Even now, as I type this article, I can hear the sounds of mallets colliding with drumheads in a frenetic craze as percussionists from all over the nations’ west coast prepare for competition at the James Logan parking lot. Just why, a skeptical person might ask, are you hearing these things, and why are they even there?
Saturday, March 15, 2008 is the day of the percussion WGI finals this year, and as in previous years, it has been held in the Logan campus. While some groups may be in the Pavilion performing, others are out in the parking lot and even in the basketball courts, warming up for their performances. It began bright and early in the morning before I woke up at 9:00, and it’s still going on, probably, until midnight. As I live none too far from the campus, even with all the doors and windows shut tight and a television droning in the room next door, I can hear the occasional boom-boom-boom, and if I listen carefully, even the repetitive clank of the metronome keeping time.
Does it bother me that I won’t be able to enjoy my evening or night or silence? Certainly, when the sun is up and I’m busy with my activities, the sound is a part of the buzz of work. With night, however, I am accustomed to silence from the outdoors, excluding the occasional siren or airplane whizzing by overhead. Yet, I find no disturbance from this racket of drummers outside.
I must have a good tolerance for noise.
No, not really. For one, I (fortunately) am not one of those who live exactly two yards from the parking lot. However, I am also a part of the band, and as I understand the reason for the cacophony outside, the sounds of drums, drums, and more drums do not annoy me. I am supportive of their musical competition, and while I do not think that I will brave the cold and wind of the night to watch a live performance this year (sadly, I am not that dedicated) I will not complain about the noise. No, as a band member, the noise is a norm, and to hear it on this one weekend is not the breaking point.
Perhaps some find it excruciatingly torturous to be deprived of their sleep this one night. However, it is a student event, supported by thousands of band members and presented as a community event. It does us all good to mingle with others and share our talents with each other. So why not drummers? To me, the chance to have this competition comes but once a year, and I say to let them have it.
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