The lights were on. All eyes were on them. Several of the most prestigious high school bands across the country stood, waited, and held their breath at the ceremony. One by one, the places, starting at 14th, were announced. With each place and award declared, senior and Bands of Wando drum major Annabelle Twomey grew more anxious. 

Eighth place was announced. Then, seventh. Sixth. Her heart hammered. Her stomach was queasy. “Fifth place, the Wando High School Marching Band.” She was left with utter disbelief. She could hardly believe it. Three years prior, as a freshman, the band had missed finals by a slim margin, 0.05 points. Yet now, there Twomey stood, leading the band and accepting the award.

“We have not been to Indianapolis since my freshman year… and coming on this way, it was not only great for us as a program, but it was great for the senior class because it was so sentimental. It was a real full circle moment for us because it felt like all of the work that we had done in the last four years have really paid off,” Twomey said. 

Although the award meant so much to Twomey and she had dedicated many hours to practicing until every movement was perfect, she felt like it was not only for the current band members. For her, it meant more.

“My freshman year… we were more upset for [the seniors] than we were for ourselves. So getting fifth place in Indiana a couple weeks ago meant that we got to do something for them,” Twomey said. “That those seniors that showed us how to march, showed us how to lead, were such great examples for us and set us up to succeed. We were able to achieve that for them.”

As a drum major, the band’s tempo and pace reside solely in the hands of Twomey and three other drum majors. Behind the scenes, Twomey spent hours practicing until perfection, and so that such prestigious awards could be won.

“I practice conducting in the mirror. I practice with the other drum majors because it’s really important that the other members of the band can read what I’m conducting,” Twomey said. “I have songs that I keep in my head that remind me of the tempo. So our opener, “Dies Irae”, is 156 beats per minute, and then it switches to 160. So in my mind, I sing “Don’t Stop Me Now” by Queen.”

Even as an eighth grader marveling at the Bands of Wando visiting her school, Twomey knew she was destined to be a drum major.

“Mr. Lambert [director of bands] came to Cario and we got to ask him a bunch of different questions about marching band. And I raised my hand and I was like, ‘What do I have to do to be a drum major?’ And people laughed because that was such an Annabelle thing to do,” Twomey said. “But I wanted to be a drum major because I really looked up to those people. And for a long time, I’ve cared a lot about respect… and I knew that I could grow a lot as a person in that role.”

Like Twomey’s display of leadership as a drum major, numerous other seniors, like Charlie Pratt, paved the way for such an accomplishment. According to Pratt, the section leader for the sousaphones, the band had been preparing for this moment all year.

“You could really tell in the band that a switch had flipped. There was an entirely different attitude the entire rest of the year. Everybody was focused on one goal,” Pratt said. “So when we got top 5 at the Indianapolis Grand Regional… It was amazing. It felt like revenge.”

Other than winning, Pratt recounts that the competition was special to him, especially as a section leader.

“My favorite part was to see the people who hadn’t performed in that stadium play there for the first time. Especially my section since they’re so young. They had no idea what that was gonna be like,” Pratt said. “It’s the Colts stadium where they play. You look up and you see Pyeton Manning’s number retired… And that stadium was designed for music and football. So when you release a note, it rings for like 15 seconds.”

Although junior color guard member Sam Kelly was only an eighth grader during the devastating loss four years prior, she still recognizes the importance of such an accomplishment, especially for the seniors.

“Well, for the three seniors, I think it was… enjoyable because we all worked really hard to get there, especially this season,” Kelly said. “It’s been a whole different change with our directors not being here all the time, getting new directors, all that stuff. But it really shows how much we’ve grown and how much hard work we’ve put in like the last four years to get back where we are.”