When First Coast travels to Lee Friday night the football teams won’t be the primary reason many fans jam pack the back yard. Even though the Lee Generals are 3-1 on the season and are one of the best football teams in the city. Even though First Coast has a storied history including several recent playoffs appearances. It is not them that will be receiving most of the attention but it’s heir bands that will. Why is that you ask? Because their bands will make you dance, and they are real good at what they do.
The Robert E. Lee Marching Generals are Directed by Donald Jenkins and the First Coast Marching Buccaneers are led by Band Director Kenneth Solomon. They are two of the larger bands on Jacksonville’s Northside/Westside with both Lee and First Coast Marching over 100 members. It’s an increase in membership in recent years. Solomon sites feeder programs as one of the main reasons he’s seen an increase in band membership. His band is mostly freshman, of which forty joined the band the first week of school. Yet 95% of the freshman had previous band experience from middle school feeder programs like Oceanway middle, and Highlands middle. The same can be said for Lee who gets a good number of students from KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program) and their music program. Students hit the ground running in High School instead of having to be taught beginning band concepts as 9th graders. Solomon also credits Dr. Julian E. White as a great helper with local programs here locally. White has been in an advisory role to several bands in the area teaching different ideas and concepts that make for thriving band programs. “He has done a great job in assisting with the revitalization of different programs.” said Solomon. The effort of White and others is something that the programs in Duval County have desperately needed, but even more is required.
Just as we see collegiate athletic programs conducting recruiting trips to sway top sports talent to their schools, so is the need for collegiate band programs to do the same. In particular, HBCU ( Historically Black College University) bands are needed in the college recruitment areas for the city’s predominantly African American High Schools. College pep band trips literally can drum up enthusiasm for high school 9th and 10th graders who may be searching for a reason to join their high school band. As a high school football player and member of my school’s wind ensemble, I know personally how college recruitment can play a pivotal role in a student’s decision. With various offers on the table to play college football, I found my heart leaning toward Florida A&M in part because of the band. Originally going for football, after a semester I would eventually join the marching band. There’s not a day that goes by where I regret that decision, and it’s thanks in part to the combined effort of college and high school band recruitment. It’s little decisions like those that can make big impacts on lives. That impact is needed in our community more than ever right now.
Music is an area that has suffered mightily in the County of recent years. Long gone are the days of large marching band programs with alternates holding the ladder. No in this generation you need everyone on the field due to the dwindling numbers of students enrolled in the programs. Some programs in the area don’t have enough students to do a field show for halftime, instead just settling to play in the stands. In some instances only a drum line is present. A 120 member band twenty years ago was considered small compared to the 250 members that large bands had back then. However in today’s local bands, 120 members is considered a large size band, especially in schools close to Jacksonville’s urban centers. It’s a sad reality that hopefully will reverse it’s trend, and that very hope of a pivot in band participation is revealed in programs like First Coast and Lee High Schools.
“Students motivate me. They come in and they are excited. They want to learn music. I want to write more music for them. The school gets excited, the student body gets excited and other kids want to join the band.” – First Coast Band Director Kenneth Solomon on what motivates him.
Solomon is a graduate of Florida A&M University (FAMU) and was a trombone player in the famous FAMU Marching “100”. Donald Jenkins was a member of the Bethune Cookman University Marching Wildcats (BCU) where he played trumpet. So both directors are familiar with what it takes to make for an exciting and impact driven program. And that’s exactly what you should expect tonight from these two bands. They work incredibly hard at practice and lay it all on the line during the games. When First Coast and Lee march in the stadium you can feel the ground literally shake. When Lee “drops that bass” the atmosphere is electric. When First Coast cranks that ” funky stuff” its exhilarating . It’s truly something special to see. In speaking with several Lee students and band members they are excited about the game versus First Coast. Not only because it’s homecoming but because they know the shows are going to be exciting. ” We’ve been waiting for First Coast since last year” one band member said. “The anticipation has been very high for this event”.
Lee will do a halftime show and First Coast is scheduled to do a post game show due to Lee’s Homecoming festivities. However, the game is sure to be exciting from pregame all the way to post game with all the music and fanfare. Here’s a little bit of what you can expect from both bands tonight.
Both bands will challenge each other by playing some of the same songs, but listen for one band to play a special piece to capture the crowds attention. The key is to judge pregame hype, field performances, stand music and the 5th quarter. Lee and First Coast both have their own styles but both performances are worth the price of admission. You’d be hard pressed to decide who wins their battle of bands tonight. Still, why don’t you tell us..
Who wins the Battle of the Bands today between First Coast and Lee High Schools?
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