Bringing the funk to Herald Square
The Marching 110 reflect on an exciting week spent in New York City
By Mariel Betancourt
It’s 10:30 a.m. Thanksgiving Day, and the Marching 110 is crossing off a few more items on its to-do list:
Magical rehearsal in the snowy, pre-dawn streets of Manhattan? Check.
Hard Rock Café breakfast in uniforms at 4 a.m.? Check. Quick nap on the bus? Check.
March down Broadway, leading the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade? Entertain some 65 million people watching ABC and NBC? Funk in Herald Square? Check, check and -- oh yeah, get down! -- check.
It was a busier day than most for the Marching 110, says senior percussionist Danny McCarthy, and one thought ran through his head when the whirlwind of a parade ended: “Wow.”
“It happened so fast,” he says. “We never had to stop for anything -- because we were leading the parade -- until we got closer to the Macy’s shopping mall, where we stopped to perform. It flew by.”
The wait for it, however, did not. After arriving at the parade start near 8th Avenue and 77th Street at dawn, the Marching 110 saw behind-the-scene sights seldom shown on television: celebrities whizzing by on golf carts, balloons towed to their starting places by cars and television producers panicking over last-minute details.
“There were some 500 clowns right next to us, which was a little frightening,” jokes senior percussionist Sam Venable, adding that he passed the time talking to others working or performing in the parade.
“It was just an opportunity to share that common experience with them,” he says. “Everybody’s there really early in the morning and been there for a really long time.”
As the first band in the parade, the Marching 110 had a unique vantage point. Focusing on their music -- a mix of holiday songs and standards such as “Stand Up and Cheer” -- left little time to take in the view, but band members say there’s one thing they definitely noticed: the people.
Bleachers lined the first blocks along the parade route, and the band noticed crowds 15 to 20 people deep along Broadway.
“That was actually one of things that really struck me,” Venable says. “When it’s on television, you never realize 2 million people come out to watch every year.”
From the moment they loaded their suitcases into buses at Peden Stadium on Monday to their shopping and sightseeing excursions in New York City Friday, the Marching 110 had a busy holiday in the city.
Although they saw plenty of holiday scenes worth remembering -- such as the famed Macy’s window decorations and ice skaters at Rockefeller Center -- many band members say their favorite memories will be of sharing the trip with their closest friends. Their Thanksgiving dinner, celebrated on a dinner cruise, was all the more meaningful as a group, seniors say.
“You get so close to everybody that the band’s like a family,” says McCarthy, who graduated this quarter and performed with the 110 for the last time at the parade. “I made a comment to some of the people at my table that if you couldn’t spend the day with family, this would be the next best thing.”
At a table nearby, Terry and Polly Krause thought much the same thing. One difference: They performed with the Marching 110 in the 1970s and 80s and are now high school band directors. They traveled to New York City from Ohio to watch trombone player Josh Boyer, Terry’s former student at Hilltop High School, perform.
“People in the band are very close, and I think it’s pretty unique,” Terry says. “You show up on campus with your band jacket on, and you immediately have a group of friends, no matter how old you are, how young. You are a part of this group and immediately accepted.”
For freshman clarinetist Melania Lavric, the trip to New York City and the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade cap what’s been a memorable first quarter at Ohio. So far she has a pretty exciting checklist of her own:
Auditioned for and joined the band? Check.
Been greeted by cheers from dorm-mates after the band’s first home football game performance? Check.
Surprised the Rockettes, who looked on as the Marching 110 performed in Herald Square? Check. (“When we went into our splits, their jaws just dropped,” Lavric says. “We were all really excited -- we impressed the Rockettes!”)
Made unforgettable memories with 204 of her newest friends? Check!
Mariel Betancourt, assistant editor of Ohio Today alumni magazine, was on assignment with the Marching 110 in New York City. This is her third and final story in a series about the band’s trip. To read the other stories, click here:
Part 1: The band prepares for the ultimate parade
Part 2: Faithful alumni and fans travel to New York to see the Marching 110
Diary: Trumpet player Natalia Lavric shares photos and stories from New York
Photos: Marching 110 Macy's Parade Photo Gallery
Video: NBC coverage of Marching 110
