Ocean View marching band festival the first of many

The sound of drums echoed from the multi-purpose centre in Ocean View as various far south schools took part in the inaugural Ocean View marching band festival.

Kleinberg Primary School principal Denzil van Graan, said the schools displayed “amazing talent” and were cheered on by spectators at the festival that took place on Wednesday September 28.

It all started in May this year when Mr Van Graan invited the Western Cape Provincial Marching Federation’s (WCPMF) marching team to do demonstrations at various schools in the area.

Mr Van Graan said Kleinberg Primary School was keen to introduce a marching band as a new extra mural activity and a week after the demonstrations, he said, principals from Marine Primary School, Jupiter Street Primary School, Ukhanyo Primary School, and Ocean View High School indicated their excitement about it too, especially as it was an activity that focused on self-discipline, team spirit, determination, and harmony.

Mr Van Graan said he then approached the Safe Schools sub-component within the Metro South Education District (MSED), a component within the Western Cape Education Department that creates safe environments for conducive learning and teaching, on behalf of the participating schools, to assist with the provision of drumming equipment.

In June, the WCPMF hosted a coaching clinic for the schools and their marching band committee members at Ocean View High School to help equip coaches with the commands and different routines of marching.

In August, drumming kits were handed over to the participating schools by the Safe Schools MSED and the schools started preparing their teams in earnest for the first marching band festival.

Ocean View High School acting principal, Andrew Sanders, said pupils were excited about the new activity and teachers had reported a change in pupils' behaviour in discipline in class since joining the marching band.

Jupiter Street Primary School principal Andre Pretorius said he was “very appreciative” of the launch of the marching band initiative in the hamlet of Ocean View.

“It has given our marching band team of about 30 pupils a deep sense of pride in what it means to represent Jupiter [Street Primary School] at events. It has instilled discipline, teamwork, and responsibility to show up for practice and to listen carefully to instructions and implement them in the best interest of the team,” he said.

He said, as one guest speaker said at the launch event, life is all about choices, and we need to guide our youth to make the correct ones, participating in events like the marching band over choosing drugs, gangsterism, or teenage pregnancy.

“As a school, we are 100% behind the initiative because it also defines who Jupiter is and what we stand for. We exist for the upliftment of our youth and our community,” he said.

Grade 2 teacher Aphiwe Mehlomakhulu at Ukhanyo Primary School said she and and Grade 5 teacher Asanda Futho were in charge of pupils joining the marching band.

She said despite the marching band being a new concept for Ukhanyo Primary School, they made a “huge success” of it.

Ms Mehlomakhulu said two school buses had to be hired to transport the pupils to the venue and they looked “very nervous and a bit intimidated by the exhibition of other schools”.

However, she said, when it came time to perform, “they gave it their all and you could tell they were happy to do all that they have been trained to do.”

"They are now motivated to do more and pupils who were not interested in joining the band suddenly wanted to join because of the way others were talking about it. It’s been such a boost for the school,” she said.

Marine Primary School principal Wayne Lawrence said he is “extremely proud” of what pupils have achieved with the marching band initiative in such a short space of time.

“The teachers and pupils involved scarified a lot of time and effort to make the inaugural event a success. The pupils involved gained much from their participation in the marching, given the discipline, dedication and determination they displayed throughout and especially on the day of the exhibitions,” he said.

Brian Jeftha from Safe Schools MSED said they supported the marching band programme of the cluster of schools within the Ocean View area as part of its crime prevention programmes.

A programme like this, Mr Jeftha, said, adds to the Safe Schools’ cluster development, which is schools within a geographical area working together to address safety issues.

“We are of the opinion that the marching band programme can enhance discipline and teamwork, subsequently resulting in behaviour change,” he said.

Rotary Club Cape of Good Hope secretary Bev Frieslich said she and president Susan O’Hagan Ward attended the event as guests.

“It was the most uplifting and amazing performance and it brought tears to my eyes to see the enthusiasm of the children,” she said.