By Chris Pendery

& Tony Bullock

The 2008 Marching Rockets have started a successful new marching season with this year’s program "NightScapes" which was created by R.C.H.S. Band Director Greg Daugherty.

Mr. Daugherty created the theme for this year’s program after listening to music by Jay Dawson. "I began to put together other pieces of music that would follow the same type of theme," Daugherty said. The idea of the performance would serve as a musical representation of things that someone might experience if they explored the night in their mind. The elements in the music represent dreams, nightmares, and even hallucinations.

The music itself includes pieces from the classical period, the romantic period, and the modern era.

Visual elements are also a big part of the performance, as anyone who has seen a halftime presentation has seen. The background for the program includes a reproduction of Van Gogh’s painting Starry Night, and the R.C.H.S. color guard adds to the visual impression. Another strong visual element is the drum/dance break that is a crowd favorite.

Solos are performed by Samantha Bullen and Johnna Ballard during the program.

While performing in several competitions the R.C.H.S. band has done rather well with the new performance. Although the band has been successful so far this season, they are still working to make the performance a bit better each week, finding ways to increase the energy level and drive of the show.