playing. Duck, on the other hand, plans on attending Appalachian State University to major in the trumpet, his favorite instrument. He also wants to go into the Hayes School of Music while in Boone.
“I’m not currently enrolled in the School of Music – I’ll have to audition into it – which is unfortunate, but I just wasn’t ready for the audition last November,” Duck said. “That might mean an extra year of college or something like that, but I don’t care because I’m going to do that no matter what. That’s what I want to do and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”
Duck had an experience similar to Estes. He started band in sixth grade, added jazz and orchestra in eighth grade, made the high school Honors Jazz Band his sophomore year, and has done concert and marching band all four years of high school.
It’s a schedule full of music, but Duck wouldn’t change a thing.
“Being a part of something bigger than yourself is a great feeling, which I haven’t really experienced anywhere else except in the band program,” Duck said. “I also really like practicing really hard and then doing it really good at a performance or a recital. Spending a lot of time and having it pay off like that is really rewarding and cool.”
Duck plays four instruments “confidently” – the French horn in concert band, the trumpet in jazz and marching band, the viola in orchestra and the piano, though he had to stop taking piano lessons because “I can’t do everything. High school is busy.”
And high school is definitely busy for Duck. On top of practice and rehearsals every day, Duck is one of the first ones to enter the school in the mornings.
“Orchestra is an eighth period, which happens before school, so already my day is an hour longer,” Duck said.
Though he plays in all of the band programs First Flight has to offer, Duck has a resounding passion for jazz band.
“It’s much more modern than all the other types of music and it’s kind of like all the rules we had to spend so much time learning about classical music are thrown out the window,” Duck said. “And now you’re doing all the other things and it’s freeing, almost. It’s so radically different and perfect.”
Kind of like the music careers of Duck and Estes – a symphony of fun and friends.
“I’m willing to say 98% of my friends are in the band program, and then everybody else is in chorus,” Duck said. “That’s just what happens because we are around each other so much.”
Senior Hannah Ellington can be reached at ellingtonha1214@daretolearn.org.
