By Eli Boudreaux
At only the age of 17, senior Gabe Rinehart, is performing with the professional Drum Corp International group, Louisiana Stars. For those who don’t know, DCI is the professional level of Marching Band Performance. This past summer Gabe played with marching band members at the pro level.
Gabe, a mellophone player, had only three months experience with his instrument before stepping onto the marching field in his first national competition. For those who do not know, the mellophone is an instrument in the brass family, that is played by musicians who would normally play the French horn in an orchestral setting. Although he has only played the mellophone for these short months, Gabe has been a shining clarinet player for our own Holy Cross Tiger Band program for the past five years. It is with his time as a member of the school’s band program that Gabe grew an appreciation for professional marching band and has said, “I probably wouldn’t be in DCI if it weren’t for the Holy Cross Band and for my middle school band director, Mrs. Katie Codina.”
This summer was Gabe’s first national tour around the states with the Louisiana Stars Drum and Bugle Corps. In an interview Gabe discussed, “It was a difficult decision to decide to go on tour, I would be missing the schools band camp, my final band camp of my Holy Cross career.” In the following months Gabe will be joining more Holy Cross Band musicians on the football field during halftime this fall football season. Other than just playing for the fans on game days, Gabe and the band are also preparing for their performance in the district marching band festival later in the semester, where they hope to maintain their record of getting superior ratings in performance.
As a senior, Gabe says he wants to make his last year his most successful, putting precedence in participating in as many school events and music opportunities as possible. As a Tiger Band member, Gabe is a participating first chair clarinet in the school liturgy band, first chair tenor saxophone player in the Holy Cross Jazz Band, and section leader in the mellophone section for the Holy Cross Tiger Marching Band. Through his years in band Gabe said, “I draw a lot of inspiration from the band members who have come before me who taught me to be the bandsman that I am today and I hope that the hard work that I try to put into my work with the band will inspire more younger bandsmen to love band and enjoy being in the band as much as I have these past few years.”
After graduation, Gabe plans on continuing his path in music and hopes to continue his professional DCI training in the years to come. This Fall, Gabe is applying to Louisiana State University and dreams to join the Golden Band from Tiger Land as a mellophone player. As for now you can see Gabe in the halls and on the field each Friday night supporting the Tigers at each football game.