The Dowling Catholic Vanguard, more widely known as the ‘marching band,’ is a competitive activity which has just under ninety student participants. Many see the band during its halftime performances at home football games, but it’s not as widely known that the Vanguard goes to competitions of its own.

Even more than this is unknown about the Vanguard. Its members, from Vanguard director Nicholas Hoover, to the newest members and everyone in between, were eager to share their previously untold stories of Vanguard and its newest show “Mad Science.”

Freshman Isabelle (Elly) Daly shared her experience as a first year member of the Vanguard. She plays the marimba in the front ensemble or ‘pit’. “My first year of marching band has been great,” Daly said. She reported that she’s “met tons of new and fun people.” For Daly, the Vanguard has been a great experience to not only have fun and meet new people, but to also grow in her musical endeavors. “[I] am really enjoying the experience with such challenging music,” she said. When asked, Daly said that she is most excited about performing and competing in the Vanguard alongside her fellow band members. The Vanguard has performed the past three weekends at Pella, Bands of America Iowa Regional, and Valleyfest. Before she entered high school, Daly said that she had “no prior knowledge [of] marching band,” and that she had no idea she would be a part of it until high school. This is a true testament of the experiences of an inexperienced first-year marcher. During the next four years of her time in the Vanguard, Daly said that her biggest goal is to win a competition.

Abigail (Abbie) Rodriguez is a junior color guard member, making this her third year in the Vanguard. She has been a member of the color guard since her freshman year, but this year she was given the opportunity to play an instrument as well. During the latter part of the first movement of the show, Rodriquez was given a major solo in which she plays her saxophone and walks across nine science tables to the conclusion of the movement. On top of this integral solo, Rodriguez is also the color guard captain. “It’s been interesting being both a guard captain and playing an instrument,” Rodriguez said. She expressed how much time it takes to satisfy all these commitments; learning a difficult solo and practicing it while also keeping up with her duties as a color guard member and captain is a challenge. This seemingly overwhelming amount of work is what Rodriquez wants more people to know about the band. “I wish people knew about how much effort goes into a show,” she said, referencing the both amount of work put into shows by the students but also by the numerous band parents and staff. In the end, Rodriguez said that her goal for this year is to do her best at every performance. “It is worth all the effort when we get to dress up and perform for the crowd, and make it look easy,” she said.

Zoe Ball is a junior at Dowling and is one of the two drum majors of the Vanguard this year. She marched her freshman and sophomore year in the horn line and decided to audition for drum major for her junior year. Ball and fellow junior Gregory Pease were selected as drum majors and now carry the responsibility of conducting the band during shows. “Being a drum major has been a fantastic experience [but] it has been one of the most challenging things I have ever done,” Ball said about her first year as drum major. “It’s also one of the most important things I’ve ever done,” she continued, expressing a great amount of gratitude for the opportunity she was given to be a drum major. Ball revealed that a personal goal for her this year is to conduct a show with zero errors. “I know that even the band isn’t quite aware if I miss a cue or something like that, but I want my conducting to be as close to perfect as possible.” Ball holds herself to a high standard, and wants the same for the rest of her band. Her goal for the band is for the band “to overall just have a better bond.” Ball finds a great amount of importance in the bonds that she has made over the years in the band and wants the same for the rest of it. They are a team, after all. “I want us to be able to fully lock in and absolutely kill every performance because we’re close both as individuals and as musicians,” was her practical take on the importance of bonds in the band. One thing Ball wants everyone to know about the band is that all of these things, from the achievements to the personal connections, are accessible to everyone, saying “if you ever see us perform at football games and think ‘wow, that looks interesting,’ you should come give us a try.”

Mr. Nicholas Hoover is the Director of the Dowling Catholic Vanguard. His job, in his own words, is to “make sure the show happens.” In order to “make the show happen,” Hoover first has to pick a show for the year. He has to juggle choosing a show which is “new, different, and fresh” while also making sure that it is something the Vanguard can handle. He tries to pick shows that are thematically different from the last year or two, which can be clearly seen with the stark difference between the scientific theme of this year versus the forest theme of last. Once a show is picked, Hoover edits the music making it possible for the band to play and taking into account the balance of instruments. Throughout the year, Hoover has the responsibility of teaching drill and planning all rehearsals. He leaves the teaching of the smaller details up to the leadership and staff in the band. This year, Hoover expressed a lot of excitement about all the “mad scientist” sounds, effects, and visuals going on in the show. “Come on,” he said, “who doesn’t like seeing crazy science experiments happening in marching band?” According to Hoover, this year’s band is a little different than past years. He described the band as having a “raw edge” in its sound which he hasn’t experienced in the past. One thing Hoover wishes more people knew about the vanguard is that it actually competes, and that

The Dowling Catholic Vanguard is a program that is made up of a dedicated group of students, staff, and directors that work tirelessly to compete and perform. From the newest members to the highest powers over the band, everyone involved had something to be excited about in regards to the Vanguard. The Vanguard’s final two performances take place on this Saturday October 14 at the State Marching Festival in the morning and the Waukee Marching Invitational in the evening. If you’re curious about the band, come by and see one of the final two performances, both at Waukee Stadium, before these mad scientists depart forever.