The Pep Band of Fair Grove High has officially kicked off their performing season with their first basketball game, held on December 2nd. After marching season comes to an end and concert season has started, a few members of the high school band volunteer to participate in having the chance to play outside of class. 

The pep band attends every home girls and boys varsity basketball game to help “hype up the crowd and our teams,” as band director, Natalie Palomo, said. They have a book of around 40-50 different songs that range on a more pop genre. Within this large book they play songs such as “Uma Thurman,” “Paint It Black,” and “Starships.” Not only do they play pep songs, but they also perform the National Anthem at the start of every game. A junior trombonists, Nathaniel Bruner, says that his top two favorite songs that they play are “The Hey Song” and “Funky Town.” 

The pep band plays their songs, any moment they can during the game. They play their shorter songs during times such as a timeout, while longer songs are played during halftime or longer breaks in the game. They don’t stop with just playing, the band and its director cheer on and encourage the school’s basketball teams to help show their support in any way possible and bring extra noise to the stands. 

The pep band hasn’t changed too much from the following years. Palomo mentions, “I’ve added some new music this year and cut some older songs we never played too much, but otherwise, things are about the same as the past couple of years. We do have more people than usual because I think word of how fun pep band is, has spread and now a lot of band kids want to be a part of it, but we’re mostly staying consistent now with how we perform. The only big change has been a couple new songs rotated in.”