Local high school students perform with URI marching band at halftime

10/07/08 - During Saturday's football game against Brown University, rabid Rhody fans were not the only ones crowding the University of Rhode Island's football stadium. Students in the Portsmouth High School Patriot marching band filled the stands for URI's first annual Band Day.The URI marching band partnered with approximately 160 Portsmouth students for a collaborative performance during the game's halftime show. Together, the two bands played catchy renditions of the classic Jimi Hendrix songs "All Along the Watchtower" and "Fire."

The program, while a first for URI, has been implemented in a number of other colleges, such as the University of New Hampshire.

Band Day, originally a suggestion from the athletics department, was created to help foster community involvement, said URI Band Director Brian Cardany.

An application was sent to high schools throughout Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, in search of participating bands. Of those schools, five replied. However, due to scheduling conflicts brought on by the SAT and budgetary problems, Portsmouth was the only band able to attend. URI's marching band was just "happy to get [the program] going," said Cardany.

To prepare for the performance, each band rehearsed the music separately. Then, the URI and Portsmouth bands met for a 90-minute rehearsal before the football game. "It was a lot of fun teaching [Portsmouth] some of our tunes and showing them some cool stuff," said URI sophomore Tim Marran.

Portsmouth flute player Britney Craig noted that she and her peers were able to "learn a lot more" under the URI band's direction.

"It was a good atmosphere, and it was fun to see Portsmouth alumni [who are currently attending] URI," said fellow Patriots marching band member, Jenn Drake.

With both full bands performing at once, "the sound was twice as empowering, so the magnitude was something awesome," Marran said.

However, this combination was not just something new for the URI band. The experience was a unique one for Portsmouth students as well.

"I got really nervous when I first saw the crowd," said Jamie Stevens, a trumpet player for the Portsmouth.

"The crowd was really different, there were a lot more people, and we're used to just playing in front of our friends," Drake said. Overall, Drake, Craig and Stevens enjoyed the experience at URI, and said they plan to apply to the university in the future.

Band Day is set to become an annual event at URI, and Cardany is looking forward to hosting it next year.